Three series were leveled at 1-1, while the Avalanche moved within two games of a sweep.
Tampa Bay Lightning 3, Montreal Canadiens 2 (OT)
Series Tied 1-1
The Tampa Bay Lightning proved they can win without Victor Hedman, but it took every second they had. Brandon Hagel and Juraj Slafkovsky dropped the gloves for a spiriited bout. It was JJ Moser netting the overtime winner, securing a Game 2 victory for Tampa.
Boston Bruins 4, Buffalo Sabres 2
Series Tied 1-1
The Boston Bruins got back into the win column as Viktor Arivdsson led the charge, scoring two goals in a big 4-2 in. Buffalo goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen let in a howler to Morgan Geekie from center ice. The Sabres came up with a too little, too late rally on goals by Bowen Byram and Peyton Krebs. Now the series returns to TD Garden for a pivotal Game 3.
Utah Mammoth 3, Vegas Golden Knights 2
Series Tied 1-1
The Utah Mammoth have their first-ever playoff victory. In a game overshadowed by the Nic Dowd/Logan Cooley feud, the Mammoth focused on their speed to neutralize Vegas. Mark Stone struck on the power play in the first period off a nice cross-crease feed from Jack Eichel. Dylan Guenther scored his first of the playoffs, only for Ivan Barbashev to tie the game just a minute later. But it was Cooley getting the winner, and sending the series back to Utah all tied up at 1-1.
Colorado Avalanche 2, Los Angeles Kings 1 (OT)
Colorado Leads Series 2-0
For the second straight game, the Avalanche and Kings engaged in a low-scoring chess match that required extra time. Early in the second period, Colorado had a go-ahead goal, only for Drew Doughty to point out that the puck was not, in fact, in the net, but rather lodged between the outside of the net. Artemi Panarin scored his second goal of the series to give Los Angeles a late 1-0 lead. Eventually captain Gabriel Landeskog found an equalizer to force overtime. Nicolas Roy would get the overtime winner.