The New York Rangers have carried the form that made them the NHL’s best regular-season team straight into the postseason.

Artemi Panarin redirected a pass between his legs at the crease to beat Pyotr Kotchetkov just 1:43 into overtime and the New York Rangers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 on Thursday night to take a 3-0 lead in the second-round playoff series.

Vincent Trocheck and Mika Zibanejad each had a goal and an assist and the Presidents’ Trophy-winning New York Rangers held on to beat the Washington Capitals 4-3 for a 2-0 lead in their first-round playoff series.

Artemi Panarin scored 10 seconds into overtime and the New York Rangers rallied from three goals down to beat the rival Islanders 6-5 in a Stadium Series game at MetLife Stadium.

Sam Reinhart scored 3:02 into overtime and the Florida Panthers beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 to take a commanding 3-0 lead in their Eastern Conference semifinal series.

Patrick Kane is going to the New York Rangers as part of a flurry of moves with still days left before the NHL trade deadline.

Alex Ovechkin had a hat trick to lead the Washington Capitals to a 9-2 rout of the Montreal Canadiens.

Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Riley Stillman and forward Jujhar Khaira have joined Patrick Kane in the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol.

Anthony Mantha had a two points in his Washington debut, Alex Ovechkin scored the 728th goal of his NHL career and the Capitals beat the Philadelphia Flyers 6-1.

All divisional play through the first two rounds of the playoffs made a major impact at the NHL trade deadline.