The New York Rangers, Boston Bruins and St. Louis Blues scored road wins on Monday night to take 2-1 leads in their respective Stanley Cup Quarter-Final Playoffs series.
NHL Scores, 2012 Playoffs: Rangers, Bruins And Blues Take 2-1 Series Leads
The Rangers, Bruins and Blues each won on Monday to take 2-1 leads in their Quarter-Finals series.
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With 1:53 to play and the teams at 4-on-4, Bruins captain Zdeno Chara's shot from the point was tipped by Capitals defenseman Roman Hamrlik and by goalie Braden Holtby to give the Bruins a 4-3 win in a back-and-forth and 2-1 lead in the series. In addition to his game-winning goal, Chara added a pair of assists to finish with three points and logged a team-high 26:29 of ice time. The series continues at 7:30 p.m. ET Thursday night in Washington, D.C., though perhaps without Capitals center Niklas Backstrom, who received a match penalty after the final whistle for cross-checking Bruins center Rich Peverley in the face area. Backstrom, who missed nearly half the season with a head injury, could be subject to supplemental discipline.
Booed throughout the game for his antics in games 1 and 2, Rangers center Brian Boyle had the last laugh on the Scotiabank Place crowd on Monday night, backhanding a puck by Senators goalie Craig Anderson for the only goal in the Rangers' 1-0 win. Boyle now has three goals in the series, but he shares the spotlight with Henrik Lundqvist, who stopped all 39 shots the Senators put on net, many of his saves coming in spectacular fashion. Game 4 is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET Wednsday night.
Three power play goals and 57 minutes of solid team defense and goaltending were enough for the St. Louis Blues to defeat the San Jose Sharks 4-3 on Monday night. Andy McDonald broke a 1-1 tie a minute into the second period and assisted on Jason Arnott's power play goal 10 minutes later to give the Blues a 3-1 lead entering the final 20 minutes. That lead was extended 59 minutes into the third period on a power play goal from Alexander Steen. San Jose would add goals by Colin White with three minutes to play and Logan Couture in the final 20 seconds, but it was too little, too late as the Blues would hang on to take a 2-1 series lead. St. Louis and San Jose renew acquaintances at 10:30 p.m. ET Thursday night.
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