Tuukka's Timely Saves Stave Off Game 1 Disaster And Other Leftover Thoughts
By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- After two rounds of the postseason, the biggest question entering the conference finals was whether or not Tuukka Rask could maintain his remarkable run. Through 60 minutes, the early returns are positive in that department.
While a 5-2 final score might indicate that the goaltender was merely a bit player in the game, the reality is that Rask made a number of high-quality saves with a high degree of difficulty throughout the night, preventing a 2-1 Carolina lead from ballooning out of reach, and keeping the Bruins in position to pounce in that third period.
Despite the power-play goal allowed 3:42 into the first, it was clear early on that Rask was seeing pucks well. He made a shoulder save on a Lucas Wallmark from a dangerous spot five minutes into the game.
It wasn't a spectacular save, but it was made with relative ease. It was a sign of things to come.
Midway through the first, with the score knotted at one goal apiece, Rask extended his left toe to stop a shot from another dangerous area by Sebastian Aho, who had scored Carolina's first goal:
The shot may have been going wide, but Rask was going to stop most everything that headed his way on this night.
Early in the second period, with the Canes on the power play, Rask flew from right to left to make an acrobatic save on a Teuvo Teravainen bid.
Rask made another save shortly thereafter on a redirected point shot, calmly keeping position to keep the Canes from striking again on the power play. He also rejected a pair of doorstep bids by Micheal Ferland.
After allowing a second goal to a rumbling-and-tumbling Greg McKegg, Rask had to come up huge just 24 seconds later. Justin Williams fired a wrister from the slot, before Nino Niederreiter sent a backhand bid toward the net on the rebound. Rask stopped them both.
Rask then had a decent view for the Bruins' onslaught in the third period, with the power play lifting Boston to a 3-2 lead. From there, Rask had to make one more challenging save to preserve the victory:
That stop on Staal kept the score at 3-2, and it worked to extinguish any hope the Hurricanes might have had of winning this game.
Rask finished with 29 saves, and most importantly, he showed the Hurricanes and the hockey world that he's capable of keeping his hot streak alive.
As for the two goals allowed, the 2019 postseason standard holds true. If you want to put a puck past Rask, you're going to have to get creative, and you're going to really want to work. Sebastian Aho's redirect of an Andrei Svechnikov feed was a thing of beauty, and Greg McKegg was able to beat Rask by building 100 feet of momentum while making a beeline for Rask's sternum.
But Rask's response to that second goal was significant, both because it showed he was unaffected by getting bulldozed and because it prevented the Canes from doubling their lead in a hurry. Those saves on Williams and Niederreiter prevented the Hurricanes from building an overwhelming amount of momentum, and the sequence might have subtly served as the most important moment of the game.
Those two goals were well-earned, and they didn't come easy. Through the first game of this series, it appears as though Carolina will have to get used to that being the case.
Now, with a whole lot of time to pass before Sunday's Game 2, let's share some more leftover thoughts from the Bruins' 5-2 win in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final.
--Down the opposite end of the ice, Petr Mrazek was forced to make some more difficult saves. He did make some. But he also allowed four goals. Sounds a whole lot like the last series, doesn't it?
--That was the first loss for the Hurricanes since April 20. That's 18 days without losing. We'll see if they remember how to respond. After taking their last loss, they trailed the defending Stanley Cup champions 3-2. They then rattled off six straight wins in order to earn their place in this series.
"Unfortunately, it's tough, because that game was there for us," Canes captain Justin Williams said. "This postseason, we've been successful at holding leads. And we got kicked in the pants a little bit today. That hasn't happened in a while. We gotta get the next one."
A bunch of jerks has been kicked in the pants. Film at 11.
--I don't care what you say: Greg McKegg sounds like a made-up name. It's like something a frat party attendee tells the cops after they come to break up a party.
"My name, officer? It's uhh ... Greg."
"Got a last name, Greg?"
"Yeah, uhh ... Greg Mc... (looks around room) ... McKegg! Yeah. That's my name. Greg McKegg."
--Marcus Johansson is rightfully getting a lot of credit for his game. But it's still probably not enough. The play he made to straight up steal the puck from Justin Faulk and win a footrace up the ice, the to have the presence of mind to pull up and let the traffic speed on by before sending a tremendous backhand feed to a wide-open Steven Kampfer was just magnificent. Every part of that play was impressive.
The pass:
Magnificent.
(The game-tying goal was pretty good, too. Looks like Johansson was worth the second- and fourth-round picks.)
--I'm sure penalties and refs are a big story down in Raleigh, on account of Dougie Hamilton's roughing call that led directly to the Bruins' game-winning goal. Dougie was pretty mad about it. I get it. At the same time, he did catch Chris Wagner in the face with a shoulder, and that type of contact (albeit with much greater force) ended up making Charlie McAvoy watch this game from Level 9 of the Garden in his finest suit.
In playoff hockey, typically such contact is let go. A beef for such a penalty being called is somewhat legitimate.
At the same time, Sean Kuraly got sent to the box for some standard post-whistle action after he had been hit in the head by a shoulder, and the Canes scored on that power play, just 3 seconds later.
Carolina might have wanted an interference penalty on Kuraly for burying Andrei Svechnikov in the neutral zone, but that was almost the same spot on the ice where Jordan Staal got away with a cross-check to Brad Marchand. There was also a clear high-stick that hit David Pastrnak's face which went uncalled.
From that perspective, when it came to advantages from questionable officiating, it was sort of even-steven. Some questionable calls were made. Some questionable calls were missed. Shaky night overall for Dan O'Rourke and Marc Joannette. But it's probably unfair to say it favored one team over the other.
--Back in the 2013 postseason, I kept doing this stupid thing where I kept sharing a running tally of how Tuukka Rask's performance compared with Tim Thomas's Conn Smythe performance in 2011. It was so dumb.
So here it is again, now with the added benefit of working in this current playoff run that Tuukka is currently riding.
Don't say I never gave you anything stupid, folks.
PLAYOFF STATS THROUGH 14 GAMES
Tuukka Rask, 2019
9-5 record
.938 save percentage
.945 even-strength save percentage
2.02 GAA
1 shutoutTuukka Rask, 2013
10-4 record
.935 save percentage
.944 even-strength save percentage
1.99 GAA
1 shutoutTim Thomas, 2011
10-4 record
.932 save percentage
.944 even-strength save percentage
2.23 GAA
1 shutout
Pretty good postseason start for Rask, a guy who inspired some talk radio CHATTAH before Game 7 against the Leafs as someone who might get pulled for Jaroslav Halak. Rask has stopped 94.9 percent of the shots sent his way since then.
--I bet Torey Krug was super excited to play in the conference finals. I bet he was buzzing all morning. I bet he had a smile on his face throughout the day, thinking about just how sweet it would be once the lights turned on and the rubber hit the ice.
Then this happened on his first shift:
Getting in a casual car crash on your first shift of the night likely has a way of removing some of that shine and reminding you what lies ahead.
Ouch.
--One thing to watch in this series would be the Bruins attacking the points. It worked to perfection by Johansson on the Kampfer goal, and Jake DeBrusk likewise pantsed Dougie Hamilton to get a scoring chance on a rush on his own. Considering the talent that Carolina has on the back end, and considering how dedicated and focused the Hurricanes were on getting scoring chances on redirects and long shots through traffic, it appears as though the Bruins are intent on applying some pressure near the blue line to help slow the Carolina attack.
--Did you happen to notice how salty the Bruins' official Twitter account was during Game 1?
So spicy.
--David Backes won not one but TWO races to negate icing calls in Game 1. That's the same David Backes who was a healthy scratch to start the playoffs because, in part, his speed was just not what it used to be.
But as Backes said himself before Game 6 in Columbus, sometimes will is more important than skill. And while Backes can't live up to that contract, his work after being reinserted into the lineup has been commendable.
--After one whistle, a very minor scene of pushing and shoving broke out in front of Rask. After most of it had died down, Dougie Hamilton put a hand on Zdeno Chara's chest, as hockey players are wont to do from time to time in such scenarios.
Zdeno Chara was not having it.
I was sitting roughly 37,000 feet away, so I couldn't pick up what Chara said to the young D-man whom he once took under his wing. But to me, it looked something like, "If you ever touch me again, I will pick you up over my head, and I will throw you over the glass."
Doug was asked about the showdown after the game.
REPORTER: How'd it feel playing against your former team in the playoffs for Game 1?
HAMILTON: It's just a hockey game.
REPORTER: The scrum with Chara, anything in particular there that was going on?
HAMILTON: Just a hockey play, I think. An old friend.
REPORTER: I assume those weren't friendly words.
HAMILTON: I don't remember what he said.
REPORTER: Do you remember what you said?
HAMILTON: I don't remember what I said.
So, Hamilton could not confirm or deny that Chara said, "If you ever touch me again, I will pick you up over my head, and I will throw you over the glass." Good to know.
--Speaking of angry Chara ...
Apparently, this Svechnikov kid won't rest until he gets in a fight with every active European future Hall of Famer. Considering how poorly his fight with Alex Ovechkin turned out, it's a bold strategy to say the least.
--We should probably mention that McAvoy's absence didn't hurt the Bruins. Bruce Cassidy didn't even have to overwork anybody to do it. Brandon Carlo had a standard 20:50 of ice time and Chara had 19:24, so neither will be particularly gassed, especially with the extra off day this weekend. Kampfer, skating in place of McAvoy, scored a goal and got beaten on the McKegg goal.
Krug played his standard 21 minutes, Matt Grzelcyk played maybe a minute more than usual, and Connor Clifton handled his major uptick in minutes quite well.
The Bruins' D corps allowed just the one 5-on-5 goal, and they blocked six shots from getting on net. Defensively, they were fine. Offensively, they put a goal on the board.
Considering McAvoy had been the Bruins' leader in ice time through two playoff rounds, the ability to stay afloat without him for 60 minutes was massive.
--Shoutout to this one guy, who's no doubt feeling sore today:
See you -- and him -- in Game 2.
You can email Michael Hurley or find him on Twitter @michaelFhurley.
