with files from Patrick Williams
Day 13 of the 2026 Calder Cup Playoffs sees two teams with an opportunity to advance to the division finals:
Cleveland gets the first shot at moving on as they take a 2-1 series lead into Game 4 at Syracuse this afternoon (3 ET, 
).
Hudson Fasching, a 10th-year pro with 548 games of experience between the AHL and NHL, scored his first career postseason goal at 10:05 of overtime to give the Monsters a 4-3 win in Game 3 on Friday.
Defenseman Guillaume Richard scored twice – his second two-goal game this season – and Riley Bezeau added a goal for Cleveland, his fourth in his last six playoff games going back to last spring’s run to the Calder Cup Finals with Charlotte. Luca Del Bel Belluz and Dysin Mayo tallied two assists apiece, and Zach Sawchenko (2-0, 2.31, .923) made 31 saves.
Syracuse’s goals in Game 3 came from Spencer Kersten, Nick Abruzzese and Ethan Gauthier. For Kersten and Gauthier, it was their first career Calder Cup Playoffs goals. Brandon Halverson (1-1, 1.78, .932) turned aside 28 shots.
Both teams are looking for their first power-play goal of the series: Syracuse is 0-for-8, while Cleveland is 0-for-6.
It’s a quick turnaround for both teams in Winnipeg as the Moose host the Griffins (3 ET, ) after a dramatic Game 1 yesterday afternoon.
Captain Mason Shaw converted on a power play with 2:26 left in regulation to send Manitoba to a 1-0 victory. Shaw’s goal was all the support Domenic DiVincentiis would need, as the goaltender made 39 saves to shut out the AHL’s second-ranked offense.
“They’re the top team for a reason,” DiVincentiis said. “We’ve got full confidence in that room and that game just showed it. But we’ve got to be ready for them for the rest of the series.”
The shutout was the first by a Moose goaltender in the Calder Cup Playoffs in 15 years. Eddie Läck posted two shutouts for Manitoba during the 2011 postseason.
In the other crease, Michal Postava drew the assignment for Game 1 and made 22 saves. Postava had two shutouts in his last four starts during the regular season, and did not allow more than three goals in any outing all year.
He and Sebastian Cossa shared the Harry “Hap” Holmes Memorial Award as the Griffins allowed the fewest goals in the league during the regular season.
“Michal, he’s earned it. He’s been excellent for us. We just felt he’d be the guy to go for us [in Game 1],” Griffins head coach Dan Watson said. “Both guys have to be ready. Whether we go back with Michal or (with) Coss, both guys need to be ready at the drop of a hat because these series end pretty quick.”
Toronto hosts Laval in Game 3 of their series at Coca-Cola Coliseum (4 ET, ) after the Marlies gained a split on the road with a 6-2 win on Friday night.
Behind goals from Laurent Dauphin and Joshua Roy, the Rocket led 2-0 just 12:22 into Game 2. But Toronto scored six unanswered goals, with their special teams contributing four power-play goals and a shorthanded empty-netter.
The Marlies had been 3-for-29 on the power play against the Rocket in nine games this season before Friday.
“Being down 2-0, on the road, we could’ve just folded the tent,” Toronto head coach John Gruden said. “It says a lot about our leadership. I can’t stress that enough.”
The four power-play goals were the most by the Marlies in a game since Jan. 12, 2024, against Belleville.
“We have to take advantage of those moments,” Gruden said, “because if you don’t they’ll just continue to take liberties and they won’t fear our power play.”
Rookie Easton Cowan, the Maple Leafs’ 2023 first-round pick who played 66 games in the NHL this season, recorded a goal and two assists in Game 2. He skated with veteran forwards Logan Shaw, Vinni Lettieri and Bo Groulx along with defenseman William Villeneuve on the power play.
“We’ve only been together for a couple of games, so it’s talking, watching video,” Cowan said of the unit’s chemistry. “Gio (coaching advisor Mark Giordano) has been doing a really good job so we’re going to keep listening to him. He knows his stuff so we’ll be good.”
A 2-1 win last night puts Chicago on the brink of advancing as they take a 2-1 series lead into Game 4 with Texas this afternoon (4 ET, ).
Ryan Suzuki’s first career playoff goal proved to be the game winner, and Cayden Primeau (2-1, 1.90, .928) made 27 saves.
Noah Philp had Chicago’s other goal in Game 2 – also his first ever in the playoffs.
“We stuck to our game plan,” Philp said. “When we’re playing together and playing simple that’s when we’re at our best and we did that most of the game.”
The Wolves, who have now won five straight home games, are looking to close out their first series victory since they won the Calder Cup in 2022.
Jack Becker scored the only goal for Texas in Game 3, a tally early in the third period that cut a two-goal deficit in half. Rémi Poirier (1-2, 2.24, .907) stopped 26 shots in defeat.
“We had them on their heels at times in the third,” Stars head coach Toby Petersen said. “Our guys came out flying and found new life, new energy. In the end it wasn’t enough.”
The quick turnaround – some 17 hours between final horn and puck drop – doesn’t allow for either team to spend time thinking about last night.
“They’re focused now on getting it to a Game 5,” Petersen said. “It’s desperation time. There’s no reason for us to not come out and give absolutely everything we got and hopefully have our best game of the year.”
A 110-point regular season doesn’t mean much come playoff time, when everyone starts a series 0-0.
The Providence Bruins dropped their postseason opener to Springfield, 3-2, on Friday night. The Bruins host Game 2 this evening (7:05 ET, ); including two losses to Utica in a home-and-home to close out the regular season, Providence has lost three in a row for the first time in 2025-26.
But recent playoff history shows the Bruins’ propensity for bouncing back. Last spring, Providence won four games when facing elimination, including two wins against Springfield to eliminate the Thunderbirds.
In Game 1 of this series, the B’s grabbed a 1-0 lead on a goal by former Thunderbird Drew Callin, who was making his Providence debut in Game 1. Callin, who skated in four games with Bridgeport during the regular season, spent most of the year with Worcester (ECHL).
But Springfield responded with goals from Akil Thomas and Thomas Bordeleau – both midseason acquisitions – to take the lead, and Dylan Peterson added an insurance marker 3:21 into the third. Peterson’s goal stood up as the difference after Matej Blümel scored for the Bruins with 37 seconds left in regulation.
Since an 8-1 loss in Game 1 of the first round at Charlotte, Springfield has won three in a row – despite giving up the game’s first goal in each contest. The Bruins were 40-4-0-0 in the regular season when scoring first.
“We talked about this last series,” Springfield head coach Steve Ott told his team after Game 1. “We move on to the next game.”