NEW YORK — Jordan Staal and Evgeny Kuznetsov scored 3:06 apart in the third period, and the Carolina Hurricanes got four goals in the third for a 4-1 win over the New York Rangers in Game 5 of the second-round playoff series on Monday night, staving off elimination for the second straight game.

Jordan Martinook and Martin Necas also scored in the Hurricanes’ big third period, and Frederik Andersen — starting for the fourth time in five games in this series and ninth time in 10 games in the postseason — had 20 saves.

Jacob Trouba scored a short-handed goal and Igor Shesterkin stopped 24 shots for New York, which has lost two straight after taking a 3-0 series lead.

Game 6 is Thursday night in Raleigh, North Carolina.

The Hurricanes won despite going 0 for 3 on the power play to fall to 1 for 20 in this series while giving up a short-handed goal for the second time.

Staal tied it 1-1 at 3:33 as he got a pass from Dmitry Orlov, skated around one Rangers defender in the left circle, came in on Shesterkin and beat him with a backhanded shot that went around the leg of the sprawled goalie. It was Orlov’s first goal of the playoffs.

Kuznetsov then gave the Hurricanes the lead as he knocked in the rebound of Brady Skjei‘s shot from the right side for his fourth of the postseason.

Martinook made it 3-1 just before the midpoint of the period. Necas sent a centering pass from the end boards, and the puck went off Jack Drury‘s stick to Martinook, and he quickly sent a shot that beat Shesterkin.

The Rangers pulled Shesterkin for an extra skater with 3:44 to go, but Necas sent a long shot that went into the empty net 15 seconds later.

The Rangers got a power play when Orlov was called for roughing at 3:47 of the second period. Shortly after the penalty expired, New York’s Jack Roslovic was whistled for tripping, putting Carolina’s struggling power play on the advantage. However, it was the Rangers who broke through.

Trouba blocked a shot by Sebastian Aho, skated up the ice on 2-on-1 rush and fired a shot from the right circle that beat Andersen at 6:23. It was his first goal of the playoffs and the Rangers’ fourth short-handed tally.

The Hurricanes got another power play at the midpoint of the period, but didn’t get a shot on goal during the advantage. Shesterkin then denied Drury’s point-blank try with 6 minutes to go in the second.

Carolina had a 10-9 advantage on shots on goal in a scoreless and fast-paced first period. Both teams had chances and the goalies had to make several nice saves.

Shesterkin had a skate save on Staal about 2 1/2 minutes in and then had a pad save on another try by Staal at 8:41. He also turned aside Jake Guenzel’s breakaway attempt with about 3 minutes remaining.

Andersen had a right pad save on Chris Kreider in close with about 6 minutes to in the period.

New York got the first power play of the game when Kuznetsov was sent off for slashing with 1:55 left in the first. However, the Rangers managed just one shot on goal during the advantage.

Rangers rookie sensation Matt Rempe was back in the starting lineup after sitting out Games 3 and 4. Filip Chytil played in his place in Game 3 and Jonny Brodzinski in Game 4.

DENVER — Colorado Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin has been placed in Stage 3 of the NHL/NHL Players’ Association player assistance program, the league said Monday, just hours before the team’s playoff game against the Dallas Stars.

Nichushkin, under the terms of the player assistance program, will be suspended without pay for a minimum of six months. He’ll then be eligible to apply for reinstatement, according to a release issued by the NHL and NHLPA.

No further information about why Nichushkin, who was on the ice with the team at morning skate, was admitted into the program was provided.

With Nichushkin out, Colorado, trailing 2-1 in the series to Dallas, turned to forward Jonathan Drouin, who returned to the lineup following a lengthy absence. Drouin had missed all of Colorado’s postseason games before Monday, after he sustained a lower-body injury in the regular-season finale on April 18.

A league source told ESPN that the player assistance program has four stages. Stage 1 is the first in-patient treatment for which there is no penalty. Under Stage 2, which follows a violation of the Stage 1 treatment plan, a player can be suspended without pay during the active phase of treatment and then become eligible for reinstatement.

Stage 3, which follows a violation of the Stage 2 treatment plan, carries a suspension without pay for at least six months, at which point a player can become eligible for reinstatement. Stage 4, after a violation of the Stage 3 treatment plan, carries a suspension of at least one year and reinstatement is not assured.

For Nichushkin, this latest absence from the Avalanche will be his third in the past 13 months.

The 29-year-old Nichushkin’s most recent absence from the Avalanche came in mid-January, when he was admitted into the player assistance program for undisclosed reasons. At the time of his absence, it was announced that he would be out for an indefinite period.

Nichushkin resumed skating with the Avalanche in late February before returning to the lineup in their 2-1 overtime win March 8 against the Minnesota Wild.

His first absence from the Avalanche came last April, when he missed the final five games of a first-round series that ended with the Avs losing to the Seattle Kraken.

At the time of his absence, the team said Nichushkin left for personal reasons. His absence came after police officers responded to a call at the team’s hotel in Seattle on the afternoon before the Avalanche and Kraken played Game 3 of their quarterfinal series.

A 28-year-old woman was in an ambulance when officers arrived, and medics were told to speak with an Avalanche team physician to receive more details.

The police report, which was obtained by ESPN, among other outlets, said the Avalanche’s physician told officers that team employees found the woman when they were checking on Nichushkin. The team physician told police that the woman appeared to be intoxicated and was too intoxicated to have left the hotel “in a ride share or cab service” and needed EMS assistance.

When the Avalanche returned for preseason camp, Nichushkin told reporters that “I think we should close it. It’s a new season right now. We have to focus on that.”

A first-round pick by the Stars in 2013, Nichushkin spent four seasons with the club that drafted him. He scored 23 goals and 74 points in 223 games, and never quite reached the heights expected of a first-round pick.

The Avalanche signed him at the start of the 2019-2020 season on a one-year deal worth $850,000. Nichushkin worked his way from a bottom-six role to become one of the team’s most important players. It led to him signing a two-year deal worth $2.5 million annually in 2020 before he signed an eight-year deal worth $6.125 million annually that started at the beginning of the 2022-2023 season.

Vancouver defenseman Carson Soucy has been suspended one game for cross-checking Edmonton forward Connor McDavid in the face during Game 3 of their second-round Stanley Cup playoff series on Sunday.

The NHL’s Department of Player Safety made the announcement following a phone hearing with Soucy on Monday.

Soucy’s suspension stemmed from an altercation with McDavid late in the third period of Sunday’s game. Edmonton trailed 4-3 and was pressuring Vancouver while searching for an equalizing goal. The final buzzer sounded as Soucy and McDavid became engaged behind the net.

Despite the game being over, Soucy shoved McDavid, and McDavid responded by slashing Soucy in the leg. Soucy slashed McDavid back — also in the leg — then elevated his stick in both hands and shoved it directly into McDavid’s face. McDavid was also cross-checked from behind at the same time by Canucks’ defenseman Nikita Zadorov, who was fined $5,000, and he fell to the ice.

Soucy was assessed a cross-checking penalty at the 20-minute mark of the third period for his offense. Zadorov did not receive a penalty.

In the video explaining the suspension, Player Safety stated that while they “acknowledged Soucy’s argument that the cross-check by Zadorov is forceful enough to cause a change in McDavid’s position and may contribute to Soucy’s cross-check landing to the head,” it was still a textbook cross-check deserving of its own punishment.

“The play happens well after the play has ended, and it is not a hockey play,” the video said. “Soucy chooses to raise his stick to an unacceptably high level, draws the stick back and delivers a two-handed blow which lands to his opponent’s head.”

This is the second suspension of Soucy’s career. He will miss Game 4 of the series on Tuesday, with Vancouver leading 2-1. The date for Game 5 hasn’t yet been announced.

McDavid on Monday said he “felt great” after the hit from Soucy.

“It’s a tough game,” McDavid said. “They’ve got big D-men. They make it hard on you. They play physical — a physical brand of hockey. It’s fun to be a part of.”

The Oilers’ captain has two goals and 17 points in eight postseason games.