There were a pair of hockey games Sunday night that were nothing short of breathtaking as the Montreal Canadiens upset the Tampa Bay Lightning to claim that series, and the Minnesota Wild and Colorado Avalanche played a heart-pounding, rowdy, 100 mph, 15-goal game in Game 1 of their Round Two series. It was so good to watch. Elsewhere in the Daily, the Toronto Maple Leafs are going to make a splash with their new exec hires today, the NHL trade rumors are about to explode in Edmonton, and we laid it bare regarding the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Evgeni Malkin decision.

We also stumbled into a Penguins myth Sunday. Attendance was an elephant in the room for much of the season, as thousands of fans arrived dressed as empty seats. The accompanying reasons, such as cost, irrelevance, and inconvenience, followed. The consensus accepted the statistic that the Penguins were 31st of 32 teams as fact.

And after tweeting such, a team source reached out to correct us–there’s a bit more to it. In actual attendance, the Penguins were somewhere around 20th of 32 teams. The Penguins’ lack of comps and ticket giveaways ultimately skewed the stats that measured percent of capacity.

Make no mistake, there were far too many empty buckets for a team that was winning, and the reasons people didn’t go mattered less when the playoffs were a real possibility, but I wanted to offer a full correction to a myth we’ve all carried this season.

And I’m off to Hershey tomorrow for Games 3 and 4 of the WBS Penguins’ first round series. My $60 motel awaits. Yes, I’m a glutton for punishment, but perhaps visiting a different arena will break the Kingerski jinx for WBS.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: OK, let’s do this. I hated to write it. Many of you hated to read it, but even multiple colleagues at home and around the league reached out the comment on the piece. A thorough and honest examination of the Evgeni Malkin decision: why the decision is hard, but it’s not complicated.

It appears the thing that I will need to drive home this offseason to Penguins fans: It’s not about next season, it’s about building a long-term winner.

NHL Trade Talk, News, & National Hockey Now

Montreal Hockey Now: The kids did it. They had just nine shots on goal, but they pulled off a stunning upset and beat the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 7, 2-1. It was as intense as a Stanley Cup Final. Marc Dumont has the full story and analysis: the Montreal Canadiens advanced.

Incredible.

Colorado Hockey Now: The other incredible game Sunday night was one of the greatest games of the season. An absolute slugfest, as the teams traded extraordinary goals and the great players refused to lose. Fifteen goals?! FIFTEEN. Eventually, Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar outlasted the Minnesota Wild and a brilliant performance by Quinn Hughes. The Colorado Avalanche pulled off a 9-6 win.

If you watched both, just take the day off. Rest. Breathe. Have a coffee and turn on some easy listening because the human body isn’t supposed to go through that much stress.

You can watch all 15 goals with the specially produced highlight package on Sportsnet.

Edmonton Journal: Connor McDavid didn’t back down from his criticism. Nor did Leon Draisaitl. GM Stan Bowman said they need some new players. So, how does that happen with limited cap space and limited trade pieces? Jim Matheson puts the Oilers on the operating table–trade rumors, needs, and wants.

The Oilers would be an armchair GM’s fantasy, but it remains Bowman’s nightmare.

Philly Hockey Now: Hopefully you keep up with Will James. It was a Game 1 beatdown for the Orange and Black. They got wiped off the map. There are adjustments and tired legs for the Philadelphia Flyers.

Boston Hockey Now: For his slash on Zach Benson, Charlie McAvoy is getting an in-person hearing with the NHL Department of (Un)Safety. Jack Studley has our Boston Bruins news.

Sportsnet: I feel like I called it. John Chayka will be the next GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Mats Sundin will be there too. Toronto held true, and they are going with a numbers guy.

Chayka interviewed very well when the Penguins job was open. In fact, people on the inside openly discussed his hiring in some capacity as a matter of fact until Dubas got both the president of hockey ops and GM roles.

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