NHL Playoff Schedule 2017: Wednesday TV and Live-Stream Guide

Arguably the two most intriguing matchups of the 2017 NHL playoffs took wild turns in Game 3, and now the next chapter of each series will unfold on Wednesday night. 

Despite a late rally, the Pittsburgh Penguins lost Sidney Crosby and a chance to grab a 3-0 lead on home ice, and now they must rely on their depth to overcome a resurgent Washington Capitals team. In the Western Conference, the Anaheim Ducks took a heavy punch from the Edmonton Oilers, but they still rolled over the home team to get back into the series.

Let's take a look at the television and live-stream schedule for these massive Game 4s. Continue for a preview of each matchup.

Matchup	Start Time (ET)	Network	Live Stream
Washington Capitals at Pittsburgh Penguins	7:30 p.m.	NBCSN	NBC Sports Live
Anaheim Ducks at Edmonton Oilers	10 p.m.	NBCSN	NBC Sports Live

Washington at Pittsburgh

With the history and the amount of star power between these two squads, this series had it all. Now with Crosby's injury, an already chippy series is now completely changed.

There was plenty said and written about the circumstances and possible malice behind Crosby's injury, but the fact is that Crosby is out for Game 4 with a concussion.

Also, Matt Niskanen was not suspended for his hit on No. 87, per Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post, so Pittsburgh needs to quickly recover without its best player against a full-strength Washington team.

Without Crosby, Pittsburgh's offense unsurprisingly declines, per Sportsnet:

The good news for the Penguins is that Marc-Andre Fleury has been sensational in this series, as Washington holds an edge in controlling offensive play through three games. The Capitals are leading 104-75 in shots so far.

Pittsburgh also has offensive stars in Phil Kessel and Evgeni Malkin, as well as strong depth scorers like Jake Guentzel and Patric Hornqvist.

It also helps that Malkin has been downright filthy in his career when Crosby is out of the lineup, per ESPN's Craig Custance:

Still, the Capitals have to be re-energized, since they could not ask for a better break than facing a Penguins team minus three quality players in Crosby, Kris Letang and Conor Sheary.

Washington also has to feel pretty confident against a Pittsburgh power play that is 1-for-10 in the series after tying for third-best in the NHL during the regular season. 

Washington is a deeper and more physical team, which should prove to be the difference in a game that promises to be extremely physical following the emotion of the Crosby situation. The deciding factor will be Braden Holtby.

The Capitals netminder has been inconsistent in these playoffs, posting a pedestrian 2.54 GAA and a .914 save percentage in nine starts. He responded to an abysmal three goals on 14 shots in Game 2 with 28 saves on 30 shots in Game 3, but can he string together another stout contest?

He did so in Round 1 by posting a save percentage of at least .960 in the final two games against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Holtby has also been historically outstanding in previous playoff runs, so he should be trusted to play well in a pivotal Game 4.

It will be close, but look for the Capitals to edge out the Penguins and tie up this series.

Anaheim at Edmonton

The Ducks were right in this series for the first two games, but Cam Talbot was stout in net by allowing just four goals on 76 shots.

Yet the goals poured into Edmonton's net in Game 3, as Anaheim flew out to a 3-0 lead, took the Oiler's best shot by letting the game move to 3-3 before then rolling over Edmonton 6-3. Talbot allowed all six goals on 28 shots.

Following the game, Talbot blamed himself for the loss, but he feels confident in his ability to bounce back, per NHL.com's Tim Campbell.

"I just flush it like I've been doing with every other game that's happened like this all year," Talbot said. "I feel like I've been pretty good at bouncing back so I'm going to go through my process and forget about this one, have a couple good days of practice and be ready to play Wednesday night."

While Talbot was not great in Game 3, this type of result appeared imminent in this series.

The Oilers are relying too much on its elite scoring duo of Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid, who have 14 points combined this postseason.

After spending much of the last game apart, TSN's Ryan Rishaug reported that they will be reunited for Game 4:

"

Clarifying, McDavid and Draisaitl back together, Eberle with RNH and Lucic.

— Ryan Rishaug (@TSNRyanRishaug) May 2, 2017"

This gives Edmonton a potent line, but the Oilers' other top skill players are nowhere to be found this postseason.

Here are the playoff numbers for several important Oilers through nine playoff games:

Player	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Plus/Minus
Milan Lucic	9	1	2	-3
Jordan Eberle	9	0	2	-4
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins	9	0	2	-1
Benoit Pouliot	9	0	0	Even
Drake Caggiula	9	0	0	Even

A lack of production here, specifically from Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, will simply not cut it if Edmonton wants to get past an excellent Anaheim team.

Because speaking of scoring depth, the Ducks have plenty of it.

Ryan Getzlaf leads the pack with nine points in seven games, but Anaheim has eight players with at least four points. That group does not include Corey Perry, who is struggling this postseason with just a goal and two assists.

However, he could be due for a breakout performance on Wednesday. Per Helene Elliott of the Los Angeles Times, Perry may skate with Getzlaf due to Patrick Eaves likely being unavailable.

This could be the cure to Perry's troubles, and head coach Randy Carlyle feels this change could get Perry back to playing to his strengths: "It looked like he had some jump in his step. When things aren't going well for Corey Perry, I believe, he's not around the puck. And he's not physical.

"He's a guy that's earned his living from the top of the circles down. He's been a world-class player in providing offense from those areas, from behind the net bringing the puck to the front of the net, somewhat of a pest to the goaltender; that's his role. And when he doesn't do that, then he's losing his effectiveness."

Carlyle continued: "And that's what we're asking him to do: be around the puck, let's not play one-on-one hockey out over the blue lines, move the puck and drive the middle lane. And that's not any different than anybody else on our team."

The Ducks have players all throughout their lineup for Edmonton to worry about, especially with the emergence of Jakob Silfverberg and his eight playoff points. This should allow Getzlaf and Perry some more space, assuming they play together.

Perry is bound to come alive at some point, and the Ducks are flying at the moment. They are the more complete team, and this may be their best chance to reach the Stanley Cup final with the Chicago Blackhawks eliminated and Edmonton still in the early stages of its rise.

Look for the Ducks to tie this series up, with Perry getting on the scoresheet multiple times.

Statistics are courtesy of NHL.com unless otherwise noted.