Penguins at Flyers and Senators vs. Hurricanes are looking to avoid first-round sweeps

Only four teams in NHL history have fallen behind 0-3 in a best-of-seven playoff series and rallied to win it. Just six more won three in a row to force a Game 7.

Stuart Skinner was part of that last near-miss. He backstopped Edmonton to an-almost comeback in the 2024 Stanley Cup Final against Florida before losing in seven. Now he is Pittsburgh's goaltender with the Penguins facing the same deficit in the first round against Philadelphia.

"You know it’s possible," Skinner said after a Game 3 loss to the Flyers pushed him and his teammates to the brink. "Statistics are fun to look at, but it doesn’t mean they’re always right.”

The statistics say the Penguins — and the Ottawa Senators, also down 3-0 to Carolina — have a less than 2% chance of pulling it off. The first step in avoiding a sweep comes Saturday with Game 4s in each series.

“The fact is we’ve got to win a game,” Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby said. “That’s got to be our focus. You can’t grab three on Saturday. You’ve got to win one.”

In the Western Conference, the Dallas Stars visit the Minnesota Wild in the next chapter of that intensely competitive series between Central Division rivals.

“It’s truly what playoff hockey is about,” Minnesota coach John Hynes said. “It’s a highly emotional time of year. It’s a great time of year.”

When/Where to Watch: Game 4, Saturday, 5:30 p.m. ET (TBS)

Series: Dallas leads 2-1

The Stars gained the upper hand on the Wild with Wyatt Johnston’s deflection of Miro Heiskanen’s shot more than halfway through the second overtime in Game 3, another productive power play that has been the difference so far in this series.

The Stars have had 17 opportunities, the most in the NHL this postseason. They have scored six times, including five in the last two games, both wins. The Wild are just 3 for 15 and 1 for 11 over the last two games, missing injured winger Mats Zuccarello since Game 1 when he took an elbow to the head from Dallas defenseman Tyler Myers.

“Guys are staying connected to get the puck down the ice when it’s contested,” Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said, praising his penalty kill units. “Overall, in our whole game, we’ve protected the slot better, haven’t given up as many slot opportunities on the PK or five on five, which bleed into each other, right? It’s always an emphasis.”

The Wild have been adamant they’re not that far off their game.

“Absolutely none, no frustration,” right wing Matt Boldy said. “We had our chances. We had our looks. When they come, they come.”

When/Where to Watch: Game 4, Saturday, 8 p.m. ET (TBS)

Series: Philadelphia leads 3-0.

Skinner is not the only Pittsburgh player who believes a comeback is possible. Three-time Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Erik Karlsson called it a great opportunity.

“It’s do or die, and now we’re going to see what we’re made of,” Karlsson said. “It’s an opportunity, and it’s something that we’re going to have to embrace and understand that being in this situation, even though we’re down 3-0 is still a lot of fun and we would have paid a lot of money to stand here today back in October and say this is where we were going to be.”

The biggest potential edge for the Penguins is the uncertain status of Flyers goalie Dan Vladar, who injured his right arm in the third period Wednesday night. Vladar finished the game, underwent treatment after and has not practiced since, with coach Rick Tocchet calling it maintenance.

“Two days off is going to help him,” Tocchet said Friday. “We'll see how he is.”

Vladar has been Philadelphia's best player all season, including this series in stopping 70 of 74 shots. If he's unable to go Saturday night, Tocchet is likely to turn to backup Samuel Ersson, who had the league's worst save percentage during the regular season at .870 and has played just twice in the past three weeks.

When/Where to Watch: Game 4, Saturday, 3 p.m. ET (TBS)

Series: Carolina leads 3-0.

The Hurricanes have suffocated the Senators, allowing them just three goals through three games and outshooting them 105-83. Ottawa can be eliminated on home ice, but captain Brady Tkachuk said it would be a great story if he and his teammates overcome the odds and advance.

“Pretty frustrating, but we’ve got to find a way,” Tkachuk said. “We’ve never quit all season. ... Got to step up to the occasion.”

They will have to do it without No. 1 defenseman Jake Sanderson, ruled out because of a concussion following an illegal check to the head from Carolina's Taylor Hall that was penalized with a 2-minute minor.

Also missing Artem Zub, the Senators made the playoffs despite getting battered by injuries on their blue line.

“If there’s one thing this group has done all year, it’s not give up,” defenseman Thomas Chabot said. “We stick with it, and that’s not going to change.”

AP Sports Writers Dan Gelston in Philadelphia, Dave Campbell in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the Canadian Press contributed.

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

Ottawa Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark (35) looks for the save as Carolina Hurricanes' William Carrier (28) deflects the puck during the third period of an NHL playoff hockey game in Ottawa on Thursday, April 23, 2026. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)

Pittsburgh Penguins' Stuart Skinner adjusts his mask during the second period of Game 3 against the Philadelphia Flyers in the first round of the NHL Stanley Cup hockey playoffs Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Minnesota Wild center Joel Eriksson Ek (14) and Dallas Stars center Sam Steel (18) battle for the puck during the second period of Game 3 in the first round of the NHL Stanley Cup hockey playoffs Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Ottawa Senators' Brady Tkachuk (7) waits for a faceoff during second period NHL playoff hockey game against the Carolina Hurricanes in Ottawa, on Thursday, April 23, 2026. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press via AP)

Pittsburgh Penguins' Stuart Skinner cannot stop a goal by Philadelphia Flyers' Nick Seeler during the second period of Game 3 in the first round of the NHL Stanley Cup hockey playoffs Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan's political and military leadership was scrambling on Sunday to reignite ceasefire talks between the United States and Iran after President Donald Trump told envoys not to travel to Islamabad for negotiations this weekend, Pakistani officials said.

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, left Pakistan’s capital late Saturday but was expected to return to Islamabad on Sunday before continuing on to Moscow, Iranian state media said. He had gone to Oman, which previously mediated between the countries and is located on the other side of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

Two Pakistani officials said leaders were expecting Araghchi. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the efforts, did not say when the Americans might return to the region.

The White House on Friday said it would dispatch envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Islamabad for a second round of talks. But shortly after Araghchi's departure was reported, Trump said he had called off the mission because of a lack of progress with Iran. “They can call us anytime they want,” he said.

Trump last week indefinitely extended the ceasefire that U.S. and Iran agreed to on April 7 that has largely halted the fighting that began with joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Feb. 28. But a permanent settlement remains elusive in the war that has killed thousands of people and shaken the global economy.

A standoff remains at the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global waterway, as Iran restricts movement through it and the U.S. enforces a blockade of Iranian ports.

Iran wants to persuade Oman to support a mechanism to collect tolls from vessels passing through the strait, through which a fifth of the world’s oil flows in peacetime, according to a regional official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter.

The official, who is involved in mediation efforts, said Iran insists on ending the U.S. blockade before a new round of talks and that Pakistan-led mediators are trying to bridge significant gaps between the countries.

He added that Araghchi’s talks in Oman have focused on issues surrounding Strait of Hormuz.

Oman’s response wasn’t immediately clear. Araghchi also spoke by phone with counterparts in Qatar and Saudi Arabia on Sunday.

Even before Saturday’s developments, Iran’s foreign ministry said any talks would be indirect and Pakistani officials would act as go-betweens, reflecting Tehran's wariness after rounds of indirect talks last year and earlier this year ended with Iran being attacked by the U.S. and Israel.

The economic fallout is growing two months into the war as global shipments of oil, liquefied natural gas, fertilizer and other supplies are disrupted by the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Both sides have continued to make military threats. Iran’s joint military command on Saturday warned that “if the U.S. continues its aggressive military actions, including naval blockades, banditry, and piracy” it will face a “strong response.” Trump last week ordered the military to “shoot and kill” small boats that could be placing mines.

Trump told journalists on Saturday, before a security incident at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, that within 10 minutes of him canceling Witkoff and Kushner’s trip to Islamabad, Iran sent a “much better” proposal.

He did not elaborate but stressed that one of his conditions is that Iran “will not have a nuclear weapon.” The status of Iran's enriched uranium has long been at the center of tensions. Tehran has 440 kilograms (972 pounds) of uranium enriched to 60% purity, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels, according to the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency.

Syed Mohammad Ali, an independent political analyst in Pakistan, said the delay in the talks must not be seen as a setback and that indirect talks were progressing. He said tensions between Washington and Tehran cannot be eased overnight and the negotiation process requires patience.

"But the good thing is that the ceasefire is holding, and both sides have a desire to end the conflict in a way that does not backfire at home,” Ali said.

Since the war began, at least 3,375 people have been killed in Iran and at least 2,496 people in Lebanon, where the Israel-Hezbollah fighting resumed two days after the Iran war started.

Also, 23 people have been killed in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Fifteen Israeli soldiers in Lebanon, 13 U.S. service members in the region and six U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon have been killed.

Another ceasefire — between Israel and the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant Hezbollah group, has been extended by three weeks. Hezbollah has not participated in the Washington-brokered diplomacy.

In this photo released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, right, shakes hands with Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq during their meeting, in Muscat, Oman, Sunday, April 26, 2026. (Iranian Foreign Ministry via AP)

The wife and children of Fadi Al Zein, who lost both his homes in Israeli strikes in his village of Khiam and in Dahiyeh, sit on the balcony of their heavily damaged apartment building in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

In this photo released by the Pakistan Prime Minister Office, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, fifth left, meets with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, center, in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (Pakistan Prime Minister Office via AP)

A woman walks past an anti-U.S. graffiti painted on the wall of the Tehran University on Enqelab-e-Eslami (Islamic Revolution) street in downtown Tehran, Iran, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

In this photo released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, left, meets with Pakistan's Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (Iranian Foreign Ministry via AP)

A woman holds an Iranian flag for a pro-government campaign in downtown Tehran, Iran, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)