by Kat
New York Rangers (4) – Ottawa Senators (2)
(Photo: The Star)
The Ottawa Senators might be the lovable upstarts in this year’s playoffs, but a rude awakening awaited them at Madison Square Garden Thursday night. Despite the Senators dominance of the Rangers during the regular season – goalie Craig Anderson had a perfect record at MSG – there was little carryover on this night, with the Rangers leading 4-0 three minutes into the third period. While the Senators eventually managed to muster two goals on Henrik Lundqvist later in the third, it was too little too late. Rangers captain Ryan Callahan had the Garden crowd serenading his name, as he laid hard hits on Ottawa’s Jesse Winchester and Matt Gilroy late in the first period soon after scoring the game’s first goal.
It may only be Game 1, but the Senators will have to muster a much better effort Saturday night if they have any hope of staying in this series. The two teams play tomorrow at Madison Square Garden before shifting playoff hockey returns to Ottawa for Games 3 and 4.
San Jose Sharks (3) – St. Louis Blues (2) OT
The Sharks hadn’t scored in St. Louis all year, and St. Louis sported the stingiest goaltending tandem in the league. However, Martin Havlat – returning from a lingering hamstring injury – certainly had something to say about that as he scored two goals, including the game winner 3:28 into the second overtime.
Boston Bruins (1) – Washington Capitals (0) OT
What many predicted would be a relatively easy series for the defending Stanley Cup champs ended up being a tight affair. Despite the Capitals resorting to third-string goalie Braden Holtby, neither team could muster offence through regulation. Chris Kelly ended overtime less than two minutes in, cruising down the wing and wiring a perfectly-placed slapshot past the rookie netminder.
Perhaps the hardest hit of the game happened after the final whistle, as celebrating fans inadvertantly pushed a pane of glass directly on top of the celebrating Bruins. David Krejci missed practice today with what is reported to be a sore neck, but Claude Julien insisted that he would play for Game 2.
Phoenix Coyotes (3) – Chicago Blackhawks (2) OT
Vezina candidate Mike Smith made 43 saves for the Coyotes in Game 1 as his team escaped with a 3-2 overtime win over the Blackhawks. With the goalie pulled, Chicago tied the game in the last minute of play before Martin Hanzal tipped a point shot home to win it for the home team.
Whether you follow the Senators, Rangers or any other team in the 2012 NHL playoffs, you can get tickets for all four rounds with ShowTimeTickets.com, even if it’s sold out. Don’t miss out on the big game!