Carolina wins, early brawl

Carolina opened its first-round series by beating Ottawa 2-0 on April 18, after the captains fought three seconds after the opening faceoff. (nhl.com) Jordan Staal and Brady Tkachuk dropped the gloves immediately off the draw at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, and both took fighting majors at 0:03 of the first period. (nhl.com) Frederik Andersen stopped 22 shots for the shutout, Logan Stankoven scored at 2:11 of the second period, and Taylor Hall added Carolina’s second goal at 7:15 of the third. (sportsnet.ca) Ottawa pushed late with Linus Ullmark pulled during a power play, creating a 6-on-4 advantage for much of the final 2 1/2 minutes, but Carolina held the lead. Game 2 is scheduled for Monday night in Raleigh. (espn.com.sg) The fight landed at the start of Ottawa’s first playoff game since 2017 and set the tone for a game that stayed tense through the final horn. The teams combined for 22 penalty minutes, with Staal and Tkachuk also taking matching roughing minors at 19:51 of the third. (cbc.ca) Carolina entered the matchup as the Metropolitan Division winner and the Eastern Conference’s top seed, while Ottawa arrived as a lower seed trying to end a long postseason drought with an upset. (usatoday.com) The Senators thought they had cut into the deficit early in the third when Drake Batherson got the puck past Andersen, but the on-ice goal call was overturned because replay did not show the puck fully crossed the line. (sports.yahoo.com) By the end, the opener had produced both the image and the result that will carry into Game 2: Staal and Tkachuk in the box after three seconds, and Carolina up 1-0 in the series. (foxsports.com)