Boston Bruins shut out Penguins to take Game 1 in Pittsburgh
By Larry Snyder
The Pittsburgh Penguins won all three regular-season games against the Boston Bruins, but it was Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask who pitched a 3-0 shutout in Game 1 of the NHL’s Eastern Conference final at Consol Energy Center on Saturday. Rask turned away all 29 shots the Pens threw at him.
The Penguins came into the game averaging a league-high 4.27 goals in these Stanley Cup playoffs, but could not solve Rask in getting shut out for the first time in the postseason. Pittsburgh hit the post six times and also came up empty on four power plays, helping Rask and the Bruins escape with the road win.
Boston got on the scoreboard at the 8:23 mark of the first period. Defenseman Andrew Ference led a Bruins rush into the offensive zone, where he fed left wing Milan Lucic.
Jun 1, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Boston Bruins center David Krejci (46) scores his second goal of the game against Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Tomas Vokoun (92) as defenseman Kris Letang (58) defends during the third period in game one of the Eastern Conference finals of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the CONSOL Energy Center. The Boston Bruins won 3-0. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Lucic found a wide open David Krejci in the slot, and the center blasted a slapshot through defenseman Paul Martin that trickled five-hole on Penguins goalie Tomas Vokoun. Krejci now leads the NHL playoffs with 19 points (seven goals).
Pittsburgh outshot the Bruins in the first period 11-7, but it was Boston who skated into the first intermission with a 1-0 lead.
In the second period, Pens left wing Matt Cooke was given a five-minute major for checking from behind and a game misconduct after putting Bruins defenseman Adam McQuaid into the boards at the 1:32 mark.
At the end of a scoreless second period, Evgeni Malkin and Patrice Bergeron dropped the gloves to fight at center ice. Both players were given simultaneous five minute fighting majors to begin the third period.
After Boston killed the Penguins’ fourth power play of the night, Krejci scored his second goal of the evening at the 4:04 mark of the third period. Right wing Nathan Horton hit Krejci with a pass from the half-wall, and Krejci then sent a slapshot on net that defelected high above Vokoun. Krejci skated to the net and forced the rebound into the back of the net.
Less than four minutes, Nathan Horton extended Boston’s lead to 3-0 with an insurance goal. Lucic put a wrist shot on Vokoun’s blocker side. The Pens netminder could not control the rebound which went directly to Horton, who whipped it into the goal. Despite the Bruins’ two third-period strikes, Vokoun stopped 27 shots in just his second loss in eight playoff starts.
Boston finished out the third period by going into a 1-3-1 trap that curtailed any rally attempt by Pittsburgh. The Bruins also controlled the puck after faceoffs winning 30 of 45 draws for a 67-percent success rate.
The last time Pittsburgh had been shutout in the postseason was back on April 27, 2011 when they lost 1-0 to the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 7 of Round 1. The Penguins previous shutout in any contest occurred in February 2012 at the hands of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Game 2 of the series is set for 8 p.m. on Monday at Consol Energy Center. The contest will be broadcast on the NBC Sports Network.
From The Clipboard: The Pens chose to scratch defensemen Simon Despres, Deryk Engelland and Robert Bortuzzo along with forwards Joe Vitale, Beau Bennett, Dustin Jeffrey and Tanner Glass…Pittsburgh native goaltender John Gibson was in attendance for Game 1. He was the Team USA squad that won gold in the World Junior Championship…It is the fifth time for these two teams to meet in the Stanley Cup playoffs, with the Bruins having won the first two series in 1979 and 1980, while Pittsburgh won the last two in 1991 and 1992. The Penguins went on to win the Stanley Cup after defeating Boston in both 1991 and 1992…Dan Bylsma’s crew went 18-6 at Consol Energy Center during the regular season.