10 Takeaways: Do These Recent Avalanche Losses Matter?

We’re at a weird point of the season where the Avalanche are losing a lot of games that they probably should win pretty easily. Not all of them need to look like the one they had against Calgary, but there have been far too many losses to teams outside of the playoff picture.

But given how they looked against the Dallas Stars — a game they played nearly perfectly and did so without Cale Makar — do these losses even matter?

I’ve been a firm believer that they should at least clean up some of the bad habits that have hurt them in these games. But they did. They did it against the Stars in a game that you know each one of them wanted to play their best.

Ultimately, if the Avalanche lose more of these late-season games and then go on to win the Stanley Cup, nobody will remember how the regular season ended. But I’m still conflicted on how much, if at all, we should take from these losses.

“It’s strictly commitment. It’s all it is. Nothing else,” head coach Jared Bednar said. “Commitment to play the right way.”

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10 Takeaways

1. I will say, I don’t like them going 1-5-1 in their last seven games at home. But then again, if the game against Dallas was at Ball Arena, I still think it would’ve gone the same way.

2. Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas were both -3 in this game. Devon Toews was a -2. Those were the guys who, in Dallas, led the team to a huge win.

3. Nick Blankenburg recorded his first point with the Avs. But defensively, I still don’t see how he fits. I also don’t think it helps that he’s either had to be a No. 7 defenseman without a consistent partner in his first set of games, and now he’s playing on the left since the Makar injury. I’d like to see him get a look with Brett Kulak or Josh Manson as a righty.

4. Valeri Nichushkin didn’t play because of an upper-body injury, but it sounds like he’s going to be fine. Bednar said after the game that he’s day-to-day and could play on Tuesday. It sounds like another case of the coaching staff not taking any chances with any of their guys playing hurt before the playoffs.

5. The Blues suddenly have a lot to play for. Their recent stretch of wins has put them within reach of that second wildcard spot. If they manage to defeat the Avs again on Tuesday, their chances of making it would probably double. And funny enough, landing that playoff spot means they’d play the Avalanche in Round 1.

Right now, they’re three points back of both L.A. and Nashville after 76 games. But the Blues have the most regulation wins, meaning they hold the tiebreaker if it comes down to that. The Sharks are a point ahead of them, too, but they have a game in hand. If San Jose wins that extra game, they’d also be at 81 points, just like the Kings and Predators.

6. Here’s a fun little thought I had about that game on Tuesday: How are the Blues fans going to react to No. 91 in an Avalanche uniform again?

7. Mackenzie Blackwood didn’t have a bad game. It would’ve been nice for Colorado to be the team to get a late goal and win 3-2 just to help him through this rough patch.

8. Parker Kelly got his fifth goal in seven games to hit 20 on the season. He also has three assists in that stretch. What an incredible season he’s having.

9. Not that long ago, Martin Necas had 32 goals, and Kelly was at 16. I wrote about how it would see them hit 40 and 20, respectively. I thought for sure Necas would be first to his milestone, but we are. Kelly has four goals since, as does Necas. Now the start winger needs four more to get to 40. Will he do it?

10. The pre-game video celebrating Brent Burns’ 1,000th consecutive game was very well done. I liked hearing from his former teammates Erik Karlsson and Patrick Marleau as much as we did. I also loved the cameos from Joe Thornton and Phil Kessel. Those two guys are larger than life and it was nice to see the Avs get a video from each one.

Kessel ended his message to Burns with “go get a Cup.” That was cool.

The post 10 Takeaways: Do These Recent Avalanche Losses Matter? appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

“Ruthless”.

A popular word in footballing circles, often used to describe the world’s leading strikers (“He’s ruthless whenever he gets a chance inside the box”), teams who scent blood and show no mercy, hard-nosed managers who make often-controversial decisions for the good of their team (“Manager X is ruthless when it comes to making the big calls on players”), and in recent times, a term that seems to be being used with increasingly regularity in relation to Sunderland owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus.

Of course, it’s probably fair to say that its usage isn’t without merit — even if it often sits alongside “headloss”, “meltdown”, and “liability” in the collection of too easily-relied upon phrases within the Sunderland lexicon.

In recent times, the departures of Kristjaan Speakman and the recently confirmed exit of David Bruce have seemingly offered evidence of Dreyfus’ willingness set aside all traces of sentimentality when it comes to Sunderland’s chances of progress, with the future of Régis Le Bris seemingly not exempt from such speculation, either.

Inevitable? Probably.

This is a high-stakes business, after all, and almost two decades after Roman Abramovich set in motion a process that would see elite managers fired by Chelsea without a second thought, chairmen around the country have often followed suit, shaking things up and going against popular opinion in the pursuit of certain targets,

However, amid all of the talk of Sunderland reaching the ‘next level’ and suchlike, I think it’s fair to sound a note of caution — not least because the job that Le Bris has done this season in moulding almost an entirely new side into a competitive unit after an almost decade-long top flight absence shouldn’t be downplayed.

Ruthlessness in sporting circles is not always a good thing.

Occasionally, ruthlessness is a vice, borne of the desire to chase a goal that isn’t yet achievable or the result of trying to appease a fanbase that was growing restless for whatever reason. Tremendous progress has been overseen during Dreyfus’ tenure as custodian of our club, but ensuring that it doesn’t give way to muddled thinking and badly-judged decisions is paramount.

Under notoriously trigger-happy former owner George Steinbrenner, the New York Yankees’ obsessive quest for World Series glory drove regular managerial change in the Bronx. Under Abramovich, it was carried out in the spirit of parading domestic and European trophies along the King’s Road, but surely our goals — at this stage at least — are rightly a touch more modest?

I’m all for the ideal of progress and to see where this club could eventually go, but I’m also a believer in patience, seeing the bigger picture and not over-reaching if it’s not the right time to do so.

This is not a value judgement but merely a description: Le Bris is unique in Sunderland circles — a head coach the likes of which we’ve never had in post in my lifetime. Furthermore, I believe that unlike Martin O’Neill (the right man at the wrong time), Paolo Di Canio (the wrong man at the wrong time) and Michael Beale (we’ll skip that, actually), the Frenchman is that rarest of examples: the right man at the perfect time.

He’s changed the perception that only abrasive and confrontational managers or head coaches can succeed at the Stadium of Light. His hard-nosed and fiendishly tough-to-crack style of play has been extremely well suited to this league during our maiden campaign, and the team spirit he’s fostered in the process has carried us to so many memorable results during his time at the helm.

That may only grow in time, as confidence continues to rise and the players continue to develop.

You only have to witness the kinds of performances regularly being turned in by the likes of Enzo Le Fée for proof that the mutual belief between Le Bris and his players is very, very strong, and it would surely take an absolutely cataclysmic downturn for the safety of his position to be in major doubt.

Why, therefore, would you want to dismantle that, potentially sacrificing everything that’s been built on the altar of idealism and running the risk of ending up in a situation akin to Nottingham Forest?

Le Bris arrived here with relatively little fanfare and has done a sterling job; were he to depart and and a new path be taken, there’s no guarantee that we’d find the magic formula and that the players would necessarily continue on their current trajectories.

For a club in our position, stability is a priceless commodity and it’s important not to equate it with accepting mediocrity or settling for what we’ve got. The two can coexist and I sincerely hope that any further decisions that may be made on the futures of high-ranking club officials take that into consideration.

Building the latest version of Sunderland AFC required a lot of painstaking work and the odd misstep along the way. Dismantling it wouldn’t be anywhere near as arduous a task — but the results could be incredibly damaging in both the short and long term.

That shouldn’t be overlooked if and when such discussions are held, so let’s hope that a sensible approach continues to be taken. Our future prosperity may well depend on it.

NBA fans in the Bay Area were rewarded with a treat late on Sunday night. Future Hall of Fame guard, Stephen Curry, suited up for his team to play for his first time in more than two months. .

While the return of Steph was expected to help, their injury report was still extensive, as previously covered on Roundtable. It would be a tough test for Golden State, as the Rockets were in town looking to build on their five consecutive wins.

Stephen Curry took a while to get in the stat sheet, as his minutes restriction forced Steve Kerr to bring him off of the bench. The Warriors did quite alright without their star though.

The game started 7-0 for Golden State, followed by a 6-0 run on Houston’s side. Just to make things more weird, the Warriors went on to score another six unanswered.

They don’t call it “a game of runs” for no reason.

The home crowd roared with excitement as Curry checked in with just under five minutes remaining. His presence was felt right away, dropping a dime to Charles Bassey just seconds into his return.

There did appear to be some rust initially though. Steph was blocked by Durant and turned the ball over on consecutive possessions. This allowed the Rockets to close the gap again (24-25), but back to back Şengün turnovers allowed GSW to pull back out in front.

Curry got back in the scoring column with a signature bomb from way outside, ending an exciting first quarter 26-31.

After the initial slow start, the Rockets started the next period on fire. A 13-0 run completely blew the game open less than three minutes into the quarter. At least that’s what it seemed like.

In reality, the relentless and newly inspired Warriors stuck around and actually regained the lead with Curry on the bench. Back and forth once again, and 55-53 for Houston

The final 24 started with a bang: KD with a 4-point play, then KP with a dunk plus the foul. The 7’3 unicorn got himself another poster immediately after.

I think Şengün took that personally, as he went right at Porzinigis afterwards. Once again, Houston started to pull away after his 17th point gave them their first double digit lead at 70-60.

Jabari Smith Jr. drilled his fourth triple of the game, with his 19th point extending the lead to 12. Just hold only that lead to close to quarter, and the victory would become much easier.

Unfortunately Kevin Durant had to stop the bleeding after the Warriors went on another 11-0 run to end the quarter. From 15 points, to a single possession game, Houston felt lucky to still head into the final period with a double digit advantage.

That lead was cut in half just one minute into the fourth quarter before Jabari Smith and Alperen Şengün got back in their bags. The Rockets were able to maintain that double digit lead for a majority of the final stint, but it officially became a clutch game with 3:55 left.

Curry's 24th point made it 109-104 and brought the arena to life. An Amen Thompson turnover brought an even louder roar. Houston honestly just got lucky as Steph missed a layup on his next trip down. No worries for them, as another Rockets' turnover basically reset everything.

Melton's corner three dropped this time. 109-107, so who do you call? The Slim Reaper drained a three, but Bari couldn't match it the next time down. Two GSW layups made it a one point game.

After a Şengün and-one, plus another Curry bomb, the scoreboard read 115-114. Houston leads with 57.4 seconds remaining.

With the game on the line, a stop would be huge. The Rockets understandably sell out at Curry, but this allowed GP2 to slip inside for a potential game winner. 115-116 Warriors.

With 16.1 left, a quick drive from Durant and dropoff the Şengün gave them their final bucket of the night, and it'd thankfully be enough to hold off the team in Golden State. A tough fought win, the Rockets certainly earned their sixth consecutive victory.

I don’t typically like international breaks at all. Bar the World Cups or Euros, I barely pay attention to international football, and usually, the national teams getting together is just an unnecessary diversion from league action.

This international break, however, could not have been better timed. By the time we take to the field on Sunday to face off against the hilariously-in-trouble Spurs, it’ll be 21 days since we returned from the Landfill On The Hill with all three points. Again.

Those three weeks have given us plenty of time to enjoy the win, and plenty of time to listen to, read, and watch the spectacularly lacking in self-awareness fall out from north of the Tyne.

It’s given the players a break after a hectic four months of Premier League action since the last international break, and it’s also given us as supporters a chance to reflect on just what has been achieved over the past year or so – and look ahead to the rest of the season too.

With seven games left, we’re into the final chapter of the 2025/26 campaign, one that so far has been probably the best I can remember in 40-odd years of watching the lads.

The first chapter of the season – before the October international break – brought hope, exuberance and a fair degree of confidence, as the lads got home wins against West Ham and Brentford, an away win at Forest, and credible points at Palace and against Villa.

Chapter two saw that optimism grow and grow – a win over Wolves was followed by another three points at Chelsea that really made the rest of the league realise Sunderland definitely weren’t here to make up the numbers, as did an extremely credible draw at home to Arsenal. A home win over Bournemouth, meanwhile, showed the character of the team to come back against the odds and claim all three points.

Chapter three was the one in which we’d be ‘definitely found out’, but proved we could really stick in and get results. Away to Liverpool, home and away to City, the derby and losing players to AFCON… We really should have beaten Liverpool, got a great draw at home to City, a good point at Brighton, and of course beat the Saudis too.

Chapter four – the flurry of games early in the new year saw a bit of adversity to overcome – a couple of poor games, away at Brentford and West Ham were responded to well with an FA Cup penalty win at Everton and a routine home dispatching of Burnley. Defeats away to Arsenal and home to Liverpool were disappointing but certainly not unexpected or embarassing.

Chapter five, meanwhile, saw us beat Oxford in the cup, get a good draw at Bournemouth and beat Leeds and Newcastle away – as well as dropping points in home games to Fulham and Brighton, and the disappointment of Port Vale.

The closing chapter, the one that’s going to start on Sunday, is going to be a completely different one as there’s pretty much no pressure on us now in terms of achieving the primary goal that the team has been aiming for all season – staying up. So it’ll be really interesting to see the story the team writes to finish off the season.

Will Le Bris use these final seven games to try out a few tweaks in tactics and approach? We know goalscoring and chance creation has been something they’ve been trying to improve (I think we saw that improvement against Newcastle as it goes).

Or will he look to give certain players minutes – Chris Rigg and Eliezer Mayenda immediately spring to mind as lads who have the potential to play Premier League football more regularly. Or what about Dennis Cirkin, who I still believe has a load of potential and could well make the step up. Finn Geragusian was given his first international cap last week, and his manager talked about ‘needing to speed up his progress’. A League debut would certainly do that – and more importantly give us more leverage in contract talks too.

Or will we simply go into this next run looking at it more simply – getting as many points as possible on the board and trying to get into Europe? That would be some achievement, and certainly not one that would be beyond the realms of possibility for this set of players and coaching staff.

It’ll be intriguing to watch – and if the past 12 months has proven anything at all, it’s that anything can happen.

Bruce’s Departure Sows Unnecessary Seed Of Doubt – But Time Will Tell…

While on the field – thanks to the Derby win – it’s all looking up, off the field there’s a little more to ponder – and this could well be a subplot to the season’s final chapter – because David Bruce’s exit was a real surprise, and it was a move that’s understandably provoked a lot of concern.

First of all, it’s important to acknowledge the current ownership group have done remarkably well since taking over the club, but the improvement since Bruce arrived has been stratospheric, and I fear the club have made a big mistake here.

Who knows what the reasons were behind the move – we will only ever know so much as supporters – but the visible improvement in so many areas since Bruce’s arrival has been there for all to see.

However, the biggest concern for me is the loss of Sunderland knowledge from the group of people steering the club. You need baked in, from-birth knowledge of Sunderland high up at the club, and with Bruce following David Jones out of the club we’ve lost that completely.

Would a David Bruce-less leadership group have understood the hummel connection? Or the Welcome To Sunderland sign? Or the desire to honour and recognise legends? I doubt it. And that’s what’s at risk.

I don’t want us to become a club that’s so focused on progression that we lose sight of what’s really important. We don’t want to compromise the fabric of the club, the history of the club, and the connection between the club and the supporters.

Having people in leadership positions at the club who have stood in the Fulwell End, or who sat in the North Stand as Status Quo descended onto the field is essential, as they understand more than other people possible could, and they will go that extra mile for success.

Bruce’s presence was also a big trust builder for the ownership group, as we had ‘someone like us’ in there vouching for them.

I just hope KLD and the board truly understand that. My gut isn’t feeling right about this one – but we’ll see how it goes.

It won't be long before Adam Jiricek and Justin Carbonneau are each wearing a St. Louis Blues jersey.

But the past two first-round picks are busy at the moment fueling runs by their respective junior squads these days.

For Jiricek (2024, 16th overall) and Brantford, it was a clean sweep for the top seed in the Ontario Hockey League, and all the defenseman needed was one huge game to make an impact on the offensive side while defensively doing his part throughout the series.

The Bulldgs made it a clean sweep of Sudbury, winning 6-5 in overtime in Game 3 last Tuesday before finishing off the Wolves, 2-1 in Game 4, last Thursday.

Jiricek had two goals, three assists in the series, and all five points came in Game 3, including four power-play points.

He whipped in this wrister in the first period to get the 'Dogs off and running:

Jiricek walks in and rips it! 🎯 #BFDhttps://t.co/3jr2XVEzAbpic.twitter.com/iaDGMQQ1cx

— Brantford Bulldogs (@BulldogsOHL) March 31, 2026

And then with the Wolves leading 4-2, he started the comeback with this one-timer from the slot that drew Brantford within one with just under 13 minutes to play in the game:

Jiricek with the one time blast 💥 #BFDhttps://t.co/4dYN6l7lJRpic.twitter.com/ZGOeM18CX3

— Brantford Bulldogs (@BulldogsOHL) April 1, 2026

Jiricek, who had two primary assists on 2026 top prospect Caleb Malhotra goals, advances with the Bulldogs into the Eastern Conference semifinal series where they will face North Bay beginning with Game 1 in Brantford on Wednesday, April 8.

* As for Carbonneau and Blainville-Boisbriand of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League, it was also a clean 4-0 first-round sweep of Victoriaville.

The 2025 first-round pick (No. 19), who had an assist in Game 1 and a goal and three assists in Game 2, would score the overtime game-winner in Game 3 of a 4-3 win last Tuesday:

JUSTIN CARBONNEAU! 🫡

The game-winning goal, in overtime, and @ArmadaBLB leads 3-0 in the series!#QPlayoffs | #Proxi@StLouisBlues | #stlbluespic.twitter.com/qxvlhl4GhS

— QMJHL (@QMJHL) April 1, 2026

Carbonneau would also score this breakaway in the second period to give the Armada a 3-0 lead en route to a 4-1 win to close out Game 4 and the series last Wednesday:

Justin Carbonneau strikes again! 😤

The Game #3 Overtime Hero scores on a breakaway! @ArmadaBLB#QPlayoffs | #Proxi@StLouisBlues | #stlbluespic.twitter.com/kKrXMNLNtu

— QMJHL (@QMJHL) April 2, 2026

Carbonneau would finish the series with three goals and four assists to go with a plus-6 as the Armada await their next opponent in the second round.

* For defenseman Lukas Fischer (2024, second round) and Sault Ste. Marie, the Greyhounds also took care of business in the OHL in the opening round with a 4-1 series win over London.

After winning the first two games on the road as the fifth seed with Fischer picking up a goal and two assists, the Soo split Games 3 and 4, winning 3-2 in double overtime in Game 3, before falling 4-1 in Game 4. Fischer had an assist in the series-clincher, when the Greyhounds took Game 5, 4-0 on Friday.

Next up for the Soo is a Western Conference semifinal series against top-seeded Kitchener with Game 1 slated for Friday, April 10.

* For Adam Jecho (2023, third round) and Edmonton of the Western Hockey League, it will come down to a winner-take-all Game 7 in the Oil Kings' series against Saskatoon after Edmonton won Game 6, 3-2 in double overtime on Sunday.

Jecho has a goal and two assists in the series, including a Game 4 empty-net goal last Wednesday.

Game 7 will be Monday in Edmonton at 8 p.m. (CT).

* Will McIsaac (2024, fifth round) and Spokane have been eliminated in the WHL playoffs when the Chiefs were knocked out in Game 6 on Sunday night, falling to Prince George 5-3.

McIsaac, who announced he would be attending the University of Connecticut to play next season, had a run of four straight games with an assist from Gamers 2-5 (five assists).

The Chiefs fell behind 3-0 in the series before winning Game 4 on home ice, 3-2 last Wednesday, and Game 5, 4-3 in overtime also on home ice; McIsaac assisted on the tying goal with 56 seconds left in regulation to send the game to OT.

Despite the series loss, McIsaac was an impressive plus-7 in the series and did not have one game as a minus until Sunday when unfortunately he was a minus-3.

But now it's time for the defenseman to trade in his Chiefs logo for that of the UConn Huskies.

* Antoine Dorion (2024, seventh round) and the Quebec Remparts will look to stay alive in their QMJHL series against Charlottetown when they go to Game 6 on Monday in Charlottetown.

Dorion hasn't reached the scoresheet in five games, and the Remparts who took a 2-1 series lead with a 4-3 win at home in Game 3, then dropped back-to-back home games in Games 4-5 by identical 3-2 scores in a tight series.

The pivotal Game 5 was played on Friday.

* Don't look now, but Springfield is making a huge push to reach the Calder Cup playoffs, something that didn't seem possible earlier in the season but as of late, the Thunderbirds have made quite the surge.

They extended their winning streak to a season-high tying four games with a pair of huge wins over the weekend, 4-2 on home ice against Hershey on Friday, then topping Syracuse, 4-3 in a shootout at home on Saturday.

By getting those wins, Springfield (29-29-6-2) held firm to the sixth and final spot in the Atlantic Division, extending the Thunderbirds' lead on Lehigh Valley by four points (66-62) with a game in hand, They also trail the Bears by one for fifth with a game in hand and by two points behind Bridgeport for fourth. Each team has six games left in the season.

And Aleksanteri Kaskimaki (2022, third round) is putting this team on his shoulders.

He scored a goal Friday in the win over the Bears:

KASKIMAKI IS RED HOT pic.twitter.com/AXhSZdjg4j

— Springfield Thunderbirds (@ThunderbirdsAHL) April 4, 2026

And then he had a goal and two assists on Saturday in the win against the Crunch:

THE KID DOES IT AGAIN 🔥 pic.twitter.com/JftCDG46VL

— Springfield Thunderbirds (@ThunderbirdsAHL) April 4, 2026

Kaskimaki, who has 39 points (18 goals, 21 assists) in 58 games this season, has 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in the past nine games.

Another key player has been Thomas Bordeleau, who the Blues acquired from the New Jersey Devils in the Nick Bjugstad trade, and talk about a rebirth, this is it.

In 35 games with Utica, Bordeleau had just eight points (two goals, six assists). Since joining the T-birds, seven goals and five assists in 20 games, including goals in back-to-back games this weekend, one against Lehigh Valley:

THOMAS SCORE-DELEAU pic.twitter.com/YKkLPvcarC

— Springfield Thunderbirds (@ThunderbirdsAHL) April 4, 2026

And then another in the win over Syracuse for a point in three straight games and seven points in nine games:

BORDE-🐐 pic.twitter.com/BDVcK540Om

— Springfield Thunderbirds (@ThunderbirdsAHL) April 4, 2026

Then there's sort of the forgotten man, Akil Thomas, who the Blues acquired from the Los Angeles Kings in the trade that sent Nikita Alexandrov to L.A.

After scoring against Providence on March 29, Thomas opened the scoring on Friday against the Phantoms and had an assist:

AKIL THOMAS TIES THIS GAME pic.twitter.com/3ncPNTVgKH

— Springfield Thunderbirds (@ThunderbirdsAHL) April 4, 2026

He then was called upon and scored the shootout winner in the fourth round to secure the extra point to give him four points (two goals, two assists) in three games:

MR. SATURDAY NIGHT pic.twitter.com/4frcyzp2H6

— Springfield Thunderbirds (@ThunderbirdsAHL) April 5, 2026

* To Russia and the KHL, the season came to a close for Matvei Korotky (2024, seventh round) and SKA St. Petersburg, losing in five games to Dmitry Buchelnikov, a 2022 second-round pick acquired in the Justin Faulk trade with the Detroit Red Wings, and CSKA Moscow.

CSKA took Game 5, winning 6-2 at home to close out the series on March 31.

Korotky, 22, who had 27 points (14 goals, 13 assists) in 43 games this season, had just one assist in five playoff games but is someone to keep an eye on potentially coming to North America, not next season but as early as 2027-28.

As for Buchelnikov, who had an assist in the series clincher, he finished with a goal and two assists in the series to follow up a regular season of 25 points (14 goals, 11 assists) in 44 games.

CSKA now advances to the Western Conference semifinal to face Avangard Omsk, beginning with Games 1-2 in Omsk on Wednesday and Friday, followed by Games 3-4 in Moscow April 12 and 14.

For Traktor and defenseman Arseny Koromyslov (2022, fourth round), it was also an uphill climb when in our last report, they faced a 3-1 deficit to Ak Bars and would go on to lose that series in five games, falling 2-1 in overtime in Game 5 on March 31.

Traktor lost three games in OT.

Koromyslov, who had one assist in the series and finished the regular season with one goal and 16 assists, logged an average of 20:35 in the series, including 28:59 in Game 4, after averaging 16:59 in time on ice during the regular season.

He's likely to remain in the KHL at least through 2026-27 also.

* Goalie Love Harenstam (2025, sixth round) is into the second round of the HockeyAllsvenskan playoffs for Sodertalje SK.

They trail their best-of-7 series against top-seeded IF Bjorkloven 2-1 after dropping the first two games, falling 3-2 in the opener, in which Harenstam stopped 28 of 31 shots on March 30; he did not play in a 3-2 overtime loss last Wednesday but came back in Game 3 at home and stopped 30 of 32 shots in a must-win 4-2 victory on Friday.

Game 4 is set for Monday morning.

* In Finland, forward Ondrej Kos (2024, third round) and Ilves Tampere lead their best-of-5 quarterfinal series against KalPa 2-1 with Game 4 looming on Monday morning.

Kos has played two games in the series for Ilves, who can close things out in Game 4 ay KalPa.

Colin Ralph Leaves Michigan State, Signs Three-Year Entry-Level Contract2024 second-round pick left St. Cloud State to join Spartans, in hopes of winning a national championship

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