DENVER -- The Nashville Predators advanced to the Western Conference Second Round with a 5-0 win against the Colorado Avalanche in Game 6 of the first round at Pepsi Center on Sunday.

Pekka Rinne made 22 saves for the Predators, who will play the Winnipeg Jets in the second round.

Viktor Arvidsson, Nick Bonino, Filip Forsberg, Austin Watson and Mattias Ekholm scored for Nashville. 

PHILADELPHIA -- Jake Guentzel scored four goals, and the Pittsburgh Penguins advanced to the Eastern Conference Second Round with an 8-5 win against the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 6 of the first round at Wells Fargo Center on Sunday.

The Penguins, who won their ninth straight series in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, will play the Washington Capitals or Columbus Blue Jackets next. The Capitals lead the series 3-2.

The Nashville Predators will play the Winnipeg Jets in the Western Conference Second Round.

Nashville defeated the Colorado Avalanche 5-0 in Game 6 on Sunday to end that first-round series.

PHILADELPHIA -- Ivan Provorov summed up the sacrifice sometimes needed in the Stanley Cup Playoffs in one sentence.

PHILADELPHIA -- Jake Guentzel better get used to wearing the playoff guy label.

The 23-year-old Pittsburgh Penguins forward has certainly earned it.

"He's one of those guys that has it," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. "He has the ability to play his best when the stakes are the highest."

Mathew Barzal of the New York Islanders, Brock Boeser of the Vancouver Canucks and Clayton Keller of the Arizona Coyotes were named finalists for the Calder Trophy on Sunday. The award is given to the best rookie in the NHL.

The winner will be announced at the 2018 NHL Awards presented by Hulu at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas on June 20.

SAN JOSE -- Joe Thornton won't play Game 1 of the Western Conference Second Round for the San Jose Sharks against the Vegas Golden Knights.

Thornton, who has been practicing since March 23, skated on the fifth line again Sunday, but coach Peter DeBoer said the 38-year-old center's return is not on his radar.

BOSTON -- Tuukka Rask will start for the Boston Bruins against the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference First Round at Air Canada Centre on Monday (7 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CBC, TVAS, NESN).

The Bruins lead the best-of-7 series 3-2 and will advance to the second round to face the Tampa Bay Lightning with a win.

TORONTO -- In the world of Toronto Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock, the goal of defeating the Boston Bruins in the Eastern Conference First Round can easily be simplified by following one rule.

"Stay out of the penalty box," Babcock said Sunday.

BOSTON -- The chances were there. That what happens when a team puts 45 shots on an opponent's net, including 20 in the third period, as the Boston Bruins did in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference First Round. But the finish was not, especially for the second and third lines.

Boston's middle two lines did not quite carry their weight in the 4-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs at TD Garden on Saturday. The scoring burden was taken on by the top line (Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak) and the fourth line (Tim Schaller, Sean Kuraly, Noel Acciari).

The Pittsburgh Penguins advanced to the Eastern Conference Second Round and will play the Washington Capitals or Columbus Blue Jackets.

Pittsburgh defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 8-5 in Game 6 on Sunday to end that first-round Stanley Cup Playoff series. It was the ninth straight series win for Pittsburgh, which won the Stanley Cup the past two seasons.

WASHINGTON -- With three consecutive wins in the Eastern Conference First Round, the Washington Capitals have gone from being in an 0-2 hole to one victory away from eliminating the Columbus Blue Jackets and moving on to the next round.

Now that they have the Blue Jackets down for the first time in the series, they want to finish them off in Game 6 at Nationwide Arena on Monday (7:30 p.m. ET; CNBC, TVAS2, FS-O, NBCSWA) and not risk having to play a Game 7 in Washington on Wednesday.

COLUMBUS -- If the Columbus Blue Jackets are to have a chance at winning a Stanley Cup Playoff series for the first time, they must buck history that shows home ice has been of little advantage to them.

The Washington Capitals lead the best-of-7 Eastern Conference First Round 3-2 going into Game 6 at Nationwide Arena on Monday (7:30 p.m. ET; CNBC, SN, TVAS2, FS-O, NBCSWA).

WASHINGTON -- Columbus Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella guaranteed they will force a Game 7 against the Washington Capitals in the Eastern Conference First Round after a 4-3 overtime loss in Game 5 on Saturday.

Nicklas Backstrom's goal at 11:53 of overtime gave the Capitals their third straight win and a 3-2 lead in the best-of-7 series.

Game 6 is at Columbus on Monday (7:30 p.m. ET; CNBC, SN, TVAS, FS-O, NBCSWA). Game 7 would be at Washington on Wednesday.

How do you celebrate a historic first season?

With cake.

The 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs are almost here, meaning fans in fantasy postseason pools need to translate their bracket predictions into the overall player landscape.

Below are fantasy player rankings by position (forwards, defensemen, goalies) for basic postseason pools counting points (goals, assists) for skaters, as well as wins and shutouts for goalies. Whether you're doing an offline snake draft or another format, use this list as a basis for your decision-making.

The Vegas Golden Knights and San Jose Sharks will play in the Western Conference Second Round. They are coming off four-game sweeps of the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks, respectfully.

Here are five key matchups that could decide the best-of-7 series:

WINNIPEG -- After the Winnipeg Jets eliminated the Minnesota Wild with a 5-0 victory in Game 5 of the Western Conference First Round series on Friday, Jets forward Bryan Little, his wife Brittany and a couple of teammates and their wives went to a restaurant on the way home.

When they walked in, the place burst into applause.

"Never been in that kind of spot before," Little said after winning a Stanley Cup Playoff series for the first time in an NHL career that has spanned 11 seasons.

The Tampa Bay Lightning have advanced to the Eastern Conference Second Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the third time in the past four seasons.

The Lightning, who scored 18 goals in their first-round series against the New Jersey Devils, advanced with a 3-1 win in Game 5 at Amalie Arena on Saturday.

TAMPA -- Nico Hischier didn't want the most exhilarating hockey experience of his first season as a member of the New Jersey Devils to come an end.

He found it tough expressing exactly what his rookie season truly meant when he sat at his locker stall long after the Tampa Bay Lightning eliminated the Devils with a 3-1 win in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference First Round at Amalie Arena on Saturday.

He wanted more.

Nicklas Backstrom scored at 11:53 of overtime to give the Washington Capitals a 4-3 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference First Round at Capital One Arena in Washington on Saturday.

The New Jersey Devils beat the odds by qualifying for the Stanley Cup Playoffs one season after finishing last in the Eastern Conference.

Despite losing the best-of-7 Eastern Conference First Round to the Atlantic Division champion Tampa Bay Lightning in five games, it appears the rebuild that began three seasons ago under the watch of general manager Ray Shero is ahead of schedule.

WASHINGTON -- The week keeps getting better for Keelan Moxley.

The 6-year-old girl who became an internet star after video of Washington Capitals forward Brett Connolly's repeated attempts to toss her a puck went viral was a guest of the Capitals for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference First Round against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Capital One Arena on Saturday.