Carolina Hurricanes advance to second round of Stanley Cup Playoffs

The GIST: Last but not Leafs least, the highly competitive Stanley Cup Playoffs opening round rages on. Only one team has advanced to the second round, so the rest is still unwritten. Release your inhibitions — here’s where things stand nearly two weeks into the NHL postseason.

Carolina Hurricanes knock out NJ Devils: After three periods and two overtimes, the Hurricanes clinched the first second-round berth of the postseason last night, forging a strong comeback to top the New Jersey Devils 5–4 behind a game-winner from center Sebastian Aho.

• Meanwhile, the Battle of Ontario continues after a major triumph from the Ottawa Senators, who topped the Toronto Maple Leafs 4–0 last night, anchored by a shutout from goaltender Linus Ullmark.

• The Leafs (leading 3-2) needed just one win to advance to the second round, but after squandering that opportunity at home, the series returns to Canada’s capital tomorrow at 7 p.m. ET.

Up next: The top-seeded Washington Capitals, led by captain Alex Ovechkin, and defending champion Florida Panthers (both up 3-1) can join the clinching party with wins over the Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning, respectively, tonight at 7 and 7:30 p.m. ET.

• And tomorrow, all eyes will be on Colorado’s comeback kid Gabriel Landeskog as the Avalanche (trailing 3-2) fight to extend their first-round series to a Game 7, taking on the Dallas Stars at 9:30 p.m. ET. The puck stops here.