Five things to know about the NHL playoffs

The Colorado Avalanche are having another day after a win on Wednesday, while the Vancouver Canucks and Edmonton Oilers are fighting for a lead on Thursday.

Here are five things to know ahead of Thursday's postseason action:

BEST OF THREE SERIES

The Oilers face the Canucks on Thursday night in Vancouver for game five of their best-of-seven second-round series.

Each team has split on the road, with Edmonton most recently leveling the series at 2-2 with a 3-2 win.

Both teams also stayed close, neither team won by more than a goal and Game 2 went into overtime.

With both teams only needing two wins in the next three games, they will look to unlock some offense to get away – our out defense is setting us up for a run to the Western Conference Finals.

CHANGE BETWEEN THE PIPES

Edmonton head coach Kris Knoblauch made a real move on Tuesday.

He swapped number 1 goalkeeper Stuart Skinner for his replacement Calvin Pickard – and it worked perfectly.

The 32-year-old, in his 13th season of professional hockey, made 19 saves in his first-ever playoff start as the Oilers attempted to snap a 2-2 series.

Pickard replaced Skinner in the third period of Edmonton's 4-3 loss in Game 3 on Sunday, with the 25-year-old Skinner allowing four goals on 15 shots in that game.

Now the question arises: Who will Knoblauch go into Game 5 with?

DEMKO IMPROVED

Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet said Wednesday that Thatcher Demko has “improved tremendously over the last 72 hours” as the All-Star goaltender recovers from a lower-body injury.

The 28-year-old started in the playoff opener in Vancouver against the Nashville Predators, but has not played since.

Vancouver selected third-ranked rookie Arturs Silovs in the postseason after backup Casey DeSmith was injured in Game 3 against the Predators in the opening round of the playoffs.

Silovs, who is 4-3 in the playoffs with a .907 save percentage and 2.71 goals-against average, led the Canucks to a win in that series and was solid in the second round against the Oilers.

ANOTHER DAY

Colorado came from behind on Wednesday night to beat Dallas 5-3 on the road and is now just one game behind in the series, 3-2.

The Avalanche won Game 1 but suffered three straight losses and landed in a hole in their best-of-seven second-round series.

Now they have another chance to extend the series at home on Friday when the two teams meet for game six.

AGAIN ON THE EDGE OF PROGRESS

The New York Rangers want to reach the Eastern Conference finals with a win on Thursday night in Carolina.

New York won the first three games of the best-of-seven series in the second round, but then lost two games in a row, allowing the Hurricanes to return directly.

Three straight losses are less than ideal for the Rangers, but in Carolina's case, a return to the conference finals is on the line and the team has continued to fight for it.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 16, 2024.

The Canadian Press