The blue-liner was asked postgame whether he thought a rivalry was brewing between the two clubs.
"I don't know if it's a rivalry, but they don't like us and we don't like them," he told NHL.com's Bryan Burns.
The tilt, in which the Islanders prevailed 5-3 to cut Tampa's series lead to 2-1, was filled with physicality, chippiness, and hatred. Things got particularly heated toward the end of the game, as the two teams engaged in a little brouhaha after Jean-Gabriel Pageau's empty-netter.
Nikita Kucherov doesn't want Jean-Gabriel Pageau to get his empty-netter. Pageau takes exception after scoring pic.twitter.com/Uq1T1ZJY3k
The Pens are retaining 50% of Bjugstad's $4.1-million cap hit, which is set to expire after the 2020-21 season, reports TSN's Frank Seravalli.
Bjugstad was limited to 13 games due to injury during the 2019-20 campaign and tallied just two points. He recently underwent back surgery but is expected to be ready for next season, according to The Athletic's Michael Russo.
The 28-year-old averaged 16 goals, 34 points, and 69 games per season from 2013-14 to 2018-19. Bjugstad is capable of playing both center and wing and brings considerable size at 6-foot-6, 215 pounds. He's also a right-handed shot, which the Wild have very few of up front.
Bjugstad was included in the February 2019 trade that sent him and Jared McCann from the Florida Panthers to Pittsburgh in exchange for Derick Brassard, Riley Sheahan, a 2019 second-round pick, and two 2019 fourth-round picks.
This trade represents a homecoming for Bjugstad. Not only is he from Minneapolis, Minnesota, but he also played his college hockey with the Golden Gophers.
The Los Angeles Kings signed restricted free-agent defenseman Sean Walker to a four-year contract carrying an average annual value of $2.65 million, the team announced Friday.
Walker finished second among Kings blue-liners with 24 points in 70 games last season, trailing only Drew Doughty. The 25-year-old averaged 18:50 per game in his first full NHL campaign.
Among defensemen who played at least 500 minutes at five-on-five during the regular season, Walker's 55% Corsi For percentage ranked 13th in the league, according to Natural Stat Trick.
Los Angeles signed the Keswick, Ontario native as an undrafted free agent out of Bowling Green in 2018 - the same university Kings GM Rob Blake attended.
NHL Player Safety deemed the collision to be "a forceful hit from behind on a defenseless player no longer in possession of the puck." It marks the first suspension of Killorn's career.
Nelson was initially shaken up and forced to leave the game, but he later returned after passing concussion protocol.
Killorn plays a top-six role and posted career highs in goals (28) and points (49) in 68 games this season, so his presence in Game 3 will be missed.
St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong began creating cap space to re-sign captain Alex Pietrangelo by trading goaltender Jake Allen - and his $4.35-million cap hit - to the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday.
There's still more work to be done, though.
Even after dealing Allen, the Blues hold just $6.4 million in projected cap space, according to CapFriendly, which doesn't include RFA Vince Dunn's estimated raise. As the top pending UFA defenseman, Pietrangelo could command upward of $8 million annually.
One more player needs to go if Pietrangelo is to return. Armstrong could go 10% over the $81.5-million salary cap with Vladimir Tarasenko projected to begin the season on the injured reserve, but that would just delay the inevitable.
The Blues would surely love to ship off Alexander Steen and the final year of his contract with its $5.75-million cap hit, but he holds a full no-trade clause. Only bottom-feeding teams would likely be interested while trying to reach the cap floor. And at 36 years old, if Steen approves any trade, it would surely need to involve a contender. Buying him out likely isn't worth it, either.
Justin Faulk is probably immovable, too. He's the player Armstrong acquired and extended to create this dilemma, and Faulk is coming off a rough year while owed $45.5 million over the next seven campaigns.
If Pietrangelo is indeed re-signed, one of these four players are prime candidates to be dealt to create the necessary cap space:
Colton Parayko
Andy Devlin / National Hockey League / Getty
Contract: $5.5M AAV through 2021-22
There would be no shortage of suitors for Parayko, as the 6-foot-6 stalwart is one of the NHL's best shutdown defensemen. He was on pace for career highs offensively in 2019-20, too, racking up 10 goals and 28 points in 64 games before the season suspension. He's also just 27 years old.
With Faulk already in the fold, though, re-signing Pietrangelo would give St. Louis two high-priced right-handed defensemen inked long-term. Re-signing a third in Parayko when his contract expires seems like a luxury the Blues can't afford. Trading him now is sensible, and Armstrong would certainly get a haul in return.
Trade likeliness: ★★★★☆
Tyler Bozak
Joe Puetz / National Hockey League / Getty
Contract: $5M AAV through 2020-21
Dealing Bozak would be much more difficult than moving Parayko. Of course, he doesn't possess the same value, and the 34-year-old also carries a 10-team no-trade list in his contract. If he's smart, Bozak will put center-needy clubs like the Winnipeg Jets or Florida Panthers on that list.
If Armstrong can find a trade for Bozak, moving him would be a no-brainer since, unlike Parayko, there are easy internal replacement options for the veteran pivot. Robert Thomas has shown he could move to the middle on a full-time basis, and Zach Sanford, Oskar Sundqvist, Sammy Blais, and Ivan Barbashev should all be capable of logging more minutes.
Trade likeliness: ★★★★☆
Jaden Schwartz
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
Contract: $5.35M AAV through 2020-21
Schwartz seems more likely to be re-signed than traded, especially with Tarasenko probably out to begin the 2020-21 campaign. But Schwartz will also be up for a new contract during the same offseason as Thomas and due for a significant raise. If Armstrong is adamant about keeping Parayko and can't find a deal for Bozak, Schwartz could be the one to go.
The 28-year-old is coming off a productive bounce-back season when he tallied 22 goals and 57 points in 71 games. He's an important member of the Blues, but Armstrong could also fetch a strong return for the winger. Schwartz likely won't be traded, but it can't be ruled out.
Trade likeliness: ★★☆☆☆
David Perron
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
Contract: $4M AAV through 2021-22
Armstrong has traded Perron before (in 2013). Would he do it again?
A move doesn't seem probable based on Perron's modest cap hit and the fact he's signed for two more years. He's also just produced the three best seasons of his career. It could, however, be the best time to sell high on an asset, as Perron's trade value will likely never be higher. Still, a deal probably won't happen with St. Louis in win-now mode.
Makar set the NHL record for the most single-postseason points from a rookie defenseman on Wednesday, according to NHL Public Relations.
Cale Makar scores and boosts his 2020 postseason totals to 4-11—15 in 14 games. He established an NHL record for points by a rookie defenseman in a single playoff year. #NHLStats#StanleyCuppic.twitter.com/QbhZZwhjxg
Hughes is just one point behind, and his Vancouver Canucks are back in action Thursday night, so he could easily pass Makar. However, Makar's Avs forced a Game 7 on Wednesday, so he'll get at least one more chance to add to his total.
Stat
Makar
Hughes
GP
14
15
G
4
1
A
11
13
Makar now also owns the rookie defenseman all-time playoff points record, according to StatsCentre. He made his NHL debut in the postseason last year and notched six points in 10 games. His 21 playoff points as a rookie blue-liner push him past Chris Chelios' previous record of 20, which he set in the 1984 and 1985 postseasons with the Montreal Canadiens.
It marks the first career playoff start for Demko. Other than a brief relief appearance in Game 1 of the series, the 24-year-old hasn't seen meaningful game action since March 10.
The Boston Bruins lost their series to the Tampa Bay Lightning after a 3-2 defeat in double overtime on Monday, and forward David Krejci took the loss to heart, knowing the end of an era could be near.
"It just hit me after the game," an emotional Krejci said with his head bowed down, according to the Boston Globe's Matt Porter. "... The core group, we have one or two or three years left."
"It's just kind of a little sad (right) now," he added.
Krejci is 34 years old and scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent after next season. Fellow forwards Patrice Bergeron (35) and Brad Marchand (32) are also aging.
"You never know how many opportunities you'll have to win a Cup," Marchand said.
Boston's blue line might look much different as early as next season. Torey Krug is a pending unrestricted free agent. As is Zdeno Chara, who could retire at 43 years old.
"I haven't made that decision," Chara said. "I just finished the game. I'm going to be open-minded."
Krejci, Bergeron, Marchand, and Chara were all members of the Bruins' 2011 Stanley Cup-winning team, and the 2013 and 2019 squads that lost in the finals.
With his first-period goal on Monday night against the Dallas Stars, the Colorado Avalanche superstar extended his point streak to 13 games to open the playoffs, putting him in some elite company.
Only three players in NHL history have put together longer point streaks to begin a postseason, and all of them are in the Hall of Fame, according to NHL Public Relations.
Player
Year
Streak
Bryan Trottier
1981
18 GP
Mark Messier
1988
14 GP
Bobby Orr
1970
14 GP
MacKinnon is also the first player to start the playoffs with a 13-game point streak since Messier did so in 1994, according to Sportsnet.
The 24-year-old entered Monday with an NHL-leading 21 playoff points - four more than second-place Elias Pettersson.
