With 21,000 screaming, high-pitched Quebecois in attendance for Game 1 of the Bruins/Canadiens series, the adrenaline was flowing pretty fast. And in the opening moments of the contest, the Bruins were shaky while the Habs were juiced.
Sergei Kostitsyn scored 34 seconds into the first period. His brother Andrei followed that up with a goal at 2:02.
But unlike previous defeats to Montreal, where early goals lead to the Bruins quitting and being blown out, the B's actually seemed to calm down after the goals and play decent hockey. Shane Hnidy cut the lead in half with a goal at 8:34 in the first and the game was still close going into the second.
Bryan Smolinski got the only goal of the second to make it 3-1 Canadiens, but the Bruins were hanging in there. They weren't getting too many more penalties, and were generating offensive opportunities.
But the B's fell apart in the third. Tom Kostopoulos got Montreal's fourth goal, and a series of Bruins penalties kept them short-handed and on their back heels for most of the third.
Despite the lopsided 4-1 score, the Bruins can take some good things out of Game 1. Apart from the fast start, the game was very close. Take away those first two goals early on, and it's a 2-1 game. The Bruins also killed every Montreal power play, including a 5 on 3 advantage. Against the best power play in the league, and a team notorious for getting lots of calls, that's a major key to winning this series. There were also quite a few holes in Montreal's defense, and if the Bruins capitalize on those holes, they'll score goals.
Game 2 is in Montreal Saturday night.
Source:
ESPN.com
Photo Credits:
Photo By Dave Sandford/Getty Images
AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Paul Chiasson
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