Capitals and Golden Knights are the latest to blow leads this NHL playoffs and need to fix problems

So far early in these NHL playoffs, 45 times a team has skated onto the ice for the third period with a lead.

Nearly a third of those times that team lost the game.

The Washington Capitals and Vegas Golden Knights lost their second-round series opener, becoming the 12th and 13th examples of that particular blown lead this postseason. The Capitals lost to Carolina in overtime and the Golden Knights fell to Edmonton in regulation.

“We’ve been good at getting leads and building leads in past playoff series, but the past is the past and the time’s now,” Vegas center Jack Eichel said. "You learn from some stuff that’s happened. At the same time, we have to understand they’re not going to come in here and roll over, so our effort needs to be better.”

Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl don't know the meaning of “roll over.” Trailing 2-1, the Oilers outshot the Golden Knights 12-1 in the second period, then scored 57 seconds out of intermission on the way to winning 4-2.

Washington led 1-0 midway through the third, when a turnover by Aliaksei Protas off the right skate of teammate Alex Alexeyev put the puck right on Jesperi Kotkaniemi's stick. Quick pass to Logan Stankoven, who beat Logan Thompson, and the score was tied. Carolina finished it off three minutes into OT.

Sure, it was a bad bounce, but the Capitals were 31-1-1 during the regular season when up after two periods.

“You have to trust yourself and play within good D-zone structure for when those bad moments do happen because inevitably they’re going to happen in a series," center Nic Dowd said. ”Pucks are going to hit stanchions, they’re going hit toes of people’s skates — things like that are going to happen. But I trust that the five guys that are on the ice are always going to get the job done."

That was a one-goal lead, and Washington was under siege most of Game 1. Vegas blew a two-goal advantage, ending a streak of winning 26 playoff games in a row when up by that margin or more.

“I don’t think it’s anything that concerns us," said Reilly Smith, a member of the Knights' 2023 Cup-winning team who was reacquired ahead of the trade deadline in March. "There’s a lot that's correctable. I think we need to play faster and more direct, and I think it starts there.”

When/Where to Watch: Game 2, Thursday, 7 p.m. EDT (ESPN)

Series: Hurricanes lead 1-0

What went wrong for the Capitals in the series-opening loss? Let coach Spencer Carbery count the ways.

“You can obviously go down 20 different alleys,” Carbery said.

Dowd referenced “94” twice as the number of shot attempts Carolina had in Game 1 compared with Washington's 34. That explains just how much the ice was tilted toward Thompson.

“They’re going to funnel a ton of pucks to the net, and eventually something bad will happen,” Dowd said, referencing Jaccob Slavin's overtime winner on a seemingly harmless shot from 65 feet out. “You give them enough opportunities, something weird is bound to happen, just like it did. But all in all I don’t think we played a very good game, so we’ll obviously be looking to get back to what we do best.”

The silver lining for the Caps is they were one goal from stealing a game they had no business winning. Games 3 and 4 are on the road in Raleigh, where the Hurricanes get to control matchups — making this as close to a must-win as a Game 2 can realistically be.

“We’re very, very short-term focused, so I don’t even look at it as a series at this point right now,” Carbery said. “Our focus is: ‘What do we need to adjust? What do we need to do tomorrow to have success on home ice and have our game look as close to possible what our game needs to look like this year and the level it has to be at — extremely high — to compete with a team like the Carolina Hurricanes?’”

When/Where to Watch: Game 2, Thursday, 9:30 p.m. EDT (ESPN)

Series: Oilers lead 1-0

Trailing in a playoff series is nothing new for the Golden Knights, who have shown a fortitude throughout their eight-year history to overcome early losses.

“No, I don’t think we’re panicking,” Eichel said. “It’s a seven-game series. Obviously, we didn’t have our best (Tuesday) night and it cost us Game 1, but you learn from it and move on.”

The Golden Knights have won three consecutive series after losing the opener and are 4-2 in franchise history in such scenarios. They lost the first game to Winnipeg in both 2018 and 2023 on eventual trips to the Stanley Cup Final. In 2021, the Golden Knights dropped their first two games to Colorado before storming back to win in six.

Vegas also has a series comeback just this year. The Golden Knights took Game 1 in the first round against Minnesota, lost the next two to trail 2-1, then won the next three to move on.

Coach Bruce Cassidy anticipates a hungry opponent after the Oilers came one victory away from the Stanley Cup last season and not being satisfied with winning just one of the first two at Vegas.

“We can’t be relying on (past comeback success),” Cassidy said. “We’ve got to play better is what we’ve got to do.”

AP Sports Writer Mark Anderson in Las Vegas contributed to this report.

AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Carolina Hurricanes left wing William Carrier (28) collides with Washington Capitals defenseman Alexander Alexeyev (27) in the second period of Game 1 of a second-round NHL hockey playoff series Tuesday, May 6, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Washington Capitals defenseman Jakob Chychrun (6) scuffles with Carolina Hurricanes left wing William Carrier, left, in the second period of Game 1 of a second-round NHL hockey playoff series Tuesday, May 6, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Edmonton Oilers right wing Connor Brown (28) scores against Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Adin Hill (33) during the third period of Game 1 of a second-round NHL hockey playoff series Tuesday, May 6, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Adin Hill (33) reaches for the puck during the second period of Game 1 of a second-round NHL hockey playoff series against the Edmonton Oilers, Tuesday, May 6, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Josh Allen took a pounding, doled out punishment and delivered Buffalo its first road playoff victory in more than three decades, 27-24 over Jacksonville in the AFC's wild-card opener Sunday.

With linebacker Devin Lloyd bearing down on him, Allen found Brandin Cooks for 36 yards just before the two-minute warning and then capped the go-ahead drive with a 1-yard touchdown run in which Jacksonville let him score.

On the play before his score, Allen gained 10 yards on a sneak, refusing to go down while being pushed and pulled to the goal line.

“Just trusting everybody on the field,” Allen said. "Great win, great team win. All we’ve got to do is play our game, find a way to win a football game. We’re on to the next.”

Buffalo will play at Denver or New England next week, a chance to build a road winning streak after a decades-long skid.

“We got to go do it again. We got to go do it again," Allen said.

Focused on getting rid of the ball quickly and negating Jacksonville’s pass rush most of the game, Allen completed 28 of 35 passes for 273 yards and a touchdown. He ran for two scores, was sacked just once and played turnover-free football. Khalil Shakir caught 12 passes for 82 yards for the Bills.

It was necessary considering NFL rushing leader James Cook was mostly bottled up, finishing with 46 yards on 15 carries.

“You know, we’re going to play for each other, we’re gonna fight to the very last second, and you saw that here today,” Allen said.

Buffalo (13-5) intercepted a deflected pass on Jacksonville’s final drive to seal the victory.

The Bills had been 0-5 on the road in the playoffs under coach Sean McDermott, starting with a 10-3 loss at Jacksonville in the 2017 wild-card round. The Bills had dropped eight consecutive postseason games on the road since winning at Miami in the 1992 AFC championship game. It had been the NFL’s second-longest, active road playoff skid.

The Jaguars (13-5) took the lead with 4:03 to play on Trevor Lawrence’s third TD pass of the game, but they couldn’t hold it against the NFL’s reigning MVP.

Lawrence completed 18 of 30 passes for 207 yards, with TD throws to Brian Thomas Jr., Parker Washington and Travis Etienne. Washington finished with seven catches for 107 yards.

Coach Liam Coen surely will get questioned for not running the ball more against one of the league’s most porous run defenses.

Etienne and rookie Bhayshul Tuten combined for 118 yards on just 14 carries.

Allen, meanwhile, showed his toughness. He twice ended up in the medical tent in the first half but didn’t miss a snap. He got hammered in the head twice during one play, with Josh Hines-Allen landing on the side of his helmet right after teammate Travon Walker tackled him to the ground. His left ear appeared to be bleeding, but he got checked out and returned.

Allen later slammed his right hand into the helmet of right guard O’Cyrus Torrence after releasing the ball. And he completed the injury trifecta when his left leg got bent awkwardly on his 2-yard TD run.

Allen stayed on the ground following that last hit from Hines-Allen and gingerly walked to the sideline and back into the tent. But, as usual, the 6-foot-5, 237-pounder powered through and was back on the field making plays.

The Jaguars had a chance to tie the game at the end of the first half, but Cam Little was wide left on a 54-yarder. The miss ended a streak of 20 consecutive field goals made for the second-year pro from Arkansas.

Little kicked the two longest field goals in NFL history this season — a 68-yarder at Las Vegas and a 67-yarder last week against Tennessee.

He got a chance after the Bills were flagged for being offside following a 34-yard completion that got Little into range.

Bills S Jordan Poyer (hamstring) was ruled out to start the third quarter, a huge loss for an already banged-up secondary. It left the Bills to play with rookie Jordan Hancock and second-year Cole Bishop. WR Gabe Davis, who played for Jacksonville last season, injured his left knee in the fourth and was carted to the locker room and ruled out. WR Tyrell Shavers injured his left knee during a punt return but returned in the second half.

Jaguars RG Patrick Mekari (back) left in the third. LG Ezra Cleveland also was banged up and alternating plays with rookie Wyatt Milum. WR Parker Washington was evaluated for a concussion in the first half and cleared to return.

The Bills will play at Denver or New England next weekend.

The Jaguars will turn their attention toward improving a roster that lacked enough difference-makers on both sides of the ball.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Buffalo Bills' Ray Davis, bottom right, fumbles a kickoff return from the Jacksonville Jaguars as teammate Baylon Spector (54) and Jacksonville Jaguars' Devin Lloyd (0) try to recover the ball during the first half of an NFL wild-card playoff football game Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) is tackled by Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Josh Hines-Allen (41) during the second half of an NFL wild-card playoff football game Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Parker Washington (11) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Buffalo Bills during the second half of an NFL wild-card playoff football game Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen gets up after collecting a first down near the Jacksonville Jaguars end zone later in the second half of an NFL wild-card playoff football game Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) pushes in for a first down as Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Arik Armstead (91) tries to stop him during the second half of an NFL wild-card playoff football game Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)