Carolina's Challenge, Knights Golden Confidence, Leafs Searching, Oilers Waiting, Preds Land MacFarland in MegaDeal.

Carolina finds itself in a near must-win situation in Game 2, as headed to Vegas down 0-2 seems like too big of a hill to climb for any team.D espite neither side being thrilled with its Game 1 performance, Vegas showed why their confidence is at an all-time high, recovering from an early 2-0 deficit and continuing a stretch in which they haven’t lost in two weeks. John Tortorella earned praise for his in-game adjustments, while the Hurricanes’ top line remained largely ineffective. Both Ray and Dregs expect stronger outings from the goaltenders and are leaning toward a Carolina bounce-back, though they agree the margin between the teams remains razor thin. Off the ice, Peter Laviolette and Patrick Roy have advanced in Toronto’s coaching search, though the Leafs’ direction remains unclear compared to Edmonton’s more defined approach; Roy’s recent success developing top prospect Peter Schaefer could be a factor with Toronto holding the first overall pick. Meanwhile, the Oilers continue to wait on the coaching market, raising questions about whether Edmonton is willing to hold out for Bruce Cassidy, or if a backup candidate is already in place. In Nashville, the Predators landed a major front-office hire by prying Chris MacFarland away from Colorado with a lucrative deal, giving him the opportunity to build a team backed by ownership willing to spend to improve the team.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.