Boston 5, Montreal 3
When: 12:30 PM ET, Saturday, May 3, 2014
Where: TD Banknorth Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Referees:
Dave Jackson, Dan O'Rourke
Linesmen:
Scott Cherrey, Brad Kovachik
Attendance:
17565
By SportsDirect Inc.
Bruins 5, Canadiens 3: Reilly Smith scored with 3:32 remaining in the third period as host Boston overcame a late two-goal deficit to even its Eastern Conference second-round series with Montreal at one game apiece.
Patrice Bergeron collected a goal and an assist while Daniel Paille, Milan Lucic and defenseman Dougie Hamilton also tallied for the Bruins, who scored four times in under an eight-minute stretch in the third. Boston, which travels to the Bell Centre for Game 3 on Tuesday, split its two regular-season meetings in Montreal - dropping a 2-1 decision on Dec. 5 before breezing to a 4-1 triumph on March 12.
Thomas Vanek netted a pair of power-play goals and blue-liner Mike Weaver also tallied for the Canadiens, who have scored four times with the man advantage in the series. Defenseman P.K. Subban notched a pair of assists in his team's first setback of the postseason.
After Vanek's offensive explosion gave Montreal a 3-1 lead, Hamilton's wrist shot from the point midway into the third halved the deficit before Bergeron's bid from along the right-wing boards fluttered past Carey Price (30 saves) with 5:43 left. Smith deposited defenseman Torey Krug's circle-to-circle pass into the net to give Boston a 4-3 lead before Lucic sealed the win with an empty-net goal with 66 seconds to play.
With Bruins defenseman Andrej Meszaros serving a roughing penalty, Subban wired a pass from the left faceoff circle that deflected off Vanek's stick in front and past Vezina Trophy finalist Tuukka Rask (25 saves) with 1:51 remaining in the second period to give the Canadiens a 2-1 edge. The duo teamed up again as Subban's blast from the point was chipped home by Vanek at 6:30 of the third.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Subban netted a pair of power-play goals in Montreal's 4-3 double-overtime victory on Thursday. The Canadiens are 4-for-9 with the man advantage in the series. ... Lucic nearly gave his team a 2-1 lead late in the second period, but officials reviewed the play and deemed that the burly star batted the puck into the net with his glove. ... Meszaros replaced fellow D Matt Bartkowski in the lineup and promptly notched an assist on Paille's first-period tally before committing the costly roughing penalty. Meszaros was making his first postseason appearance since Game 2 of the first-round series versus Detroit. Bartkowski was whistled for holding RW Dale Weise in double overtime of Game 1, leading to Subban's winning tally.
Top Game Performances
Montreal |
|
Boston |
Thomas Vanek 2 |
Points |
Patrice Bergeron 2 |
Thomas Vanek 2 |
Goals |
Patrice Bergeron 1 |
P.K Subban 2 |
Assists |
Brad Marchand 2 |
Thomas Vanek 2 |
Power Play Goals |
N/A |
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
Carey Price .882 |
Save Percentage |
Tuukka Rask .893 |
Carey Price 30 |
Saves |
Tuukka Rask 25 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
Montreal
|
28 |
3 |
2-6 |
3-3 |
12 |
31 |
Boston
|
35 |
5 |
0-3 |
4-6 |
18 |
37 |
Upcoming Games
-
Boston will play their next game on the road against Montreal. The Bruins have a W/L % of .618 after a win and .741 after a loss.
-
Montreal will play their next game at home against Boston. The Canadiens have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .639 after a loss.