Merry WNBA season start eve

The GIST: Sorry to the aurora borealis, but the show stopping northern lights had nothing on the conference semis this weekend, with stunner after stunner in the East and West. Shine bright, shine far.

Indiana Pacers blow out NY Knicks to even series: Aided by the Knicks’ injury woes, the Pacers dominated yesterday’s Game 4, winning 121–89 behind double-digit performances from six different players. Now, the highly unpredictable series shifts back to NY for Game 5 tomorrow at 8 p.m. ET.

Denver Nuggets roar back against Minnesota Timberwolves: Between Jamal Murray’s halftime buzzer beater and Aaron Gordon’s near-perfect game, the Nuggets reminded everyone why they’re the defending champs last night, winning Game 4 115–107 and leveling the series before it swings back to Denver tomorrow at 10:30 p.m. ET.

Tonight’s Game 4s: The Boston Celtics (up 2-1) held off Donovan Mitchell in a 106–93 Saturday dub to take back control of the series and hand the Cleveland Cavaliers their first home loss of the playoffs. With injuries plaguing the Cavs, tune in tonight at 7 p.m. ET to see if Boston’s Jayson Tatum can harness his re-found momentum.

• The Dallas Mavericks (up 2-1) are in their upset era, rattling off two straight wins over the Western Conference top seed Oklahoma City Thunder. With Dallas’ Luka Dončić playing through leg injuries, his teammate P.J. Washington stepped up, notching five threes in Saturday’s W.

• Dallas will try to giddy up to a 3-1 lead at home tonight at 9:30 p.m. ET.

The GIST: Start searching for the broom because two teams are up 2-0 and on the brink of sweeping their best-of-five semis series. Read up on the icy happenings, then scroll to Fun & Games to share your prediction on how the next 48 hours will shake out.

Kristen Campbell and No. 1 seed Toronto blank No. 4 Minnesota…again: Brickwall Goaltender Campbell made 21 saves and the Toronto defense stymied any Minny attack in Friday’s 2–0 Game 2 victory. As for the offense, Toronto defender Renata Fast continued her impressive series, notching her third assist in two games.

• The only saving grace for struggling Minnesota (who’ve now lost seven straight) is that tonight’s must-win 8 p.m. ET Game 3 is back on their home ice. We’ll see if it really is where the heart is.

No. 3 Boston wins another overtime (OT) thriller against No. 2 Montréal: Not one, not two, but three OT periods (aka nearly an entire additional hockey game) later, Boston came out on top 2–1 on Saturday behind forward Taylor Wenczkowski’s game winner. Defense also played a major difference in this one as Boston ’tendy Aerin Frankel made stunning saves down the stretch.

• This heart-pumping series now shifts to Boston for Game 3 tomorrow at 7 p.m. ET. Can the home team close it out in the Hub? Can Montréal rally on the road? Will we get another OT battle? Anything could happen.

The GIST: And the award for best drama goes to…the Stanley Cup Playoffs. This weekend’s puck play was heart-stopping, frustrating, and exhilarating all at the same time.

The Florida Panthers inch closer to the Eastern Conference (EC) Finals: Even with Boston Bruins captain Brad Marchand out of the lineup, the Bruins charged to a 2–0 first period lead, but the Panthers (assisted by a controversial call) meowed back and erased Boston’s edge all the way to a 3–2 Game 4 win.

• Now up 3-1 in the series, the reigning EC champ Panthers can eliminate their Atlantic Division rivals when Game 5 returns to the Sunshine State tomorrow at 7 p.m. ET.

The Vancouver Canucks bounce back with Game 3 road win: Right winger Brock Boeser and the ’Nucks flipped the script after Friday’s Game 2 loss and posted a much-needed 4–3 Game 3 win over the Edmonton Oilers last night, moving ahead 2-1 in the all-Canada series.

• See if the Pacific Division champions can jump out to a commanding lead on the road during Game 4 tomorrow at 9:30 p.m. ET.

Previewing tonight’s games: The Carolina Hurricanes finally handed the NY Rangers their first playoff loss, winning Saturday’s Game 4 4–3. The Canes raced to a two-goal first period lead and held on to send the series back to the Big Apple for a pivotal Game 5, tonight at 7 p.m. ET. Will the Rangers close it out at home or can Carolina stay alive once again?

• The wild, wild West has been living up to its name — the Dallas Stars stifled the typically stout Colorado Avalanche offense in Saturday’s 4–1 Game 3 win, giving the Big D a 2-1 series lead.

• That said, expect the Avs to come out firing in front of their home crowd when Game 4 begins tonight at 9:30 p.m. ET.

As the PWHL semis roll on, we want you and a pal to be part of the historic inaugural championship series.

• And it’s not just one game you’ll receive tickets to — you’ll be able to enjoy every single matchup of the potential five-game series. Yes, way.

Enter this contest today and get ready to pack your bags for an icy good time.