BOSTON BRUINS MIRACLE COMEBACK CLINCHES SERIES

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  • Getty ImagesNo. 1 Star: Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins

    Bergeron was the key link to the Bruins’ stunning comeback in Game 7 against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Down 4-2 in the third period, Bergeron setup Milan Lucic’s goal to cut the Toronto lead to 4-3, then scored the tying goal with 51 seconds left in regulation to force overtime. In the extra period, Bergeron skated freely through the Maple Leafs’ zone before pouncing on a rebound to give Boston a 5-4 victory and setup a second round date with the New York Rangers.

    No. 2 Star: Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers

    When they needed him the most, Lundqvist stepped to the plate. After a 27-save performance during a Game 6 shutout, Lundqvist stopped all 35 shots he faced from the Washington Capitals as the Rangers advanced to the second round with a 5-0 victory in Game 7. According to STATS LLC, Lundqvist is the first goalie to post back-to-back shutouts in Games 6 and 7 of a series since Dominik Hasek did it for the Detroit Red Wings in 2002.

    No. 3 Star: Derick Brassard, New York Rangers

    Brassard assisted on two of New York’s five goals to give him 9 points in the postseason. He was acquired at the trade deadline as part of the deal that sent Marian Gaborik to Columbus.

    Read More »from NHL Three Stars: Bergeron nets series winner for Bruins; Lundqvist blanks Caps in Game 7

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    After a regular season that saw him regain his MVP form, Alex Ovechkin had a frustrating postseason as the Washington Capitals lost in seven games to the New York Rangers.

    He pumped 30 shots on Henrik Lundqvist, scoring just one goal, a power-play tally back in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal. For the fourth time in his career, Ovechkin’s Capitals lost in a Game 7 on home ice. The captain has yet to reach the conference finals – and this is eighth NHL season.

    Like we said: Ovechkin is frustrated. And that frustration manifested itself in a petulant postgame comment about the officiating in the series, which saw the Rangers win Game 6 without the Capitals receiving a single power play.

    Via Slava Malamud of Sport-Express, Ovechkin said after Game 7:

    “The refereeing… You understand it yourself. How can there be no penalties at all (on one team) during the playoffs?

    “I am not saying there was a phone call from (the league), but someone just wanted Game 7. For the ratings. You know, the lockout, escrow, the League needs to make profit… I don’t know whether the refs were predisposed against us or the League. But to not give obvious penalties (against the Capitals), while for us any little thing was immediately penalized…”

    Thus continues Ovechkn’s escrow obsession …

    You can’t blame Ovechkin for being frustrated, what with the power play being the Capitals’ meal ticket and the officials canceling that ticket when they don’t whistle the Rangers for any penalties. (Washington had two power plays in Game 7, as did the Rangers.)

    But remember when John Tortorella was fined $30,000 for suggesting that the refs “wanted” overtime in the Winter Classic after conspiring with NBC?

    Read More »from Alex Ovechkin on officiating vs. Rangers: ‘Someone just wanted Game 7’

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    Getty ImagesHave you caught your breath yet from a pretty wild first round? Too bad. Round 2 kicks off Tuesday night. Now that the Boston Bruins and New York Rangers complete the second round pairings, here’s how the schedule looks:


    • Remember, now that we’re in Round 2, there are no more local broadcasts of games. In the U.S., NBC, NBCSN and CNBC will have every game.

    • According to Steve Lepore, May 25 may feature a pair of Game 5s between the Bruins/Rangers and Red Wings/Blackhawks. One of those games will be played on NBC in primetime should one of those series need at least five games.

    • Each series will feature two full days off over the course of the seven games thanks to building availability and television considerations. No games will be played on back-to-back days.

    Follow Sean Leahy on Twitter at @Sean_Leahy

    Read More »from Your 2013 Stanley Cup Playoff second round TV schedule

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    GettySince joining the Washington Capitals, Alex Ovechkin has played in five Game 7s on home ice. The Capitals have now lost four of them, as the New York Rangers demolished Washington at Verizon Center on Monday night, 5-0, to advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals and eliminate the Capitals.

    It was the second straight postseason in which the Rangers dropped the Capitals in a Game 7, winning at MSG last year in Dale Hunter’s final game as coach.

    New York advances to face the Boston Bruins in the semifinals, who won their own Game 7 against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday night in overtime.

    “I think it was probably our best game of the series. Henrik [Lundqvist] was really good early to give us a chance and then I thought we played really well in front of him, right on through our lineup,” said Coach John Tortorella. “I didn’t think it was going to be a 5-0 win, the way this series has gone, but it was our best game of the series.”

    It was the most dominating effort by the Rangers in the series, and by far their best effort in Washington offensively – New York had scored two goals in three games in D.C. before the scoring explosion in Game 7.

    Where that scoring came from is as surprising as any facet of the Rangers’ win.

    Read More »from NY Rangers embarrass Capitals to win series, add to Washington’s Game 7 nightmares

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    Three years ago Tuesday, the Boston Bruins completed a 3-0 series collapse by blowing a 3-0 first period lead to the Philadelphia Flyers in a Game 7. Three years later, they were on the other end of a dramatic, in-game comeback to save themselves from another series collapse.

    Patrice Bergeron’s goal 6:05 into overtime finished off the Bruins’ turnaround and ended the Toronto Maple Leafs’ season, giving Boston a 5-4 win in Game 7.

    The Bruins will move on to the second round to face the New York Rangers.

    When Nazem Kadri scored his first playoff goal 5:29 into the third period, the Maple Leafs held a 4-1 lead. Toronto had taken advantage of a flat Boston team and were on their way to a series victory.

    It was then that the desperation finally set in for the Bruins.

    Nathan Horton scored four minutes after Kadri to cut the Toronto lead to 4-2. Then, with Tuukka Rask on the bench for the extra attacker late in the third period, Milan Lucic and Bergeron scored in a 31-second span to force overtime.

    [NHL Three Stars: Lundqvist, Reimer close the door]

    The once flatlining Bruins found new life and, having played in five Game 7s in their last six playoff series, there would be no nerves on their end.

    “We’ve been there before. We just relied on our experience to do the job,” Bergeron told NBC Sports Network’s Brian Engblom afterward.

    The experience showed in the overtime. Boston outshot Toronto 5-2 and were powered by a second wind (that could be mistaken for a first wind given how they played through the opening 50 minutes of the game). On the overtime goal, the Bruins controlled the puck, with Bergeron moving throughout the Maple Leafs’ zone unmarked before he put home the winner.

    The Maple Leafs will feel the sting from this loss for a long time. They let the game, and the series, slip from their grasps. But young, developing teams learn from tough losses. The Bruins learned from their Game 7 collapse in 2010 and went on to win the Stanley Cup the next year.

    It remains to be seen if there will be any Cup dreams in Toronto a year from now. For the moment, it’ll only be Bergeron nightmares.

    Follow Sean Leahy on Twitter at @Sean_Leahy

    Read More »from Patrice Bergeron’s OT goal completes stunning Bruins’ Game 7 comeback over Leafs (Video)

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    It’s Game 7 madness!

    The Toronto Maple Leafs visit the Boston Bruins in the final game of this Kessel-powered, Seguin-less series. Then the New York Rangers visit the Washington Capitals for what might be yet another Caps’ Game 7 heartbreak on home ice … or the start of something special for Alex Ovechkin and the boys.

    Please join your friends at Puck Daddy for our Game 7’s chat beginning at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. You bring the funny; we bring the abrupt changes in tone and Hamburger Women. That’s how it works.

    <a href=”http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=9263bf92a0″ mce_href=”http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=9263bf92a0″>Puck Daddy Game 7s Mega Chat</a>

    Read More »from Puck Daddy’s Game 7s live chat: Leafs vs. Bruins, Rangers vs. Capitals

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    Here are your Puck Previews: Spotlighting the key games in NHL action, news and views as well as general frivolity. Make sure to stop back here for the nightly Three Stars when the games are finished.

    Getty ImagesPreview: Toronto Maple Leafs at Boston Bruins, 7 p.m. ET. (Series tied 3-3) The Maple Leafs are the 48th team in NHL history to force a Game 7 after falling behind 3-1 in a playoff series. They’re also 1-13 in series when they’ve trailed 3-1, with their last comeback coming in 1942 over the Detroit Red Wings when they were behind 3-0. But you throw out history in Game 7s. Anything can happen. Anyone can step up. So far, it’s been James Reimer carrying Toronto to this point, while the Bruins are hoping to finally get contributions from the likes of Tyler Seguin and Brad Marchand to put them in the second round.

    Preview: New York Rangers at Washington Capitals, 8 p.m. ET (Series tied 3-3) Another seven-game series between the Capitals and Rangers ends Monday night with the expectation that it will be another tight one. The last five games in this series have been decided by a single goal and the home team has won every game so far. New York has not won any of their five road Game 7s in franchise history, with their last coming in 2009 when Sergei Fedorov scored a late winner for the Capitals.

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