Monday was a lighter slate in the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs with just two first-round games, but there was plenty on the line.

There are two NHL games today. The puck drops on Monday’s NHL playoffs schedule at 7:00 PM ET with the Tampa Bay Lightning vs Florida Panthers on ESPN. Closing out the NHL games tonight, it’s the Colorado Avalanche vs Dallas Stars at 9:30 PM ET on ESPN.

Aliaksei Protas could play for the Capitals in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference First Round against the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday (7 p.m. ET; MNMT, ESPN, SNP, SNO, SNE, TVAS, CBC), but coach Spencer Carbery would not commit to that Monday.

The Washington Capitals beat the Montreal Canadiens 5-2 in Game 4 to take a commanding 3-1 lead in their first-round NHL playoff series. The Capitals scored four times in the third period to rally from a 2-1 deficit in Montreal.

The NHL playoffs are one of the most exciting events in sports, as sometimes you just need to get in to make a run. We’ve seen lower seeds come away with upsets and even hoist the Stanley Cup. Let’s look at a couple of those potential teams with today’s NHL best bets for Capitals vs.

The Panthers will defend their home court in Game 5 on Wednesday and the Stars will travel to Colorado for Game 6 on Thursday.

Aaron Ekblad and Seth Jones scored third-period goals 11 seconds apart and the Florida Panthers stormed from behind to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2 on Monday night to take a 3-1 lead in the first-

The Lightning turned the deficit into a rout in Game 3, beating the Panthers 5-1 Saturday and tightening the series to 2-1. Andrei Vasilevskiy was nearly perfect, s