Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz: Penguins insist they'll make another Cup run

Welcome to the Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz, a daily look at the 2018 NHL postseason. There were two games Monday, including one that saw the end of the Pittsburgh Penguins' bid for a third straight Stanley Cup championship.

Here are the scores from Monday:
Eastern Conference

Western Conference
Nashville Predators 4, Winnipeg Jets 0

Need to know

Penguins: We'll be back

The Pittsburgh Penguins won't win the Stanley Cup this season, but following their season-ending loss to the Washington Capitals on Monday,
they insisted their championship window isn't closed. 

Hot to Trotz

The Capitals' Game 6 win against the Penguins was special for Washington's players, and
Barry Trotz, who will be coaching in the conference final for the first time in his career. 

Lack of depth hurt Penguins

Several factors played a part in the Penguins' series loss to the Capitals. We take a look at
five of the biggest reasons they were eliminated. 

Rolling a 7

There will be a Game 7 in the Western Conference Second Round between the Nashville Predators and Winnipeg Jets.
Here is all you need to know about the deciding game. 

What we learned

Here are some takeaways from Day 27 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs:

These Capitals are different

The Washington Capitals had plenty of excuses to not finish off the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Second Round at PPG Paints Arena on Monday. After center Nicklas Backstrom sustained an upper-body injury in Game 5, they were missing three of their top six forwards, with Tom Wilson (suspension) and Andre Burakovsky (upper body) also unavailable. But the Capitals pulled together, pushed aside their history against the Penguins (1-9 in previous Stanley Cup Playoff series) and won 2-1 on center Evgeny Kuznetsov's goal 5:27 into overtime. They advanced to the Eastern Conference Final for the first time since 1998 and will face the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Penguins didn't have enough

Maybe it was all the hockey the Penguins have played sicne 2016. Maybe there are undisclosed injuries. Maybe it's a combination of things. No matter what the reason, the Penguins just didn't have the all-around game that worked so well for them in 2016 and 2017. Most of their scoring came from the top line of Jake Guentzel, Sidney Crosby and Patric Hornqvist, and when Pittsburgh made mistakes, Washington capitalized.

Predators' best players rose to occasion

From the moment the puck dropped in Game 6 of the Western Conference Second Round between the Nashville Predators and the Winnipeg Jets on Monday, Nashville's top players dominated. Forward Viktor Arvidsson's goal 62 seconds into the game, which came on assists by defenseman Roman Josi and first-line center Ryan Johansen, siphoned the energy out of the white-out at Bell MTS Centre on the way to a 4-0 win to force Game 7 at Bridgestone Arena on Thursday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS). Johansen, Arvidsson and center Filip Forsberg combined for eight points (four goals, four assists) and each finished plus-4, and goaltender Pekka Rinne made 34 saves for his fifth Stanley Cup Playoff shutout. If Nashville's big guns repeat that effort Thursday, the Predators could make a return trip to the Western Conference Final, where they would play the Vegas Golden Knights.

Jets need to use their speed

Winnipeg has been almost singularly focused on being quicker and faster with their skating and puck movement against Nashville, but the Jets certainly were not at their highest level in Game 6, so they will need to ramp up their speed in Game 7. It's a recipe that helped them win Game 5 in Nashville, a 6-2 victory on Saturday, and one they will need again Thursday.

About last night

-- Center Evgeny Kuznetsov scored 5:27 into overtime to lift the Capitals into the Eastern Conference Final for the first time since 1998 and end the Penguins' bid for a third straight Stanley Cup championship. It was the first time in four tries that Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin defeated Penguins center Sidney Crosby in a playoff series. The Capitals will play the Tampa Bay Lightning in the conference final.
Nashville Predators 4, Winnipeg Jets 0 -- Defenseman P.K. Subban said the Predators would win Game 6 of the Western Conference Second Round and Nashville backed him up. Goaltender Pekka Rinne was a big reason why, making 34 saves for his second shutout of the 2018 playoffs. Forward Viktor Arvidsson had two goals and an assist, and center Filip Forsberg scored two goals for the Predators, who have yet to lose back-to-back games in the postseason. Game 7 is Thursday in Nashville.