[TNKNGM]

TNK BOSTON BRUINS FRANCHISE


Stanley Cup Playoffs - Eastern Conference Finals
Game #3- Boston Bruins @ Pittsburgh Penguins
(Series tied 1-1)

1st Period - The Bruins would strike first 6:53 into the game when Krejci won an offensive zone faceoff back to Moore who passed over to Grzelcyk for a slap shot that was stopped by Murray but Anders Bjork was right there to slam home the rebound giving Boston a 1-0 lead. The Bruins were playing a great road period keeping things simple offensively while staying within their structure and playing physical defensively. Boston would increase their lead to 2-0 when Pastrnak came flying up the wing and fired a rocket off the post and Brad Marchand was able to collect the puck and slide it past Murray with 8:04 remaining in the period. The Penguins had a PP opportunity but failed to convert and Boston would strike again as Heinen came in on an odd man rush and set up Charlie Coyle for a beautiful goal to push the Bruins lead to 3-0 with 4:00 left in the period. The 1st period would come to an end with a stunned PPG Paints Arena crowd booing the Penguins off the ice as they trail the Bruins 3-0 after 20 minutes of play with the shots 13-5 in favor of Boston

2nd Period - The Penguins would get on the board when Dumoulin fired a long shot from the point that was redirected by Jared McCann and the puck would sneak by Rask for a big goal to cut the deficit to 3-1 with 13:29 to play in the period. Pittsburgh was energized and they would score again a little over a minute later when Rask stopped a shot from Malkin but Jake Guentzel was there to score on the rebound and suddenly we had a 3-2 game with 12:06 left in the period. The crowd was now on their feet and the Penguins were flying as they had momentum and they would tie the game up late in the period when Krug's breakout pass was broken up along the boards and Guentzel would find Crosby alone in the slot for the game tying goal with 4:16 remaining in the period as the Penguins have battled back to tie the score at 3-3. The Bruins were in survival mode as Pittsburgh was dominating play in the final minutes but the buzzer would sound and Boston would get out of the period with the score still tied at 3-3. The Bruins had a 26-21 advantage in shots after 40 minutes

3rd Period - The stage was set for what should be an exciting 3rd period as the score was tied 3-3 with 20 minutes to decide a winner in Game #3. The Bruins started off the period with some good shifts as they were able to generate a few chances but Murray would make the saves and the score remained 3-3. Boston would get a big PP opportunity when McCann was called for hooking with 13:09 remaining. Boston would move the puck around nicely and generate some good looks on the man advantage but they failed to convert on the PP and the Penguins would get back to even strength. The clock would wind down under 10:00 to play in regulation with the score still tied 3-3 and Boston carrying play in the 3rd period as we head for what is sure to be a heart pounding finish to this game. The Bruins would take the lead when Danton Heinen won a race to the puck after Karson Kuhlman chipped it in deep towards the corner and Heinen would find Charlie Coyle in the high slot for a one timer that he blew past Murray for a huge goal to give the Bruins a 4-3 lead with 8:16 remaining. Boston almost scored again on the ensuing shift when Murray committed grand larceny as he stopped a shot from Kuraly and the rebound went to Wagner who fired at the mostly open net and Murray would make a diving save to rob Wagner and keep it a 4-3 game. The clock would tick down to the final 5:00 of regulation with Boston leading 4-3 in what has been a strong 3rd period from the Bruins. The Penguins had a great chance when Galchenyuk got the puck in the slot but Rask made a huge pad save and froze the puck for a faceoff with 3:11 remaining. The Bruins were making safe plays and trying to bleed clock by getting pucks deep as the clock continued to tick away and Murray would head to the bench for the extra attacker with just over 1:00 to play. The Penguins were pushing hard for the equalizer but Boston would put the game away on a great effort by Chara as he knocked Crosby off the puck at the blue line before skating it through the neutral zone and sending it into the empty net to finish off a hard fought 5-3 victory for Boston in Game #3

* The Bruins win 5-3 in a wild Game #3 that was a story of 3 periods as Boston dominated the 1st period taking a 3-0 lead only for Pittsburgh to come out and dominate the 2nd period as they scored 3 goals to battle their way back to a 3-3 tie after two periods. The Bruins responded with an outstanding 3rd period effort as they controlled play in the 3rd and Charlie Coyle would score the game winner on his 2nd goal of the game with 8:16 left and Boston would add an empty netter

* Charlie Coyle continues his terrific playoff and is an early favorite for the Conn Smythe if Boston can win the cup as he scored 2 goals including the game winner. Coyle leads Boston in playoff scoring with 6 goals & 8 assists for 14 points

* Zdeno Chara scored a goal and added 2 assists as the Bruins captain stepped up big time

* Sidney Crosby scored just his 2nd goal of the playoffs for Pittsburgh and the Penguins will need Corsby and Malkin to get going if they want to win this series

* Tuukka Rask stopped 22 of 25 shots in the win for Boston

* Matt Murray stopped 40 of 44 shots for Pittsburgh in the loss

* Brad Marchand scored his 6th goal of the playoffs for Boston

* The Bruins take a 2-1 series lead and will have a chance to take a commanding 3-1 lead if they can find a way to win Game #4 and send the series back to Boston with a chance to advance to the finals while the Penguins will be looking at Game #4 as a must win to avoid dropping both games at home as they'll be trying to send the series back to Boston tied at 2-2 for Game #5

Boston Bruins at Pittsburgh Penguins
May 6, 2020 1 2 3 F BOS (2-1) 3 0 2 5 PIT (1-2) 0 3 0 3 Three Stars Zdeno Chara (BOS) 1 Goal & 2 Assists Charlie Coyle (BOS) 2 Goals Jake Guentzel (PIT) 1 Goal & 1 Assist	Team Stats Comparison BOS PIT Shots on Goal 45 25 Hits 26 25 Faceoffs Won-Lost 23-23 23-23 Penalty Minutes 2:00 2:00 Power Plays Converted 0 0 Power Play Opportunities 1 1 Time on Attack 8:00 7:13
Scoring Summary FIRST PERIOD BOS Anders Bjork (1) (Grezlcyk, Moore) 6:53 BOS Brad Marchand (6) (Pastrnak, Chara) 11:56 BOS Charlie Coyle (5) (Heinen, Chara) 16:00 SECOND PERIOD PIT Jared McCann (3) (Dumoulin, Petterson) 6:31 PIT Jake Guentzel (2) (Malkin, Crosby) 7:54 THIRD PERIOD PIT Sidney Crosby (2) (Guentzel, Malkin) 15:44 BOS Charlie Coyle (6) (Heinen, Kuhlman) 11:44 BOS Zdeno Chara (2) (unassisted) (EN) 19:21
Boston Bruins - Goalies GOALIES SHOTS SAVES SV % GAA Tuukka Rask 25 22 88% 3.00
Pittsburgh Penguins - Goalies GOALIES SHOTS SAVES SV % GAA Matt Murray 44 40 91% 4.02