News

Eastern Conference
(8)Ekaterinburg 1 @ (1)Yulaev 8
Yulaev Wins the Series 3-1
Denis Kazionov, 0-0-0, -1, 0 PIM, 3 SOG
Season totals: 51 GP, 5-3-8, -18, 20 PIM
Playoff totals: 4 GP, 0-0-0, -3, 6 PIM

Ekaterinburg's chance for a Cindarella ending came to a screeching hault in an 8-1 series clinching Game Four win by Yulaev. Ex-Predators forward Alexander Radulov had 1 goal and 3 assists in the game for Yulaev. Denis Kazionov played 11:59 in the match, completing his first full season as a regular KHL player.

(7)Chelyabinsk 2 @ (2)Magnitogorsk 3 (OT)
Magnitogorsk Wins the Series 3-1
Vasily Koshechkin, Magnitogorsk, Win, 30/32, 1.57 GAA, .938 sv%
Season totals: 49 GP, 25-16-8, 8 SO, 1.96 GAA, .927 sv%
Playoff totals: 4 GP, 3-1, 0 SO, 1.62 GAA, .944 sv%

Magnitogorsk ended the upset dreams of seventh seeded Chelyabinsk with a pair of goals by Denis Platonov, including the overtime winner. Ex-NHLer Stan Chistov also had a goal for Magnitogorsk.

Three Lightning prospects have made it through to the conference semifinals in the KHL. In the East, 2nd seed Magnitogorsk and Vasily Koshechkin will square off against 3rd seed Kazan and Dmitri Kazionov. Meanwhile, in the West, Cindarella 8th seed Dynamo Riga and Martins Karsums will face 2nd seed KHK MVD.

QMJHL

St. John Sea Dogs 2 @ Moncton Wildcats 5
D Mark Barberio, MCT: 2-0-2, +2, 2 PIM, 2 SOG
Season Totals: 65 GP, 17-43-60, +39, 72 PIM

In a game broadcast on NHL Network, Barberio and Moncton defeated top-seeded St. John to end the regular season on a winning note. Barberio scored twice, the first on the power play when he pinched in from the point and buried a cross-crease pass. The second came while shorthanded into an empty net. Moncton finishes with the league’s third-best point total at 102, two points behind Drummondville and seven behind St. John. They’ll play Cape Breton in the first round. After a slow start to the season in the goal department, Barberio finished with a bang, scoring 14 times after Christmas. Barberio set career highs in goals (+1), assists (+12), points (+14), and plus/minus (+31). He finished fifth in the Q in points among defensemen, sixth in goals, fifth in assists, and seventh in plus/minus. Barberio and Moncton should have a long playoff season ahead, at least until the conference finals, which should be vs. the same Sea Dogs they defeated Sunday night.

OHL

Sudbury Wolves 2 @ Ottawa 67’s 3 (OT)
W Matias Sointu, SBY: 0-1-1, +1, 0 PIM
Season Totals: 51 GP, 8-21-29, -3, 24 PIM
With Sudbury: 29 GP, 5-14-19, -8, 18 PIM
With Ottawa: 21 GP, 3-7-10, +5, 6 PIM

With Niagara’s loss, Sudbury was a second point away from avoiding Barrie in the East’s first round, but it was not to be as Sointu’s former team scored in overtime. The Wolves, who had 59 points on the year, will indeed play Alex Hutchings and Barrie, who finished the year 57 points better than Sudbury. Sointu finished the regular season very strong, scoring nine points in his last seven games.

OHL Scoring Race

Speaking of Hutchings, he finished the year fourth in the OHL in goals (tie - 47), 14th in points (81), first in shorthanded goals (11; 7 more than anyone else), first in game winning goals (tie – 11), second in insurance goals (tie – 7), and fifth in plus/minus (+44). Overall, Plymouth’s Tyler Seguin (48-58-106) and Windsor’s Taylor Hall (40-66-106), who will battle for the No.1 draft spot this summer, finished tied for the league lead in points.

WHL

Vancouver Giants 3 @ Seattle Thunderbirds 4 (OT)
C/W/D James Wright, VAN: 0-0-0, -2, 4 PIM (boarding, roughing)
Season Totals: 21 GP, 6-13-19, -3, 17 PIM
With Tampa Bay: 43 GP, 2-3-5, -9, 18 PIM

The Giants, who have struggled the last two weeks, played ninth place Seattle for a chance to enter the playoffs on a win streak, but were foiled by T-Birds goalie Calvin Pickard (2010 eligible), who stopped 51 shots in a First Star performance. Wright, a noted two-way player who skated for Tampa Bay of the NHL for most of the season because of his two-way abilities, finished his regular season with Vancouver with a surprising minus-3 rating. Wright and Vancouver will have to regroup as they enter the playoffs against seventh-seeded Kamloops. In other WHL news, Calgary’s Brandon Kozon (Kings 6/09) won the league scoring title by one point over Regina’s Jordan Eberle (Oilers 1/08), 107-106.

The Pens get the benefit of the bounce.

PIT-2
TB-1

Antero Niittymaki allowed 2 goals on 39 shots for the loss. He certainly did everything he could to give the Lightning a chance to win and seems to be getting hot again. A hot Niitty is probably the only chance the Lightning have down the stretch.

First Period
NO SCORING

Second Period
TB 8:09, Lecavalier 20 (Fedoruk, Hedman)

Third Period
PIT 2:20, Dupuis 17 (Staal, Cooke)
PIT 5:17, Gonchar 10 (Crosby, Ponikarovsky)(PP)

The difference in the game was the goofy bounce Pittsburgh got on their first goal and the solid goaltending of Fleury in the first period. It makes you wonder though why this team could play poorly and lose in overtime against the worst team in the conference (Toronto) and then turn around and beat the best (Washington) and take the defending champs (Pittsburgh) to the brink. If they played with the same intensity they did in the first period of this game, they'd be sitting on 80-90 points in the standings already. That's frustrating in the near term, as this team's playoff chances are becoming slim. In the long term Lightning fans should take heart. A young team like this is going to figure that out, and have the chance to be an elite team when they do.

Congratulations to Vincent Lecavalier on his 10th straight 20 goal season. That's 10 straight seasons of excellence, no matter how you slice it.

Also, congratulations to Steven Stamkos for making Matt Cooke a stain on the ice during a third period power play. Now that's young leadership you can believe in.

Paul Szczechura had 2 penalty minutes, 2 shots, and 1 blocked shot in 13:01. He was also 56% on draws and almost had the first goal of the game on a 2-on-1 feed from Lecavalier that was turned aside by Fleury. I must apologize to Szczechura for missing that his last game against the Caps (3-12-10) marked his graduation from prospect status on Bolt Prospects. So, he got an extra night of coverage tonight so that we can extend congratulations to him on becoming a full-time NHLer with 41 and now 42 games played this season. He'll likely be the last graduate of the 2009/2010 class that included Downie, Hedman, and Wright already.

Box score and extended statistics from NHL.com.

Eastern Conference
(8)Ekaterinburg 4 @ (1)Yulaev 3
Yulaev Leads the Series 2-1
Denis Kazionov, Ekaterinburg, 0-0-0, -1, 0 PIM, 1 SOG
Season totals: 51 GP, 5-3-8, -18, 20 PIM
Playoff totals: 3 GP, 0-0-0, -2, 6 PIM

Not so fast my friends! Despite a pair of goals by former Edmonton prospect Patrick Thoresen, Ekaterinburg upset top seeded Yulaev to extend their opening round playoff series to a Game Four. Denis Kazionov played just 4:08 in the match.

(7)Chelyabinsk 2 @ (2)Magnitogorsk 1 (OT)
Magnitogorsk Leads the Series 2-1
Vasily Koshechkin, Magnitogorsk, Loss, 26/28, 1.88 GAA, .929 sv%
Season totals: 49 GP, 25-16-8, 8 SO, 1.96 GAA, .927 sv%
Playoff totals: 3 GP, 2-1, 0 SO, 1.64 GAA, .946 sv%

Pierre Dagenais scored for Chelyabinsk 4 minutes into overtime to help keep his club alive for Game Four against Mangitogorsk. Vasily Koshechkin's playoff save percentage dropped to a still-superhuman .946 in the loss.

(6)Astana 1 @ (3)Kazan 3
Kazan Wins the Series 3-0
Dmitri Kazionov, Kazan, 0-0-0, E, 0 PIM, 2 SOG
Season totals: 52 GP, 18-9-27, +7, 18 PIM
Playoff totals: 0-0-0, +1, 0 PIM

Alexei Morozov had 1 goal and 1 assist to help Kazan complete a 3-game opening round sweep of Astana. Former Lightning prospect Ilya Solarev had an assist on Astana's only goal. Dmitri Kazionov played 17:16 in the match.

(5)Omsk 1 @ (4)Nizhnekamsk 2
Nizhnekamsk Wins the Series 3-0
Karri Ramo, Omsk, Loss, 25/27, 2.03 GAA, .926 sv%
Season totals: 44 GP, 21-17-4, 4 SO, 2.11 GAA, .913 sv%
Playoff totals: 3 GP, 0-3, 0 SO, 3.04 GAA, .886 sv%

The season is over for Karri Ramo. He and Omsk allowed a goal by Maxim Yakutsenya with 3:33 remaining in regulation to allow Nizhnekamsk to complete the three game sweep. Ex-Lightning forward Eric Perrin had the only goal of the match for Omsk. Let the Ramo signing watch begin.

Western Conference
(8)Dynamo Riga 4 @ (1)St. Petersburg 2
Riga Wins the Series 3-1
Martins Karsums, Dynamo Riga, 1-0-1, +1, 0 PIM, 1 SOG
Season totals: 12 GP, 4-4-8, +7, 16 PIM
Playoff totals: 4 GP, 1-0-1, -1, 2 PIM

Riga completed its upset of top-seeded St. Petersburg, partly on the strength of a pair of assists by former NHLer Sandis Ozolinsh. Martins Karsums scored an empty-net goal in 19:34 of ice time.

(6)Spartak Moscow 4 @ (3)Dynamo Moscow 0
Spartak Wins the Series 3-1
Johan Harju, Dynamo Moscow, DNP
Season totals: 55 GP, 4-14-18, -10, 38 PIM
Playoff totals: 2 GP, 1-0-1, -2, 8 PIM

Ex-Lightning forward Martin Cibak had a pair of assists to help secure a Game Four victory for Spartak and an opening round playoff series win. Johan Harju missed his second straight game for Dynamo Moscow. No word on if he is injured. Either way, his season in the KHL is now over, and the Lightning are expected to try to sign Harju this offseason.

Elsewhere in the KHL, Yaroslavl knocked off Mytischi to win their Western Conference series 3-1. Lightning prospects Dmitri Kazionov and Martins Karsums are already through to the second round. Karri Ramo and Johan Harju are headed home. Only two playoff series remain to be settled, and both are in the Eastern Conference. Denis Kazionov and Ekaterinburg will play Game Four against Yulaev tomorrow with his club down 2-1 in the series. Vasily Koshechkin and Magnitogorsk will also play tomorrow as they try to dispose of Chelyabinsk in Game Four.

QMJHL

Just a reminder: Mark Barberio and Moncton will play St. John Sunday night at 7:00 PM Eastern time on NHL Network.

OHL

Belleville Bulls 1 @ Niagara IceDogs 8
C Richard Panik, BEL: 1-0-1, -1, 4 PIM (hooking, tripping)
Season Totals: 60 GP, 21-20-41, +3, 55 PIM
With Bulls: 27 GP, 12-11-23, -12, 36 PIM
With Windsor: 33 GP, 9-9-18, +15, 19 PIM
RW Kyle DeCoste, BEL: Did not play.
Season Totals: 57 GP, 19-14-33, -19, 51 PIM
With Bulls: 44 GP, 17-13-30, -17, 31 PIM
With SSM: 13 GP, 2-1-3, -2, 20 PIM

Panik’s junior career likely came to an end Saturday night when the Bulls were destroyed in their 2009-10 finale. Panik, who impressed the Lightning during last fall’s NHL training camp, is a candidate to join AHL Norfolk and finish the year with the Admirals on a tryout agreement. Panik started his first season in North America slowly, but had a good World Junior Championships for Slovakia, performed moderately well after being traded from Windsor, and finished with a bang, scoring five goals and nine points in his last six games. The 2009 second round pick ended the year with a three-game point streak in which he scored six points. As for DeCoste, his season was ended two weeks ago when he suffered a concussion against Barrie. DeCoste’s game blossomed after a trade to Belleville, but the 2008 fifth rounder was inconsistent despite setting moderate career highs for goals, assists, and points. Speculation is DeCoste has an outside shot of being signed for depth at forward in the system, but is more likely to return to the OHL next year as a free agent overager. The Lightning chose not to fill their 50-man organization roster by a handful of spots this year, so if the new ownership decides to use all 50 spots next year and utilize an ECHL affiliate, DeCoste may have a better chance of earning a professional contract from the club.

Kingston Frontenacs 2 @ Barrie Colts 4
LW/C Alex Hutchings, BAR: 1-0-1, +1, 2 PIM (tripping)
Season Totals: 68 GP, 47-34-81, +44, 58 PIM

Hutchings’ regular season came to an end Saturday, but he and the Colts should have a long future ahead of them in the playoffs. As the top seed, they will play either Niagara or Sudbury in the first round depending on Sunday’s results. Hutchings tied career highs for games played and assists, and smashed previous highs for goals (+13), points (+13), and plus/minus (+17). He finishes his OHL regular season career (we’re projecting him to be signed this offseason) with 111 goals, 97 assists, 209 points, and a plus-79 rating in 229 games. The 2009 fourth rounder also had 190 PIM for his career.

Oshawa Generals 3 @ Peterborough Petes 10
G Michael Zador, OSH: Loss, 12 saves on 18 shots
Season Totals: 49 GP, 14-28-2-1, 4.15 GAA, .884 sv%, 2 SO

The Gens’ horrific year was finally put out of its misery Saturday night, and almost fittingly, it came with another defensive meltdown. Oshawa gave up 299 goals this season, four more than last-place Sarnia. The only difference is Oshawa had 14 more points in the standings than Steven Stamkos’ alma mater. With any kind of defense and/or goaltending, the Gens would be comfortably in the playoffs. Zador had his ups and downs this season, including win streaks of five- and four-games, but also had losing streaks of six, six, eight, and five. He ended the year on a five-game losing streak. Both Zador and and his goaltending partner Kevin Bailie were high OHL picks and both can return to the Gens next year, but does Oshawa want both or either back? Zador doesn’t have to be signed by the Lightning, and has very good size and raw skills. In the right situation with the right mind-set, he could thrive. He'll play in the OHL again next season ... somewhere.

WHL

Regina Pats 1 @ Brandon Wheat Kings 3
RW Carter Ashton, REG: 0-0-0, -1, 0 PIM
Season Totals: 64 GP, 24-27-51, -12, 102 PIM
With Regina: 36 GP, 11-14-25, -4, 50 PIM
With Lethbridge: 28 GP, 13-13-26, -8, 52 PIM

This was Ashton’s final game of the season and the young power forward and 2009 first rounder will likely join the Norfolk Admirals shortly as Dana Tyrell did in 2008. Ashton set career highs for assists (+1) and points (+1) this year, but finished with six fewer goals than the 30 he scored with Lethbridge last season. It was thought Ashton’s game would flourish next to Oilers super-prospect Jordan Eberle, and no doubt the Pats thought that when they acquired Ashton mid-season, but Eberle left for World Juniors right after the trade and the two never really clicked after that. In fact, Ashton was eventually dropped off Eberle's line and finished the year with just a goal and an assist in his last six games. There have been no reports of injuries to Ashton, so we’re hoping he can look at any potential move to Norfolk as a clean slate and provide the Ads with a power forward presence as they make their way toward the playoffs. Ashton already holds an NHL contract.

Kamloops Blazers 5 @ Vancouver Giants 6 (SO)
C/W/D James Wright, VAN: 1-2-3, +2, 0 PIM, *Third Star*
Season Totals: 20 GP, 6-13-19, -1, 13 PIM
With Tampa Bay: 43 GP, 2-3-5, -9, 18 PIM

The Giants have struggled the last two weeks, but play Seattle Sunday for a chance to enter the playoffs on a win-streak. Their first round opponent has yet to be determined.