Bruins Force Game 7, Avs Advance
April 20th, 2008 by Jason CIf you haven’t been following the Bruins-Habs series, you should. The Habs were heavy favourites to win the series, considering their depth on forward and defense and one Carey Price in net, but the Bruins have been battling hard despite not having Patrice Bergeron in the lineup and an injured Zdeno Chara on the blueline. Francois Bouillon gave the Habs a 3-2 lead but Milan Lucic got the better of Mike Komisarek (in what could be a rivalry to come) to tie the game at 3 apiece. Phil Kessel, who had been benched earlier in the series, then scored the go-ahead goal with just 4:15 left to go in the third by wiring a low wrist shot past a sprawling price but only to have the lead replaced just 11 seconds later by Chris Higgins. Marco Sturm potted the eventual winner in a wild third period with just 2:37 to go in the game to force Game 7. The Habs late rally in the third was stifled by Tim Thomas and failed to generate any good scoring chances. The Bruins won because they outworked the Habs, despite them having captain Saku Koivu back. Price had allowed just five goals in the previous four games, but has allowed 8 third-period goals the last two games. He needs to be much sharper for Game 7.
Jose Theodore was outstanding as the Avs stifled a talented Wild squad to win the game 2-1 and series 4-2 to advance into the next round. Ryan Smyth’s second period goal was enough to take the game and Theodore turned aside 24 shots in the second and third periods. Marian Gaborik mustered only one assist last night, his only point of the series, after a career season. The normally dependable forward was shut down the entire series by Adam Foote, while Ruslan Salei kept most of the other Wild forwards in check. Both were deadline acquisitions made by Francois Giguere. Theodore was the difference maker in the series, and will most likely play Detroit in the next round, while goaltending will also be a major factor in determining the winner. Chris Osgood recently replaced Dominik Hasek as the starter and if Mike Babcock cannot rely on one goalie the Avs and Theodore may very well take advantage of that.
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