VLADIMIR TARASENKO

Wild Blues Hockey St. Louis Blues celebrate after a goal against Minnesota Wild goalie Cam Talbot during the second period in Game 6 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series Thursday, May 12, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Michael Thomas) (Michael Thomas)ST. LOUIS — (AP) — Jordan Binnington made 25 saves and the St. Louis Blues beat the Minnesota Wild 5-1 on Thursday night in Game 6 to advance to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs. Ryan O’Reilly, Tyler Bozak and Vladimir Tarasenko scored in a dominant second period during which the Blues outshot the Wild 22-5 and took control of the game. Binnington helped the Blues overcome a shaky start in the first by erasing several quality Wild chances coming off turnovers. Bozak cleaned up a rebound off Alexei Toropchenko's shot to extend St. Louis' advantage later in the second.

Jordan Binnington made 25 saves and the St. Louis Blues beat the Minnesota Wild 5-1 in Game 6 to advance to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs.

Kaprizov has an NHL-leading seven goals in the playoffs, already a Wild record for a series. The Wild are 4 for 19 on the power play, and Kaprizov has three of the goals. The series returns to St. Louis for Game 6 on Thursday night. That gave the Wild a 2-1 edge, completing the first lead change in the series. ... Marian Gaborik, with nine goals in 18 games in 2003, holds the Wild scoring record for a single postseason.

Vladimir Tarasenko had three goals in the third period to break open a tied game and series, and the St. Louis Blues pushed the Minnesota Wild to the edge of elimination with a 5-2 victory in Game 5.

Kirill Kaprizov had a hat trick and Joel Eriksson Ek scored twice for the Minnesota Wild, who snapped back at the St. Louis Blues with a 6-2 victory to even their first-round playoff series at one game apiece.

Blues Penguins Hockey Pittsburgh Penguins' Evan Rodrigues (9) celebrates his goal during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the St. Louis Blues in Pittsburgh, Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) (Gene J. Puskar)PITTSBURGH — (AP) — The Pittsburgh Penguins have been the NHL’s hottest team for the better part of a month. Crosby and Evan Rodrigues scored 12 seconds apart in the third period, and the Penguins rallied for a 5-3 win over the St. Louis Blues on Thursday night. Crosby scored his fifth, Rodrigues his 14th and McGinn his ninth, as Pittsburgh scored three in the third to erase a 3-2 deficit. Crosby has four goals and 19 points in his last 12 games played.

Sidney Crosby and Evan Rodrigues scored 12 seconds apart in the third period, and the Pittsburgh Penguins rallied past the St. Louis Blues 5-3.

The St. Louis Blues cruised through the coldest outdoor game in NHL history to beat the host Minnesota Wild 6-4.

A handful of NHL players are voicing frustration over the decision not to allow them to go to the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing.

Training camps got under way around the NHL on Thursday with several big-name stars nowhere to be found. With more than two weeks until the regular season, there's also no reason to rush. “I don’t think it’s any different than guys getting hurt, not being there for lineup,” Sharks defenseman Brent Burns said. I'm here to work, I'm healthy, I'm happy to play hockey again.”The distraction of unsigned players is not affecting most teams. ___Follow AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno___More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsCopyright 2021 The Associated Press.

Some of the NHL's stars are not on the ice for the start of training camps.

Stanley Cup Hockey Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price (31) plays the puck during the first period in Game 5 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup finals against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Wednesday, July 7, 2021, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan Ebenhack) (Phelan Ebenhack)After backstopping the Montreal Canadiens to the Stanley Cup Final, Carey Price has been left unprotected for the Seattle Kraken expansion draft. The 2015 MVP and Vezina Trophy winner is the biggest star left unprotected for the Kraken to select, but there's plenty of other talent available. St. Louis winger Vladimir Tarasenko is an option two years removed from hoisting the Stanley Cup after asking the Blues for a trade. The league released the protected lists of all 30 teams eligible for the expansion draft Sunday morning. ___Follow AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno___More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsCopyright 2021 The Associated Press.

Goaltender Carey Price has been exposed to the Seattle Kraken in the expansion draft after backstopping the Montreal Canadiens to the Stanley Cup Final.

Expect a fast and furious NHL offseason to unfold in the coming days and weeks.

Philipp Grubauer made 18 saves and Gabriel Landeskog scored the go-ahead goal in the second period to lift Colorado to a series sweep of the St. Louis Blues with a 5-2 win in Game 4 of the West Division series.

Nathan MacKinnon finished his first career playoff hat trick with an empty-net goal to help the Colorado Avalanche pull away late for a 6-3 win over St. Louis in Game 2 after the Blues avoided a pregame virus scare that nearly sidelined several players.

The NHL has cleared the St. Louis Blues and Vegas Golden Knights after virus testing errors.

FILE - In this Feb. 16, 2019, file photo, St. Louis Blues right wing Vladimir Tarasenko, right, is congratulated as he passes the team box after scoring a goal against the Colorado Avalanche during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Denver. Tarasenko makes his return after early season shoulder surgery that limited him to three goals in 10 games. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

Ditto for St. Louis, the defending Stanley Cup champions. The Blues and Avalanche were navigating through some key injuries before the season was halted in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. The hiatus allowed time to heal and now the top two teams in the Western Conference return as Cup favorites. The two teams get things rolling Sunday in Edmonton by facing each other to kick off a round-robin tournament to determine seeding in the West. It should be a fun ride.Back on the ice for the Blues is forward Vladimir Tarasenko, who underwent shoulder surgery in late October.