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Hockey Night Punjabi channels Mick Foley: ‘Bang bang, Kris Letang!’

Judging by this call of Kris Letang's Game 6 goal Tuesday night, there's at least one wrestling fan on the Hockey Night Punjabi crew.

"Bang bang, Kris Letang" is an amazing call on its own, but including a reference to former wrestler Mick Foley - who used "bang bang" as his catchphrase - made it even better.

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Rust kills Lightning rally with breakaway dangle

Bryan Rust crushed any hopes of a Tampa Bay Lightning comeback.

After Brian Boyle responded with two third-period goals to narrow the Pittsburgh Penguins lead to 3-2, Rust halted the club's rally, beating Andrei Vasilevskiy with a gorgeous breakaway effort.

The goal was Rust's sixth point of the postseason and third of the series.

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Watch: Crosby schools Lightning for huge goal

The naysayers are awfully quiet right now.

Sidney Crosby scored a critical insurance marker Tuesday night in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final, and he did it in typical highlight-reel fashion.

The Pittsburgh Penguins captain gained the puck in the neutral zone, shook two Tampa Bay Lightning defenders, and buried a lethal shot five-hole on Andrei Vasilevskiy to give the Penguins a 3-0 lead late in the second period.

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Watch: HNIC montage honors Gord Downie

Hockey Night in Canada paid tribute to Gord Downie before Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final on Tuesday night.

The opening montage featured clips of the Tragically Hip frontman and highlights from the series set to "Courage (For Hugh MacLennan)."

Downie, a rock legend and die-hard Boston Bruins fan, is on the minds of many Canadians following Tuesday morning's revelation that he was diagnosed with a terminal form of brain cancer.

Kudos to Sportsnet for putting this together on relatively short notice.

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Kessel bats in whiffed Crosby pass

Phil Kessel continues to marvel in the postseason.

The Pittsburgh Penguins forward made the best of a whiffed cross-ice pass by Sidney Crosby, batting the puck out of the air to give his club a 1-0 lead in a win-or-go-home Game 6.

Kessel's ninth extends his team-lead in goals and gives him 18 points in 17 games.

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Stanley Cup Final will start Monday

The Stanley Cup Final will begin in six days.

Game 1 of the championship round will be played Monday, May 30. Here's the complete schedule, as announced by the NHL on Tuesday:

Game Date Start Time (E.T.)
1 May 30 8 p.m.
2 June 1 8 p.m.
3 June 4 8 p.m.
4 June 6 8 p.m.
5* June 9 8 p.m.
6* June 12 8 p.m.
7* June 15 8 p.m.

*If necessary

The team with the greatest number of points during the regular season gets home-ice advantage for the series.

The Tampa Bay Lightning lead the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 in the Eastern Conference Final, while the San Jose Sharks hold the same advantage over the St. Louis Blues in the West.

The Blues had the most points (107) among the four remaining clubs.

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Avalanche sign Anton Lindholm to 3-year entry-level deal

The Colorado Avalanche signed defenseman Anton Lindholm to a three-year entry-level contract Tuesday.

The 21-year-old spent this past season with Skelleftea AIK of the Swedish Hockey League where he posted four assists in a limited 30 games - due to an injury - and added another helper in 16 playoff games.

Lindholm was drafted by the Avalanche in the fifth round in 2014 and most recently suited up in three games for Sweden at the World Hockey Championship.

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Blackhawks officially sign Kempny, 2 others to 1-year deals

After a deal was reported Monday, the Chicago Blackhawks officially signed Czech defenseman Michal Kempny to a one-year contract, the team announced Tuesday.

Kempny recorded 21 points in 59 games in the KHL last season, and has already been named to the Czech Republic's team for September's World Cup of Hockey.

The Blackhawks also signed two players from Sweden - goaltender Lars Johansson and forward Martin Lundberg - to one-year contracts.

Johansson, 28, led the Swedish Hockey League with a 1.74 goals-against average this past season, while Lundberg, 25, recorded 13 goals and eight assists in 44 games.

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Bruins sign Seth Griffith to 2-way deal

The Boston Bruins announced a pair of signings Tuesday, including a one-year two-way contract with premier American Hockey League scorer Seth Griffith.

Related: Bruins sign Kevan Miller to 4-year, $10M extension

Griffith racked up 24 goals and led the league with 53 assists in 57 games for the Providence Bruins last season, also appearing in four games with the big club.

His numbers indicate that he has the capacity to translate his scoring to the NHL level. In a limited sample - 34 games across two seasons - he's scored six goals and 11 points.

The fifth-round draft selection in 2012 was a first-team AHL All-Star in 2016.

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Jets’ Scheifele: Patrik Laine ‘pretty unbelievable’

After spending much of the World Championship gold medal game shutting down Finland's top line, Canadian forward Mark Scheifele couldn't help but compliment a young forward on the opposing team - who may be his future Winnipeg Jets teammate - Patrik Laine.

"He's pretty unbelievable," Scheifele said, via Luke Fox of Sportsnet on Tuesday. "He's obviously young, and sometimes you can tell that, but his skill level (and) his shot is outrageous. He skates really well."

Scheifele saw a lot of the teenager in Sunday's final, where Canada finished the tournament with a 2-0 win, but it was Laine who was later name the tournament's Best Forward and MVP.

The Jets are widely expected to select the Finnish winger with the second overall pick at the NHL draft, with the Toronto Maple Leafs likely to pick Auston Matthews with the first selection.

"You can tell he's going to be a very special player," Scheifele said. "I know if we end up getting him, he'll definitely be a huge improvement to our team. He'll fit in well for sure."

In order for him to play alongside Laine, Scheifele still requires a new contract for next season, and the restricted free agent said there was nothing new to report regarding negotiations.

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