between in game 2 edmonton oilers And anaheim ducksA fan in Edmonton threw a chicken onto the ice.
Yes, a perfectly cooked rotisserie chicken – presumably to troll the ducks. Not a plush duck (or anything duck-related), but a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store.
I have a lot of questions: How did they smuggle it in? In their backpack? like their feet were taped Nashville Catfish? Why cooked rotisserie chicken?
It was certainly one of the most bizarre things thrown on the ice in a hockey game, but certainly not the most shocking thing that happened in the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs.
Here are the five biggest surprises of the postseason so far:
The superstars aren’t shining – but the young stars are on the rise
One week into the playoffs, Sidney Crosby And nathan mackinnon Had one assist in each of the three games. Crosby finally scored a goal in Game 4 against philadelphia flyers –At that time his team was at a margin of 3-0. MacKinnon finally got on the board with two goals in the Avs’ Game 4 win over the Kings.
brady tkachuk went scoreless as ottawa senators were swept away by carolina storm. Tim Stutzle Was a help.
Nikita Kucherov Scored his first playoff goal in 18 postseason games.
connor mcdavid finally got on the board, with two points in Game 3 of the Oilers-Ducks series and a pair of assists in Game 4.
But while the NHL’s biggest stars aren’t scoring like they did in the regular season, emerging names like logan stankoven And jackson lacombe Definitely is. Stankoven is on goals-per-game pace this postseason, and LaCombe leads playoff scorers with eight points through four games.
American fans know the name matt boldy And brock faber from the Olympics, and he has three goals and two assists in four games against the Stars.
Juraj Slafkowski Had a hat trick to help the Canadiens win Game 1. philly’s Porter Marton He already has two winning goals, and doesn’t look out of place despite only joining the team this month.
This isn’t necessarily an indictment of superstar players who don’t get on the score sheet early on – sometimes players with depth emerge as standout players in the postseason. But it’s troubling to see Art Ross’ perennial contenders fail to dominate in the postseason.
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Juraj Slafkowski’s hat trick leads Canadiens to Game 1 win
In Game 1, Juraj Slafkowski scored a hat trick to put the Canadiens ahead of the Lightning.
Meanwhile, some star goalkeepers are also struggling
Frederick Anderson, Scott Wedgwood and there are Alex Lyon All are north of a .940 save percentage. Linus Ullmark That’s far from a reason to get carried away with the Senators – he finished with a .932 save percentage and 2.03 goals-against average in four games.
arters silos Was key for Pittsburgh in Game 4, saving 27 of 29 shots in an inspired performance. This was his first start of the playoffs in place of stuart skinnerAnd extended the postseason by at least one more game for the Penguins.
During this time, Andrei Vasilevsky Has given up 11 goals on 93 shots and Jake Ottinger Is on a .902 save percentage.
In other words, the list of goalie statistics does not look like what any hockey fan would have predicted in terms of top performing netminders. But like forward depth, unexpected names emerge as playoff standouts who lead their teams to important wins; It was only three years ago edin hill With zero previous starts in the postseason the Golden Knights were held back from a Cup appearance.
Homemade ice hasn’t really been beneficial
Of the 21 games in this year’s playoffs, 11 were won by the guests (52%).
Since 2014, only three other first round matches have the visiting team won more games than the home team: 2016, 2017 and 2023.
storm and colorado avalanche Each won its first two games at home, while in every other series the home team won one or neither. (And both of those teams won their second two games outright.)
Friday – the sixth day of the playoffs – has been the only day of the postseason that every home team won, and it was a return to form on Saturday as both the “Road Warriors” and the Canes. pittsburgh penguins Conquered your opponents’ buildings.
Sunday provided the most lopsided example of a visiting team win: The Sabers defeated the Bruins 6-1 in Boston, taking a 3-1 series lead in the process.
The Sabers went up 4–0 in the first period after not scoring a goal in the first period in the series – the third time this has happened in NHL history. Every Sabers skater, all 12 forwards and six defencemen, was at least plus-1 in the game; Since 1959, when plus/minus was first tracked, this has happened in only three other postseason games (the Oilers had two of them in the 1980s). Complete dominance.
The only thing that could have made it better for the Sabers was if the Bruins had not scored a power-play goal with a minute remaining to spoil Lyon’s shutout; He made 23 saves in the win.
The Battle of Pennsylvania was anything but competitive… until a twist in Game 4
In September, many people did not believe the Flyers and Penguins would reach the playoffs, let alone face each other. And before Game 1, the Penguins’ success was highlighted brightly, and this could be another kick to Crosby’s timeless trio, evgeni malkin And chris letang.
Then the puck dropped, and the Flyers took possession.
They have effectively taken Pittsburgh out of the equation almost completely with the Braves, quickly winning the first three games before Pittsburgh prevailed in Game 4 in Philly.
The Penguins were third in goals per game in the regular season (3.54) and the Flyers were 21st (2.93). The Flyers are fourth in goals per game in the playoffs (3.25) and the Penguins are third from the bottom (2.00).
It’s not for lack of trying. In the series, the Penguins had more scoring chances (including high-danger scoring chances), more puck possession and more shot attempts – but Dan Vladar Has been incredible, giving up only seven goals on 94 shots.
The Penguins eventually won on their fourth attempt. Sillowes took charge of the crease, while Crosby came alive with a goal and an assist.
Is Game 4 a gentleman’s only victory, or will the battle of Pennsylvania remain competitive?
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Sidney Crosby keeps Penguins alive in Game 4 win against Flyers
Arda Ocal scored in the Penguins’ victory over the Flyers in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Power games have been relatively powerless
Through 21 games this postseason, power-play efficiency was 18.5%, the lowest rate in the first round since 2015. Teams are effectively squandering the 7.7 power-play opportunities seen per game this year, which ranks among the top five for power plays per game in the first round over the last 15 years.
The Senators scored only one power-play goal in 21 opportunities. The Sabers have not scored once with the man advantage through April 1. And the Avalanche had a surprisingly scoreless power play until they finally scored one in Game 4. Nine of the 16 teams are below 20% at this point. For comparison, only five finished below 20% last season.
Of course, not all teams have suffered; The Ducks lead with 50% power-play efficiency, followed by the Stars at 42.1% and the Oilers at 30.0%.
Honorable Mention: Jersey Exchange Line in Utah
utah mammoth This season has been full of marketing home runs – led by Ryan Smith, who is hitting all the right notes as a team owner. Inviting fans to suites, Introduction to Zammoth And fans pulling spectacular stunts like lining up and trading their Golden Knights jersey for a Mammoth jersey for free.
The surprising thing is this how long was the line –though given how popular this team has become, perhaps it shouldn’t have been a surprise. This is another win in a long list for Mammoth this season.
