FAQ » veteran-laden team.In Buffalo, he’ll

PHILADELPHIA (AP) Jake Guentzel scored four straight goals to help send the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins into the second round with an 8-5 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 6 on Sunday.The Penguins will play the winner of the Washington-Columbus series in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Washington leads that series 3-2.Sean Couturier also had a hat trick for the Flyers Youth Matt Duchene Jersey , who haven’t won a Stanley Cup since 1975.Guentzel, not Sidney Crosby, Phil Kessel or the injured Evgeni Malkin, won the game for the Penguins with goals off costly Flyers turnovers, leading them to their ninth straight playoff series win.He tied it at 4 with 54 seconds left in the second period off a Flyers turnover. He scored 30 seconds into the third for the lead off another giveaway, and sealed one more lopsided win over the Flyers with two goals 10 seconds apart late in the period.It was 2-2 after one period, 4-4 after two, and nothing was decided in the fiercest game of the series between the longstanding rivals until Guentzel took control.Crosby, Carl Hagelin, Patric Hornqvist and Bryan Rust also scored for the Penguins.Scott Laughton and Andrew MacDonald scored for Philadelphia. The Flyers lost all three games at home and not even a solid start could help them get out of the first round for the first time since 2012.PREDATORS 5, AVALANCHE 0DENVER (AP) – Mattias Ekhom ignited the offense early with the first goal by a Nashville defenseman in the series Mike Condon Jersey , Pekka Rinne stopped 22 shots and the top-seeded Predators advanced to the second round.Austin Watson, Filip Forsberg, Nick Bonino and Viktor Arvidsson also scored to help the Predators move on to face Winnipeg. They were 3-1-1 against the Jets in the regular season.Nashville removed any sort of drama with two goals in the opening period and two more in the second to hush the capacity crowd. Rinne was on his game in notching his fourth career postseason shutout.Andrew Hammond ran out of magic in net, allowing five goals. The third-string goaltender nicknamed ”Hamburglar” had 44 saves during a Game 5 win in Nashville to extend the series. But he couldn’t turn back a formidable Nashville offense that won a second straight playoff contest in Denver. BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) As the son of a journeyman hockey player and eventual coach, Buffalo Sabres newly acquired forward Tage Thompson became accustomed to never staying put in one place for too long.”I’m not sure the amount of states I’ve lived in,” Thompson said Monday, in recalling how he attended nine schools by the time he began his junior year at a high school in Michigan.”Almost a new school every year,” he added. ”So, I’ve moved around quite a bit.”His father is Brent Thompson, who is the coach of Bridgeport in the American Hockey League. His career included numerous stops from playing for the AHL’s Hershey Bears in Pennsylvania to coaching the ECHL’s Alaska Aces.It’s been a similar life of travel for the 20-year-old Thompson in the two years since being selected by the Blues in the first round of the draft following his freshman college year at UConn.Upon splitting last season between St. Louis and the Blues’ AHL Affiliate in San Antonio Ryan Dzingel Jersey , Texas, Thompson is headed to Buffalo. He was acquired along with two veteran teammates and two draft picks on Sunday, in a deal that sent center Ryan O’Reilly to St. Louis.Perhaps, now, Thompson can finally get a chance to settle down.”I feel like I’ve been living out of a suitcase, honestly,” he said. ”I really do hope Buffalo’s it.”The Sabres are counting on it after Blues general manager Doug Armstrong said Buffalo insisted Thompson be included in the trade. The Sabres also acquired centers Patrik Berglund and Vladimir Sobotka, as well as a conditional 2019 first-round pick and a 2021 second-rounder.At just over 6 feet and 205 pounds, Thompson had three goals and nine assists in 41 games as an NHL rookie last season, while playing a limited role on a veteran-laden team.In Buffalo, he’ll get a shot to earn a spot on one of the top two lines on a team rebuilding through youth.”What we see in Tage is a kid who has a great shot Womens Tom Pyatt Jersey , great size, and a really good reach on the ice,” GM Jason Botterill said. ”I think he’s a player that’s going to be able to step into our lineup and grow with our young centermen.”Thompson can’t wait, and recalled how he was with his father when Armstrong called to inform him of the trade.Once the shock wore off, the two discussed the opportunities the Sabres present.”The more we sat and thought about it, we felt it’s a great fit for me,” Thompson said. ”It’s going to be exactly what I’ve been looking for as far as an opportunity to go in and play a lot and produce, and help the team win.”—