What's on Tap on Ice: Weekend NHL Playoffs Action

The weekend of May 28-30, 2021 may be the greatest weekend of hockey so far this season. With a Game Seven on Friday night, a potential elimination game on Saturday, and the start of second-round action on Saturday and Sunday, this weekend’s slate is loaded with exciting NHL action.

Here, we’ll break down the highlights from each day that you won’t want to miss.

Friday, May 28

Minnesota Wild vs. Vegas Golden Knights

There’s nothing better in sports than Game Seven. Both clubs will lay it all on the line Friday night in Vegas when the Golden Knights host the Minnesota Wild. Vegas held a 3-1 series lead, but Minnesota has rallied in the last two contests to push the series to the limit. 

Puck drop is at 9:00 P.M. Eastern. The winner of this series gets a second-round date with the Colorado Avalanche. Scoring will be at a premium, as the teams have combined for three shutouts through six games (Minnesota shut Vegas out twice, the Golden Knights shut the Wild out once).

As the only game on Friday’s schedule, you won’t want to miss it.

Saturday, May 29

Toronto Maple Leafs at Montreal Canadiens

After a plucky overtime win in Game Five to stave off elimination, the series returns to Montreal for Game Six in what will be the noisiest game in Canada so far this season. For the first time since COVID-19 hit, fans will be allowed into the building in Canada, though still in an extremely limited capacity. 

The Bell Centre will allow 2,500 fans into the venue for Game Six, and the cheapest tickets cost nearly $1,600. At that kind of premium and with everything on the line, those 2,500 fans will sound like 25,000. Expect an electric atmosphere and a heck of a contest on the ice. Three games in this series have been decided by one goal.

Puck drop is at 7:30 P.M. on NBCSN.

New York Islanders at Boston Bruins

Starting off the Second Round Action, the Islanders and Bruins play a gritty, defense-first style of hockey that should provide plenty of big hits, highlight-reel saves, and clutch performances from star players and role players alike. 

The Islanders won five of eight regular-season meetings against Boston, and three of the eight games went to overtime. This is another series that could go a full seven games with multiple overtimes along the way.

Sunday, May 30

Vegas/Minnesota vs. Colorado Avalanche

With nearly no turnaround time, the winner of the Vegas/Minnesota series heads to Colorado to take on the Avalanche. Colorado hasn’t played since May 23 after sweeping the St. Louis Blues in the first round. Will they be rested or rusty?

If they’re rested, Colorado’s potent offense should be right back to work after scoring 20 goals in their first four playoff games.

Other Notes to Know

• The Carolina Hurricanes and Tampa Bay Lightning may drop the puck on their series on Sunday as well, but the schedule for that series has not been announced as of publication.
• Three Ohioans remain on NHL playoff rosters: Alex Nedeljkovic (Parma, OH) with the Carolina Hurricanes, Sean Kuraly (Dublin, OH) with the Boston Bruins, and Kiefer Sherwood (Columbus, OH) with the Colorado Avalanche
• As of publication, the Avalanche are the favorites to win the Cup at +225. Hot on their heels are the Boston Bruins +475, Tampa Bay Lightning +475, and Carolina Hurricanes +700.