The Boston Bruins eliminated the Carolina Hurricanes on Aug. 19 in five games. Boston won Games 1, 3, 4 and 5 while Carolina won Game 2. Here now are the recaps for Games 4 and 5 of this first round series.
Scratches
Game 4:
Boston: John Moore, David Pastrnak, Urho Vaakanainen, Maxime Lagace, Zach Senyshyn, Jakub Zboril, Trent Frederic, Nick Ritchie, Jeremy Lauzon, Karson Kuhlman, Tuukka Rask
Carolina: Alex Nedeljkovic, Roland McKeown, Joel Edmundson, Steven Lorentz, Trevor van Riemsdyk, Clark Bishop, Jake Bean, Andrei Svechnikov, Anton Forsberg, Max McCormick
Game 5:
Boston: John Moore, Anders Bjork, Urho Vaakanainen, Maxime Lagace, Zach Senyshyn, Jakub Zboril, Trent Frederic, Nick Ritchie, Jeremy Lauzon, Karson Kuhlman, Tuukka Rask
Carolina: Alex Nedeljkovic, Roland McKeown, Joel Edmundson, Steven Lorentz, Trevor van Riemsdyk, Clark Bishop, Jake Bean, Andrei Svechnikov, Anton Forsberg, Max McCormick
1st Periods
Game 4: Being down one game in this series, the Hurricanes knew they had to get off to a great start in this game. However, the Bruins continued to build on their momentum from Game 3. They shot the first five shots on goal through the first half of this period. But, it would be the Hurricanes that scored the game’s first goal from forward Justin Williams. From there, it was a back and forth battle between both teams generating good scoring chances.
Carolina went into the second period with a 1-0 lead.
Game 5: Both teams came into this game strong but the Hurricanes would score the game’s first goal once again. This time, it came from Hurricanes defenseman Haydn Fleury. And, just like Game 4, both teams were playing a back and forth battle generating good scoring chances.
Carolina went into the second period with a 1-0 lead.
2nd Periods
Game 4: Again, it would be the Bruins who would have the momentum to start the period but the Hurricanes would get the period’s first goal and the game’s second. Hurricanes forward Jordan Martinook scored to extend the team’s lead to two. From there, the Hurricanes kept pushing the Bruins back offensively forcing them to play defense for the remainder of the period.
Carolina went into the third period with a 2-0 lead.
Game 5: The Hurricanes knew they were in the brink of elimination so they started the period off strong and were able to go on a power play. Unfortunately, they weren’t able to convert it to extend their lead. To make matters worse, they let the Bruins come back again as forwards David Krecji and Patrice Bergeron scored in the latter stages of the period.
Boston went into the third period with a 2-1 lead.
3rd Periods
Game 4: Have you ever heard the saying that playoff hockey can be unpredictable? Well, if you haven’t, it can be. When it seemed like the series would be tied at two games a piece, the Bruins scored four unanswered goals to get back into the game. Bruins defenseman Connor Clifton, forwards Brad Marchand and Jake DeBrusk all scored in 6:51 to take the lead with DeBrusk scoring twice. All it took was seven shots on goal to take over this game and secure a win. However, the Hurricanes wouldn’t go down swinging as forward Teuvo Teravainen scored to cut the lead down to one. But, the Hurricanes weren’t able to force the game into overtime as the Bruins held on to win the game.
Boston won the game 4-3 and extended their series lead 3-1.
Game 5: No goals were scored but there were prime scoring chances both early on and later during this period. Krecji had a chance on a power play to extend the Bruins’ lead to two but he hit the crossbar and Hurricanes’ goaltender Petr Mrazek’s stick. In the end, the Bruins were able to hold on to a one goal lead once again and won the series.
Boston won the game 2-1 and the series 3-1.
Three Stars of the Game
Game 4:
Third Star: Justin Williams (1 goal)
Second Star: Connor Clifton (1 goal, 1 assist)
First Star: Jake DeBrusk (2 goals)
Game 5:
Third Star: David Pastrnak (2 assists)
Second Star: David Krecji (1 goal, 1 assist)
First Star: Patrice Bergeron (1 goal, 1 assist)
Boston played their game this entire series and easily dominated Carolina on both ends of the ice. Even when forward David Pastrnak was deemed unfit to play, Boston found ways to get goals in his absence. Also, they didn’t allow the departure of goaltender Tuukka Rask into their head. If anything, they looked like they wanted to win each game for him. And, backup goaltender Jaroslav Halak played really well in this series and will have to keep it up heading into the second round.
On the other hand, the loss of forward Andrei Svechnikov really showed in Carolina’s offense. They didn’t have much going for them though they were able to get off some good scoring chances. However, Svechnikov is the type of player that can be moved up and down a lineup and could make each player better. This is a team with good talent but they have to find ways to capitalize on their chances especially on the power play.
Boston will face the Tampa Bay Lightning in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Game 1 of that series will start on Aug. 23 at 8:00 p.m. EST.
