Times wires
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
VANCOUVER — Raffi Torres scored on a pass from Jannik Hansen with 18.5 seconds to play, and the Canucks dramatically beat the Bruins 1-0 Wednesday night in the Stanley Cup final opener.
Roberto Luongo made 36 saves in his third shutout of the postseason for the Canucks, but Boston's Tim Thomas matched him until Torres, the only Vancouver player with previous Cup final experience, slipped through the defense for a beautiful goal that launched a wild celebration at Rogers Arena.
"I thought we were going to play all night the way it was going," Luongo said. "It was an exciting way to start the series. It was such a close game. It could've gone either way, a flip of the coin."
Thomas stopped 33 shots for the Bruins, who went scoreless on six power plays. Boston played impressive defense until the league's highest-scoring team connected in the final minute.
Through two scoreless periods, Luongo had 26 saves and the Bruins were 0-for-6 on the power play.
Thomas had stopped 20 shots while extending his shutout streak to more than 109 minutes, dating to the end of the Eastern Conference final against the Lightning, and Boston had killed six Vancouver power plays in a tense, tight-checking game featuring stellar defense and bad-tempered play by both clubs.
Canucks forward Alex Burrows appeared to bite the gloved finger of Boston's Patrice Bergeron after the first-period buzzer.
The officials kept both teams on a steady parade to the penalty box in the first two periods, yet neither team capitalized.
Boston failed to capitalize on every opportunity, even a two-man advantage for 1:32 early in the second period. The Bruins' power play was mostly hideous in the East playoffs, managing just five goals in 61 chances.
The Canucks' power play has been among the NHL's best all season, but high-scoring twins Daniel and Henrik Sedin also couldn't get the puck past the scrambling Thomas.
The Sedins' line generated three decent scoring chances on the opening shift, but Thomas showed off the scrambling effectiveness that allowed him to lead the Bruins out of the East.
The Bruins got a four-minute power play 4:03 into the first period when Daniel Sedin caught 6-foot-9 Bruins captain Zdeno Chara with a very high stick. Chara skated to the bench to wipe blood off his face and returned immediately to the ice, taking his spot in the slot to block Luongo's view. But Luongo turned away all nine shots, denying Vancouver native Milan Lucic twice in the waning seconds.
Both teams engaged in a lengthy scrum after Thomas made a glove save to close the first period, shoving and exchanging shots. Bergeron complained to officials before skating off the ice, holding up his finger, and television replays appeared to show Burrows biting down on the finger, possibly putting the Canucks' rambunctious first-line wing in danger of a suspension.
Burrows got a double minor from the exchange, and he committed a tripping penalty eight seconds into what would have been a lengthy five-on-three advantage for the Canucks midway through the second period.
Vancouver defenseman Dan Hamhuis skated off in pain during the second period after delivering a hip check on Lucic, who fell head over skates to the ice. Hamhuis, a shutdown defenseman enjoying a strong playoff run, had to crawl over the Vancouver bench to get to the locker room.
| Canucks | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Bruins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Canucks | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Bruins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
First Period—None. Penalties—D.Sedin, Van, double minor (high-sticking), 4:03; Kelly, Bos (high-sticking), 8:47; Burrows, Van (holding), 10:18; Marchand, Bos (holding stick), 13:25; Bergeron, Bos (roughing), 20:00; Burrows, Van, double minor (roughing), 20:00.
Second Period—None. Penalties—Bieksa, Van (high-sticking), :28; Krejci, Bos (cross-checking), 4:00; Seidenberg, Bos (kneeing), 9:28; Peverley, Bos (hooking), 9:54; Burrows, Van (tripping), 10:02; Bergeron, Bos (tripping), 17:50.
Third Period—1, Vancouver, Torres 3 (Hansen, Kesler), 19:41. Penalties—None. Shots on Goal—Boston 17-9-10—36. Vancouver 12-8-14—34. Power-play opportunities—Boston 0 of 6; Vancouver 0 of 6. Goalies—Boston, Thomas 12-7-0 (34 shots-33 saves). Vancouver, Luongo 13-6-0 (36-36).