The NHL imposes fines on players during the playoffs for various infractions that compromise safety on the ice or violate rules of sportsmanship. Some of the most common reasons include actions such as roughing, charging an opponent into the boards, and other unsportsmanlike conduct.

In these cases, just like what happened with one of Heiskanen’s teammates on the Stars, such penalties aim to discourage dangerous behavior and uphold the integrity of the game during the high intensity of the postseason. The goal is to prevent injuries and avoid rough play.

Which Dallas player was fined against the Jets?

Heiskanen’s teammate who was fined after Game 5 against Winnipeg is none other than left winger Jamie Benn, who will have to pay $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for roughing Jets player Mark Scheifele. The information was provided by the NHL Player Safety account on X (formerly Twitter).

The fine issued to Benn aligns with the case of the sanction handed down by the NHL to Max Domi, the Toronto Maple Leafs forward who was required to pay the same amount as the Stars player for a hit on Florida Panthers’ Aleksander Barkov during Game 4 of their second-round series.

What’s next for the Dallas Stars in their series against the Jets?

The story of Game 5 could have been different had defenseman Miro Heiskanen scored on his shot that hit the post when the score was 1-0 in favor of the Jets. However, the series now shifts back to Dallas, where the Stars will look to clinch their spot in the Western Conference Final in Game 6 at the American Airlines Center.

The road to the trophy promises to be extremely exciting with sixteen sides taking part in the thrilling knockout stage of the National Hockey League campaign. This round, just like the previous one, will be an unconventionalone for this sportdue to the pandemic situation, but it won’t be lacking in excitement.

Under special circumstances, the hockey year has been shorter than usual, with the campaign beginning in January instead of October, as the leagueintendsto conclude this season earlier to get back to the normal calendar for the 2021-2022 term. However, the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs have begun, and here we’ll take a look at the schedule, format, teams, andbracket.

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Format 2021

The Stanley Cup Playoffs will be different than usual this year. For this season, teams were divided into four divisions, which were organized according to the franchises’ location to prevent them from making tons of long travel distances under the Covid situation. The 24 American teams were divided into three groups of eight, while the seven Canadian sides were groupedin the remaining division.

The top four teams in each Division earned a ticket to the upcoming knockout phase. The first two rounds of the Playoffs will be played withinDivisions, with thefirst-seeded sidefacingthe fourth, and the second-placed team clashing withthe third.The winners will clash between them in the following round.

Following those two stages, the four remainingteams, one of each division, will set up the semifinals. The winners of these serieswill face off in the Stanley Cup Final. All rounds will consist ofbest-of-7 series, withhome-ice advantage for the higher-seeded team.

2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs Teams

Sixteen sides have made their way into the first round of the playoffs. Those were the best four of the West, Central, East, and North Division. These are the qualified teams from each division:

• West

y – Colorado Avalanche
x- Vegas Golden Knights
x – Minnesota Wild
x – St Louis Blues

• Central

y – Carolina Hurricanes
x – Florida Panthers
x – Tampa Bay Lightning
x – Nashville Predators

• East

y – Pittsburgh Penguins
x – Washington Capitals
x – Boston Bruins
x – New York Islanders

• North

y – Toronto Maple Leafs
x – Edmonton Oilers
x – Winnipeg Jets
x – Montreal Canadiens

2021Stanley Cup Playoffs Schedule and How to Watch

The2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs first-round schedule was released and every division except for the West already knows the date and time for each game.

• East Division

Pittsburgh Penguins (1st) vs.New York Islanders (4th)

Game 1: Islanders 4-1 Penguins

Game 2: Islanders at Penguins – Tuesday, May 18 at 7:30 PM (ET)
How to watch:NBCSN, SN, CBC, TVAS

Game 3: Penguins at Islanders – Thursday, May 20 at 7 PM (ET)
How to watch:NBCSN, SN360, TVAS

Game 4: Penguins at Islanders – Saturday, May 22, 3 PM (ET)
How to watch:NBC, SN, TVAS

*Game 5:Islanders at Penguins – Monday, May 24

*Game 6: Penguins at Islanders – Wednesday, May 26

*Game 7: Islanders at Penguins – Friday, May 28

* Time and TV TBD

Washington Capitals (2nd) vs. Boston Bruins (3rd)

Game 1: .: Bruins 2-3 (OT) Capitals

Game 2: Bruins4-3 (OT)Capitals

Game 3: Capitals at Bruins – Wednesday, May 19, 6:30 PM (ET)
NBCSN, SNE, SNO, SNP, SN360, TVAS

Game 4: Capitals at Bruins – Friday, May 21, 6:30 PM (ET)
NBCSN, SNE, SNO, SNP, SN360, TVAS

*Game 5: Bruins at Capitals- Sunday, May 23

*Game 6: Capitals at Bruins – Tuesday, May 25

*Game 7: Bruins at Capitals – Thursday, May 27

* If necessary

• Central Division

Carolina Hurricanes (1st) vs. Nashville Predators (4th)

Game 1: Predators2-5Hurricanes

Game 2: Predators at Hurricanes – Wednesday, May 19, 8 PM (ET)
CNBC, FX-CA, TVAS

Game 3: Hurricanes at Predators – Friday, May 21, 7 pm (ET)
USA, FXX-CA, TVAS

Game 4: Hurricanes at Predators – Sunday, May 23 TBD
TBD

*Game 5: Predators at Hurricanes – Tuesday, May 25

*Game 6:Hurricanes at Predators – Thursday, May 27

*Game 7: Predators at Hurricanes – Saturday, May 29

* If necessary

Florida Panthers (2nd) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (3rd)

Game 1: Lightning4-3Panthers – Sunday, May 16, 7:30 PM (ET)
NBCSN, SN, TVAS

Game 2: Lightning at Panthers – Tuesday, May 18, 8 PM (ET)
CNBC, SNE, TVAS

Game 3: Panthers at Lightning – Thursday, May 20, 6:30 PM (ET)
USA, FX-CA, TVAS

Game 4: Panthers at Lightning – Saturday, May 22, 12:30 PM (ET)
CNBC, SN, TVAS

*Game 5: Lightning at Panthers – Monday, May 24

*Game 6: Panthers at Lightning – Wednesday, May 26

*Game 7: Lightning at Panthers – Friday, May 28

* If necessary

• West Division

Colorado Avalanche(1st) vs. St. Louis Blues (4th)

Game 1: Blues 1-4Avalanche- Monday, May 17, 10 PM (ET)
NBCSN, SN1, TVAS

Game 2: Blues at Avalanche- Wednesday, May 19, 10:30 PM (ET)
CNBC, SN360, TVAS

Game 3: Avalancheat Blues – Friday, May 21, 9:30 PM (ET)
USA, SN360, TVAS

Game 4: Avalancheat Blues – Sunday, May 23 TBD

*Game 5: Blues at Avalanche- Tuesday, May 25, TBD

*Game 6: Avalanche at Blues – Thursday, May 27, TBD

*Game 7: Blues at Avalanche- Saturday, May 29, TBD

* If necessary

Vegas Golden Knights (2) vs. Minnesota Wild (3)

Game 1: Wild 1-0Golden KnightsSunday, May 16, 3 PM (ET)
NBC, SN, TVAS

Game 2: Wild at Golden Knights – Tuesday, May 18, 10 PM (ET)
BCSN, SN360, TVAS

Game 3: Golden Knights at Wild – Thursday, May 20, 9:30PM (ET)
NBCSN, SN360, TVAS

Game 4: Golden Knights at Wild – Saturday, May 22, 8 PM (ET)
NBC, SN360, TVAS

*Game 5: Wild at Golden Knights – Monday, May 24

*Game 6: Golden Knights at Wild – Wednesday, May 26

*Game 7:Wild at Golden Knights – Friday, May 28

* If necessary

• North Division

Toronto Maple Leafs (1) vs. Montreal Canadiens (4)

Game 1: Canadiens at Maple Leafs – Thursday, May 20, 7:30 PM (ET)
NHLN, SN, CBC, TVAS

Game 2:Canadiens at Maple Leafs – Saturday, May 22, 7 PM (ET)
NBC, SN, CBC, TVAS

Game 3: Maple Leafs at Canadiens – Monday, May 24, TBD

Game 4: Maple Leafs at Canadiens – Tuesday, May 25, TBD

*Game 5: Canadiens at Maple Leafs – Thursday, May 27

*Game 6: Maple Leafs at Canadiens – Saturday, May 29

*Game 7: Canadiens at Maple Leafs – Monday, May 31

* If necessary

Edmonton Oilers (2) vs. Winnipeg Jets (3)

Game 1:Jets at Oilers – Wednesday, May 19, 9
NBCSN, SN, CBC, TVAS

Game 2: Jets at Oilers – Friday, May 21, 9 PM (ET)
NBCSN, SN, CBC, TVAS

Game 3: Oilers at Jets – Sunday, May 23, TBD

Game 4: Oilers at Jets – Monday, May 24, TBD

*Game 5: Jets at Oilers – Wednesday, May 26

*Game 6: Oilers at Jets – Friday, May 28

*Game 7: Jets at Oilers – Sunday, May 30

* If necessary

2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs Bracket

With the sixteen teams inside the knockout stage, this is how the NHL 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs Bracket looks like, with exciting matchups in the beginning of the knockout stage: