STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS | Sunday’s semifinals

Predators 3, Blues 1

NASHVILLE

Cody McLeod scored the game-winner early in the second period, and Nashville beat St. Louis to grab a 2-1 lead in their Western Conference semifinal. Defensemen Ryan Ellis and Roman Josi also scored, and Colton Sissons added two assists. The Predators outshot St. Louis 34-23, and they now have won seven straight playoff games on home ice, including all three this postseason. Alexander Steen scored for the Blues, who lost for the first time on the road this postseason. Blues goalie Jake Allen kept St. Louis in this game before being pulled by coach Mike Yeo for the extra attacker with more than 4 minutes remaining and took his timeout with 1:25 left. Nashville goalie Pekka Rinne finished with 22 saves, including a flurry of stops to preserve the win. “It shows a lot of character coming off a loss last game,” Rinne said. “We knew that coming in it’s a huge game. Responded really well. It’s a good feeling obviously, but you already start thinking about the next one and trying to keep this momentum going.”

Ducks 6, Oilers 3

EDMONTON, ALBERTA

Jakob Silfverberg scored twice to lead Anaheim to victory over Edmonton, cutting the Oilers’ series lead to 2-1. Ryan Getzlaf had a goal and an assist, and Rickard Rakell, Chris Wagner and Ryan Kesler also scored for Anaheim, which lost the first two games at home. John Gibson stopped 24 shots. Connor McDavid scored his first of the series for Edmonton. Patrick Maroon and Anton Slepychev also scored and Kris Russell had two assists. Cam Talbot finished with 22 saves. Wagner scored the tiebreaking goal midway through the second period, firing a shot that deflected off Talbot’s arm and in. Silfverberg knocked in a feed from Josh Manson at 4:56 of the third to make it 5-3. The Oilers challenged the play for offside, but the goal stood after a video review. Kesler swept in a rebound with 91/2 minutes left to cap the scoring.

Associated Press