Radulov, Stars jump on Avs in 2nd, take 2-0 series lead

NHL

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Alexander Radulov scored on a deflection off his chest as part of a four-goal second period and the Dallas Stars beat the Colorado Avalanche 5-2 on Monday night to take a 2-0 lead in the second-round series.

Trailing 2-0 in the second period, Joe Pavelski and Radek Faksa revitalized the Stars by scoring in a 43-second span during a 5-on-3 advantage.

Dallas was just getting started. Radulov knocked in the go-ahead goal when a shot bounced off a stick, into his chest and over Colorado goaltender Pavel Francouz. Esa Lindell then added another with 46 seconds remaining to make it 4-2.

The Avalanche pulled Francouz with around two minutes left in the game, but couldn’t score. Jamie Oleksiak added an empty-netter with 10 seconds left.

Anton Khudobin stopped 38 shots as the Stars won their fifth straight game. He came up big in the first by only allowing a goal from Nathan MacKinnon, despite Colorado out-shooting Dallas, 20-6.

MacKinnon also had an assist on Mikko Rantanen’s second-period goal.

ISLANDERS 4, FLYERS 0

TORONTO (AP) — Semyon Varlamov stopped 29 shots, Andy Greene scored his first playoff goal in a decade and New York opened its second-round series by blanking Philadelphia.

The Islanders clicked early in their first playoff meeting with the rival Flyers since 1987, withstood a second-period flurry and closed it out with three goals in the third.

Greene scored in the first period and Varlamov was sharp all night in his second shutout of the 2020 playoffs and fourth of his postseason career.

Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Anders Lee and Devon Toews scored in the third period.

Carter Hart stopped 26 shots for the top-seeded Flyers.

Photo credit – Jason Franson / The Canadian Press via AP / Edmonton, AB