NHL Games on TV Today – Friday, May 22, 2026 (ET)
One game on the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs schedule tonight, and it is close to a must-win for the home side. The Vegas Golden Knights return to Ball Arena for Game 2 of the Western Conference Final holding a 1-0 series lead over a Colorado Avalanche team that has looked out of sorts.
Coverage is on ESPN in the United States, with Sportsnet, CBC and TVA Sports carrying it in Canada.
Friday’s NHL Schedule at a Glance
| Time (ET) | Matchup | Series Status | US TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8:00 PM | Vegas Golden Knights at Colorado Avalanche (Game 2) | Vegas leads 1-0 | ESPN |
🏒 Game of the Day: Vegas Golden Knights vs. Colorado Avalanche (Game 2)
8:00 PM ET | ESPN (US) · Sportsnet / CBC / TVA Sports (Canada)
Vegas took the opener 4-2 on Wednesday and did it with a smothering, disciplined performance rather than a shootout. Dylan Coghlan – who spent most of the season in the AHL and only entered the lineup after Jeremy Lauzon’s injury – opened the scoring with his first playoff goal, Pavel Dorofeyev added his league-leading 10th of the postseason on the power play, and Brett Howden made it 3-0 early in the third. Nic Dowd finished it into an empty net.
Carter Hart was the difference with 36 saves, and Vegas blocked 23 shots while choking off Colorado’s speed through the neutral zone. John Tortorella was quick to point out afterward that his team was far from flawless, which will not comfort the home crowd.
Colorado’s problem is obvious: no Cale Makar. The absence forced Jared Bednar to reshuffle his pairings, and the defensive miscommunications that followed produced several of the Vegas chances. Valeri Nichushkin scored a highlight-reel goal between his own legs and Gabriel Landeskog converted a six-on-four with 2:21 left, but the comeback stalled there. Bednar was measured afterward, saying he saw clear direction on how to improve and was not panicking.
History supports that calm. Colorado went 11-3-2 after regulation losses during the regular season and responded to its only previous playoff defeat – Game 3 against Minnesota – with an immediate 5-2 win. But dropping both home games would leave the Presidents’ Trophy winners needing to win at T-Mobile Arena just to level the series.
Prediction: Vegas keeps grinding – another low-scoring night, and the Golden Knights leave Denver up 2-0.
In the East: Montreal Ends Carolina’s Perfect Run
The Canadiens stunned the Hurricanes 6-2 in Raleigh on Thursday, scoring four times in the opening period against a Carolina side emerging from an 11-day layoff – the longest playoff break in more than a century.
Juraj Slafkovsky had two goals and an assist, Phillip Danault and Cole Caufield each added a goal and a helper, and Nick Suzuki collected three assists to set a Canadiens record with 14 road points in a single postseason. Jakub Dobes made 25 saves. Frederik Andersen, who entered leading all playoff goaltenders with a 1.12 goals-against average and .950 save percentage, faced only 16 shots and lost for the first time this spring.
The result extended a strange trend: Carolina is now 1-13 in Eastern Conference Final games under Rod Brind’Amour. Game 2 is Saturday in Raleigh at 7:00 PM ET on TNT, truTV and HBO Max.
Both conference finals opened with the favorite losing at home, and both No. 1 seeds now need an answer. Colorado gets its chance tonight.
