NEW YORK — After 14 games and two nail-biting playoff series wins, the New York Rangers insist they have plenty left to make a run at the Stanley Cup.

If any proof was needed, Henrik Lundqvist provided it with a shutout victory over the well-rested New Jersey Devils in the opener of the Eastern Conference finals on Monday night.

Lundqvist made 21 saves in his fifth career playoff shutout. Rookie Chris Kreider, defenseman Dan Girardi, and Artem Anisimov all had a goal and an assist in the third period as the Rangers turned a scoreless game into a 3-0 win. It came two days after New York outlasted the pesky Washington Capitals in Game 7 of the second-round series.

“I dont know where you guys get all this stuff about being tired,” Rangers coach John Tortorella said. “If were tired this time of the year, theres something the matter. We still have a month to play. You might as well not even ask me questions about being tired.”

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The Rangers said during their one day off before facing the Devils that they liked the rhythm of playing every other day, and didnt think the quick turnaround would affect them. The Devils, however, had been off for five days since they knocked out the Philadelphia Flyers in five games.

“Its always tough to come from a Game 7. So emotional, and everything around it, and then start over,” Lundqvist said. “[Sunday] was all about regrouping, and move your focus to a new team and just a different type of game.

“I didnt really know what to expect from this game, honestly.”

No team forced to play seven-game series in each of the first two rounds has gone on to win the Stanley Cup, but the Rangers are determined to be the first. The Rangers slogged through two scoreless periods and pulled out a win with a dominating third period.

The Rangers are in the conference finals for the first time since 1997, and they havent reached the Stanley Cup Finals since 1994, when they beat 22-year-old goalie Martin Brodeur and the Devils in a classic seven-game series that backed up captain Mark Messiers guarantee.

Brodeur and the Devils are making their first conference finals appearance since 2003, the year they won the Cup for the third time.

Game 2 is Wednesday night in New York.

Girardi, who struggled at times with his defensive duties, got a perfect setup from Kreider and scored 53 seconds into the third period. Playing in just his 13th NHL game, all in these playoffs, Kreider sent a pass back from the right circle in the Devils zone to the point. Girardi took long strides as he charged up ice and stepped into a shot that ripped through a screen in front by teammate Derek Stepan.

“I saw [Kreider] coming up the wall, and I was delaying to see what he was going to do,” Girardi said. “I saw no one go to the point, and I kind of stepped into it and got it through.”

The shot beat Brodeur for Girardis second playoff goal this season and second in 47 career postseason games. It was a drive Brodeur said he never saw.

“We didnt finish Kreider down the board,” Brodeur said. “We didnt close him out and get him off of the puck. Nobody went to him, probably a miscommunication, and he was able to lay a puck to Girardi and for a bomb.”

The other assist went to 21-year-old defenseman Michael Del Zotto, who along with Kreider was only 3 when these teams last met in the conference finals in `94.

Girardi also earned a secondary assist on Kreiders power-play goal with eight minutes remaining that made it 2-0. New Yorks slumping power play connected after Girardi was drilled hard from behind into the boards by Devils forward Steve Bernier.

Anisimov, who also assisted on Kreiders goal, scored into an empty net to make it 3-0 with 1:27 left.

Brodeur heard sing-song chants of “Mar-ty, Mar-ty” before the game started. Those got much louder after Girardis goal, and even more taunting after Kreider scored as the blue-shirt wearing, towel-waving fans excitement grew. Brodeur finished with 25 saves.

Lundqvist showed no signs of fatigue and was solid throughout in posting his second shutout of these playoffs — helped by 26 blocked shots by his teammates.

“Hank is huge for us back there,” Girardi said. “We were struggling a little bit in our defensive zone and he was there to bail us out. Thats what happened. He made some big saves, and in the third period we came out hard and got a couple of goals for him.”

To no ones surprise, the teams were still tied heading into the final frame, but not because of a lack of chances.

Lundqvist was sharp in turning aside pucks that sneaked through the wall of teammates that blocked so many shots. He was at his best while the Rangers were on a power play late in the second period.

Zach Parise had the puck to the left of the net and snapped off a forehand that Lundqvist blocked. Parise got another whack at the rebound, and was again denied. Given one more chance with a backhander, Parise failed to break the deadlock with a short-handed goal.

“I tried to go 5-hole on the first one and it just kept popping back to me,” Parise said. “I tried to go up, and he made the save. It came back, and I tried to go high, and he made another save. It was unfortunate. It was a few of those opportunities we had. We just didnt capitalize.”

It wasnt the first bit of frustration in the series opener for the Devils captain. Parise was caught from behind by hard-charging defenseman Ryan McDonagh to thwart a first-period breakaway before Parise could get a shot on Lundqvist

McDonagh made the most of his 22-year-old legs, and showed no signs of fatigue from 14 previous playoff games this season, when he also chased down Ilya Kovalchuk in the first period. Lundqvist made a stop at the end of the charge.

The Devils also peppered Lundqvist in the opening minutes of the second period. Lundqvist fought to see between a maze of players and even gave a shove to the back of teammate Anton Stralman, trying to move the defenseman out of his line of sight.

Brodeur also was sharp at the other end, even shaking off a collision with teammate Marek Zidlicky, who got tangled with Rangers forward Brandon Prust. Brodeurs mask was knocked off after the whistle.

Notes

The Rangers held an 18-17 edge in shots through 40 minutes, but New York also blocked 18 other Devils attempts. Brodeur, who has 24 postseason shutouts, made his 183rd consecutive playoff start for the Devils. He is the only player from the 1994 series still in the NHL. Kreider, who made his debut on April 16 at Ottawa after winning the NCAA championship with Boston College, has three goals in the playoffs.

The Phoenix Coyotes survived stretches of playing on their heels in the playoffs first two rounds, absorbing everything the opponent threw at them before counterpunching with a winning goal.

Against the Los Angeles Kings, they quickly learned that method wont work.

More skilled and equally tenacious as Phoenix, the Kings hit the Coyotes hard and kept coming in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals, rolling to a 4-2 win Sunday night.

With Game 2 Tuesday night in the desert, the Coyotes have a short turnaround to figure out a way to stop this Los Angeles juggernaut or it could end up being a short series.

“We know we need to be better,” Coyotes forward Boyd Gordon said Monday after practice. “Theyre a very good team, they work hard, they compete and they battle. If we come out like we did in Game 1, well be in big trouble.”

The Kings have been doing this all playoffs.

The Wests last team to get in, Los Angeles has arguably been the NHLs best team in the playoffs, its combination of grit, skill and superb goaltending overwhelming opponents.

The Kings knocked off No. 1 seed Vancouver in five games, swept second-seeded St. Louis in the second round and dominated Phoenix in the opener of the conference finals.

With a week off since beating the Blues, Los Angeles picked up where it left off instead of showing any signs of rust, attacking the Coyotes from the opening faceoff. The Kings outshot Phoenix 17-4 in the first period, overcame two miscues by usually steady goalie Jonathan Quick and didnt give the Coyotes much of a chance to fight back after Dustin Brown scored early in the third period.

Dwight King sealed it with his second goal of the night on an empty net, sending Los Angeles to its sixth straight road playoff victory – one short of the NHL record for one postseason – and another surge along its wave of momentum.

These Kings are on such a roll they dont care whos on the ice against them; just line up and go after the players in front of you, whoever they are.

“We know how we play and dont worry about the matchups,” Kings center Jarret Stoll said. “We know all four lines can play, all four centermen can play in every situation. When you have that, thats pretty important to the team.”

Before Sunday night, the Coyotes had been able to snatch away wins when they were outplayed in the postseason.

They packed in against Chicagos skilled lines in the opening series, withstanding the Blackhawks numerous flurries before pulling a tight series that went to overtime five of the six games. Phoenix played a similar rope-a-dope style at times against Nashville, winning that series in five games.

The Coyotes do have experience in bouncing back from a poor series opener.

Against the Predators, they allowed 42 shots and were dominated for most of the third period and at times in overtime before Ray Whitney scored for an improbable win.

The big difference in this case is the outcome. Phoenix couldnt snatch a victory away from the confident Kings and finds itself trailing in a series for the first time this season.

“Weve been disappointed in the way we played some other games,” Coyotes coach Dave Tippett said. “But, like I said before, weve been able to find a way to kind of scratch and claw our way out of it. Last night, we didnt get the result we wanted.”

One reason was the Kings top line of Brown, Anze Kopitar and Justin Williams.

The trio has given teams fits all postseason, combining for 11 goals and 17 assists the first two series. They were an unstoppable force against Phoenix, forcing Tippett to juggle his lineup in an attempt to find someone who could stop them.

No one really did.

The line combined for two goals and two assists, with Brown scoring what ended up being the winning goal on a mini breakaway after a stretch pass from Slava Voynov in the third period. They were seemingly everywhere and controlled the puck most of their time on the ice together, creating a huge matchup problem for the Coyotes.

“Im not sure what theyre going to try to do to stop us,” Brown said. “Its one of those things where theyre going to make adjustments. Its up to us as players to make adjustments in games to be effective and have an impact on Game 2.”

More than the technical adjustments, the Coyotes need a change in attitude, get back to their grinding ways.

A team without any true stars, Phoenix relies on a lunch-pail approach, getting to the loose pucks first, winning individual battles all over the ice.

The Coyotes didnt do that against Los Angeles in Game 1.

They came out flat and the Kings jumped on them at the start, by far the more aggressive team. Derek Morris scored late in the period on a shot from the center line, but that was more of a fluke than something Phoenix can expect to happen on a regular basis.

The Coyotes did use their grittiness to score their second goal – Mikkel Boedker in front after Antoine Vermette won a battle behind the goal – but there were far too few instances like that in the opener.

If Phoenix doesnt change that, what they do technically wont matter.

“First and foremost, if youre not willing to jump in and win a few more one-on-one battles, the tactical stuff you may as well throw it out the window,” Tippett said.

Especially against a team like the Kings.

So close has the series between the Phoenix Coyotes and Chicago Blackhawks been that one little bounce of the puck, one fumble along the boards or one faceoff win can be the difference between celebrating a victory and swallowing a loss.

Five straight games have been decided in overtime and who would dare say it wont go to six when the teams meet again Monday night with the Coyotes leading 3-2.

Its so even and unpredictable that both teams have triumphed twice on the road with Chicagos 2-1 victory Saturday night in Glendale, Ariz., sending the series back to the United Center.

“Were going home, which is going to be good, and try to get a lift from the fans and try to get a big win,” Chicago defenseman Brent Seabrook said after Game 5.

“We got to push it to the seventh and try to come back here, but at the same time were not looking too far past the next game, we got to come out with a good start and play a full 60.”

The series is tight and its been testy. Each team has had a player suspended – Chicagos Andrew Shaw three games for running into Phoenix goalie Mike Smith and knocking him down in Game 2. And Coyotes forward Raffi Torres, who was slapped with 25 games for his shoulder-to-head blast on Marian Hossa in Game 3, one that saw the Blackhawks star carried off on a stretcher and likely finished him for the remainder of the postseason, however long that might be.

After the Blackhawks flight was about six hours late getting back to Chicago on Sunday night because of what team officials said were unforeseen travel delays, coach Joel Quenneville said Shaw would play Monday night, and he also ruled Hossa out.

Waiting around in Phoenix on Sunday, the Blackhawks were able to watch some other playoff games.

“Youve just got to roll with it. I think that over the course of a year or a couple years, youre going to run into these kinds of things,” Quenneville said about the delay. “These things can happen. You just deal with it.”

The Blackhawks should be familiar with winning elimination games. They captured three last year in the opening round while rallying from a 3-0 deficit against Vancouver, only to lose to the Canucks in a Game 7. In overtime.

Now their goal is to force another Game 7 against the Coyotes, who are shooting for the franchises first playoff series win since moving to Phoenix in 1996.

“For most part the only guy feeling it the most would probably be me,” said Phoenix captain Shane Doan, who began his career with the franchise in Winnipeg in 1995-96.

“Obviously, Id like to get out of the first round of the playoffs, I mean everyone does. We have a great chance and we got to find a way. We worked hard and got ourselves a 3-1 lead. Id much rather be in the position were in.”

Chicago has now played seven straight overtime playoff games, including the final two a year ago against the Canucks. Its high-octane, white-knuckle hockey with no room whatsoever for error and no blinking.

And the Blackhawks have also shown the ability to rally throughout the series. Four times theyve scored a tying goal in the third period, three times after pulling goalie Corey Crawford.

“I think the situations have been more indicative of them having to press because weve been up and theyve been trying to catch us in the third and they found ways to do that,” Doan said.

“Wed love to be in the same position again. Thats our goal. Thats where we are. We got to find ways to bury the opportunities we get when they are pressing. That being said, we know we have to play better than we played last night. Last nights game wasnt even close to the way we think we should play.”

Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews, whod promised before Game 5 that he would bring an extra energy and effort, scored the winner from the right circle Saturday night with a high shot that beat Smith. Toews won a faceoff seconds earlier and the puck eventually came back to him, setting up a clear shot.

“This series is far from over and were not going to give them anything easily. For myself, I just had a feeling that something good was going to happen,” Toews said.

The Blackhawks have had their problems with the Coyotes stifling defense that has bottled up Chicagos open-ice talent. And Smith has been a major force, facing 202 shots in the first five games and yielding 12 goals.

And the Coyotes are 4-0 in the United Center, including two wins in the regular season.

“Were going up there with the same mindset. Were going to have to play a tight game and find a way to win one,” Coyotes coach Dave Tippett said.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — With a quick flick of his wrists, Jarret Stoll sent the Los Angeles Kings on to face St. Louis in the second round — and the Vancouver Canucks into the offseason a lot sonner than they expected after topping the NHL in the regular season.

Stoll beat Cory Schneider at 4:27 of overtime to give Los Angeles a 2-1 victory over Vancouver on Sunday night, knocking out the top-seeded Canucks in five games in the Western Conference first-round series.

Stoll scored from the left wing after a turnover at Vancouver blue line. The forward skated in on a 2-on-1, but took the shot himself, picking the top-left corner above Schneiders blocker.

“Its special,” Stoll said. “Its pride in the organization, and your team and your teammates and coaching staff. Theyre a great team over there, it took a lot to beat them.”

Brad Richardson tied it for Los Angeles at 3:21 of the third period, and Jonathan Quick made 26 saves.

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“To close out this series, for me personally, and a few guys in the room, its something weve never done, so its a great feeling,” Quick said.

The Kings will play the second-seeded St. Louis Blues in the second round.

“Youve got to give credit to the Kings,” Canucks coach Alain Vigneault said. “They played a real great series, a real tough opponent, played strong hockey, made the strong plays on the ice and, at the end of the day, they deserved to win.”

Henrik Sedin opened the scoring for Vancouver with a power-play goal in the first period.

Schneider made 35 saves in his third straight start after Roberto Luongo lost the first two games.

“If you play the way we did in the last three every game youll be in every game and then our skill is going to take over,” Henrik Sedin said. “In the first game, we took way too many penalties. In the second, the power play cost us the game. If you do that in a seven-game series, you give away two games, youve got to win four out of five and thats tough when they dont give you an inch out there.”

The Canucks dropped out in the first round after leading the NHL in regular-season points for the second straight year. Last season, they lost to Boston in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals.

“To be honest, it doesnt matter if you lose the seventh game of the finals or you lose in five in the first round, its devastating,” Daniel Sedin said. “We have the mindset to win every year. When you end up on the losing side its tough.”

Vancouvers new second line of Ryan Kesler, Alex Burrows and Max Lapierre made a quick impression. Burrows fed Kesler from behind the net about a 90 seconds in, but Quick stopped the centers shot from the slot.

The Canucks then ran into early penalty trouble and didnt get another shot for 6 minutes before Lapierre put one on Quick. Vancouver killed penalties to Dan Hamhuis and Henrik Sedin, but couldnt get its power play going on its first advantage.

However, with Henrik Sedin double-shifting, the Canucks capitalized on the second when the Vancouver captain put in a cross-ice pass from Daniel Sedin with 5:56 left in the period.

The opportunity came after Hamhuis kept Mike Richards clearing attempt in at the blue line.

Schneider preserved the lead when he stopped Anze Kopitar on a breakaway in the dying seconds of the first period. Kopitar put the rebound off the post as time expired.

Both goaltenders stole the show in the second period as neither team could score.

In the early going, Schneider stopped Kopitars first shot and Dustin Brown on the rebound as the Kings outshot the Canucks 6-0 in the first 4:11.

Later, Schneider robbed Richards on a rebound, snaring the puck with his catching glove. With just over 2 minutes left in the second, Quick stymied Daniel Sedin on a breakaway, lowering his right pad to block a snap shot. Sedin slammed his stick against the glass in frustration as he went to the bench.

Richardson drew the Kings even in the third, tapping in a pass from Drew Doughty. Doughty deked and circled around the Canucks Keith Ballard and passed the puck back to Richardson from the end line. It was the first goal of the series for Richardson, who missed the first three games while recovering from an appendectomy.

Notes

The Canucks made just one lineup change, inserting winger Dale Weise in place of Zack Kassian, who was the principal acquisition in the trade that sent Cody Hodgson to Buffalo at the Feb. 27 deadline. Vancouver defenseman Sami Salo played his 100th career playoff game.

WASHINGTON — Because Tyler Seguin and Tim Thomas returned to form, the Bruins are heading back to Boston for another game against the Washington Capitals.

Seguin scored at 3:17 of overtime, Thomas made 36 saves, and the Bruins beat Washington 4-3 on Sunday to tie the first-round Eastern Conference playoff series at three games apiece.

The defending Stanley Cup champion Bruins never trailed, but needed a stolen pass and a deft bit of skating by Seguin to finally get the decisive goal and avoid elimination.

The series finale is Wednesday night in Boston. The first six games were all decided by one goal, three of them in overtime.

“Its been a dogfight from start to finish,” Bruins coach Claude Julien said. “Both teams here are heading to Game 7 with the same kind of confidence. For us, its time to take advantage of the home ice that weve fought hard all year to get. Weve got to make it count.”

Video

Seguin forces Game 7 with OT winner
Controversy on goal by Caps Chimera

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Seguin led the Bruins during the regular season with 29 goals and 67 points but was scoreless in the playoffs until Sunday. Thomas, a two-time Vezina Trophy winner, was generally outplayed by Capitals rookie Braden Holtby over the first five games of the series.

Not so in Game 6.

Thomas had 35 saves in regulation, and Seguin contributed an assist before beating Holtby to end the game.

“It was a coming-of-age goal there in overtime,” Thomas said about Seguin, a 20-year-old with two years of NHL experience.

The pivotal play began when David Krejci intercepted a pass by Nicklas Backstrom and sent the puck to Milan Lucic, who passed ahead to Seguin.

Seguin veered slightly to his right to draw Holtby from the net, then lifted a shot past the rookie to win it.

“I saw the goalie challenging, so I just tried to make a quick move and got lucky it went in,” Seguin said. “This series Ive had a lot of chances and opportunities and I havent been finishing them off. Its just really nice to get that feeling of finding the back of the net.”

Julien said, “For him to jump on that and be patient enough to skate around the goaltender, its great to see.”

That kept alive Bostons bid to become the first team to win successive Stanley Cups since the Detroit Red Wings in 1997-98.

The seventh-seeded Capitals, on the other hand, face the prospect of having to win a third game in Boston to advance to the second round.

“Game 7 is a grinding kind of game,” coach Dale Hunter said. “Were used to playing it. Every game here has been tough game. Both sides are, I imagine, a little bit banged up. But little bruises, theyll forget about them come Game 7.”

The Bruins took a 3-2 lead at 11:51 of the third period on a goal by Andrew Ference, who put in the long rebound of a shot by Seguin. Ference thrust his fist into the air in delight in front of the Bruins bench to celebrate after his first goal of the series.

But Washington wasnt done. Off a faceoff in the Boston zone, Alex Ovechkin controlled the puck with his left skate and promptly ripped a shot that skidded between Thomas legs with 4:52 left in regulation.

It was not unlike Saturdays game, when Thomas gave up a lamentable goal to Troy Brouwer in the closing minutes of Washingtons 4-3 victory.

Julien knew Thomas would bounce back Sunday, and the coach was right.

“I thought he played a huge game,” Julien said. “I knew he was upset [Saturday] after the game. Just by his reaction, I had no doubt he was going to come up huge today.”

Bostons Rich Peverley opened the scoring at 5:56 of the first period by deflecting a shot by Ference past Holtby. It was the first time in five games and only the second time in the series that the Bruins notched the games initial goal.

The lead was short lived. After gaining possession of the puck on top of the left circle, Washington defenseman Mike Green twice drew his stick back before choosing the right moment to launch a slap shot that soared past Thomas left shoulder and into the net at 9:47.

But the Bruins went up 2-1 7 minutes later on a power-play goal by Krejci, who ended Bostons 1-for-16 struggle with the extra man. Krejci entered the center of the Washington zone, dropped a pass to incoming Lucic on the left side and then tipped in the return pass.

In the second period, however, the Capitals penalty-killing efficiency came heavily into play. After Ovechkin received a 4-minute penalty for bloodying the nose of Zdeno Chara with a high stick, Washington limited the Bruins to a single shot on goal while short-handed and even managed a decent shot of its own.

The Capitals pulled even with less than a minute left in the period. Backstrom charged down the right side and waited until Thomas and Chara committed themselves before sending a backhand, cross-ice pass to Jason Chimera, who slammed the puck into the net before Thomas could move back across the crease.

Washington outshot Boston 15-5 in the second period. It will take that kind of effort for the Capitals to prevail on Wednesday.

“Weve already seen them six times. I dont think anythings going to change on our end,” said Washingtons Matt Hendricks, who was not surprised at Bostons effort Sunday.

“Theyre Stanley Cup champs last year. Theyre not going to die easy.”

Notes

Bruins D Joe Corvo was scratched after being struck in the right knee by a puck Saturday. This is the third time the teams have met in the postseason. Each has won eight games. Washingtons Alexander Semin was held without a goal for the first time in four games.

NEW YORK — Craig Anderson marveled at the history portrayed on the walls of Madison Square Garden. His playoff performance against the New York Rangers will certainly be remembered even if its not celebrated at the “Worlds Most Famous Arena.”

Anderson stopped 41 shots and made Jason Spezzas first-period goal and empty-netter stand up as the Ottawa Senators pushed the top-seeded Rangers to the brink of elimination with a 2-0 victory Saturday night in Game 5.

“You walk down the hallway and you see the photos of whos played here and what sporting events have happened here,” Anderson said. “Its just magical. To be part of it is beyond words.”

If things go well at home, he and the Senators wont have to make a return trip to the Garden until next season.

The Senators, the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference, have won two straight and will have a chance to knock out the Rangers on Monday night. If New York can stay alive, the deciding Game 7 would be back in New York on Thursday night.

“We know we are going to get their best,” Spezza said. “The first thing you learn is that the toughest thing is to put a team out of the playoffs. We can enjoy this one for all of 10 minutes and get refocused. We know they are the best team in the East. Theyll give us their best game and we have to be sure we match that.”

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Spezza sealed this win by scoring with 55.3 seconds remaining, and Anderson was perfect in earning his second career NHL playoff shutout. He stood tall in the third period when the Rangers pressed for the tying goal. Since New York took a 2-0 lead in the first period of its 3-2 overtime loss in Game 4, Anderson has gone 116 minutes, 32 seconds without allowing a goal — stopping 66 consecutive shots. He has given up just five goals in four games.

Rangers coach John Tortorella rarely heaps praise on opposing players, but he admitted that Anderson was the difference in this one. He said there was plenty to like about the Rangers game, except for the poor power play and the result.

“I feel better about the team after tonights game than a couple of wins,” he said. “We go to Ottawa and have to play the same way and keep banging away and see if we can score some goals.”

New York has managed only three in three games, including a 1-0 road victory in Game 3.

Henrik Lundqvist nearly matched Andersons performance and made 28 saves for New York. The Rangers have come back to win only one series in which they trailed 3-2.

“It hurts,” Lundqvist said. “Its not a fun situation, thats for sure. This is not over, but were in a tough position. We dont need to change much. Were right there.”

The Rangers join the Wests top seed — the Vancouver Canucks — in being one loss away from an unexpected early summer. Boston, the No. 2 seed in the East, also is down 3-2 in its series against Washington.

It now also appears that the Rangers might have to play without forward Brian Boyle, who was injured in the third period when he was hit late and high by Ottawa agitator Chris Neil. The 6-foot-7 Boyle, who scored in each of the first three games of the series and has three of New Yorks nine total goals, sustained a concussion, according to Tortorella.

Tortorella compared the hit to one delivered by Phoenixs Raffi Torres, who was suspended by the NHL on Saturday for 25 games for his shot that sent Chicagos Marian Hossa to the hospital.

“Hes concussed and out,” Tortorella said about Boyle. “Exact same hit as Torres. “He launches himself, head shot. The puck is at the goal line when hes hit. The blueprint is there. Hes a repeat offender, too. Not too much research to be done there.

“Its just a dangerous, dangerous, cheap hit.”

Neil didnt receive a penalty. Boyle returned a few minutes later on the Rangers penalty kill, and played only three shifts the rest of the way.

Ottawa would be an unlikely participant in the second round, especially if the Senators get there without captain Daniel Alfredsson, who has been sidelined since Game 2 because of a concussion following a hit by Rangers rookie Carl Hagelin. Hagelin, suspended three games by the NHL for the hit, is eligible to return Monday.

It was assumed that rookie Chris Kreider would come out of the Rangers lineup then, but his increased confidence and Boyles injury could change those plans.

Now New Yorks special season hangs in the balance in Game 6.

“Win that one and bring it back here,” Rangers forward Brad Richards said. “Its just going to take seven games now. Thats the reality.”

The Rangers fired 15 shots at Anderson in the third period, but couldnt get a puck past him — even during their fourth power play of the night.

Senators coach Paul MacLean said this was the best he has seen Anderson, who set the club record for saves in a playoff shutout.

“To shut a team out on the road is pretty tough to do, especially in the playoffs in this atmosphere,” Spezza said. “When Andy is seeing the puck well and seeing things from the outside, thats when hes at his best.

Spezza netted his first goal of the series 9:18 in off an assist from teenager Mark Stone, who made his NHL debut after playing junior hockey last week.

In the previous four games, the Rangers trailed only twice — at the end of overtime in their two losses. Coming from behind hadnt be part of New Yorks plan until Spezza broke out of his funk with his first goal of the series.

About 30 seconds after Ottawa killed its first short-handed situation of the opening period, Spezza gave the Senators their first in-game lead in five games.

Filip Kuba sent a pass from the Senators end of the ice up to the neutral zone to Stone, who filled in for injured forward Jesse Winchester (upper body). Stone waited just outside the Rangers blue line and then made a short pass in front of him to Spezza at the bottom of the right circle. Spezza, who had 34 goals and a team-high 84 points in the regular season, showed off his scoring touch by deftly snapping a shot between Lundqvists pads.

“The play was made by Mark Stone,” MacLean said. “To make a play like that on his first shift in the National Hockey League is pretty impressive.”

Spezza let out a roar and emphatically punched the glass in the corner, as if to release the remaining bit of frustration that grew during his drought.

The nervous Madison Square Garden crowd quickly became quiet and stayed that way for much of the rest of the first period, except to cheer a few big hits by the Rangers and to boo after New Yorks third failed power play at the end of the frame.

The Rangers had their chances to score first for the fifth consecutive game, or get even, but their power-play woes did them in again. After failing to score on a hooking call against Sergei Gonchar, and an interference penalty on Jared Cowen, New York nearly gave up a short-handed goal after Spezza went off for roughing up Rangers captain Ryan Callahan with a gloved punch to the face during an after-whistle scrum.

Defenseman Dan Girardi made a pass along the blue line, leading to a breakaway by Erik Condra, that was snuffed out by Lundqvist after Condra lost control of the puck during his sprint up the ice.

The power plays shifted in Ottawas favor in the second period, but the Senators couldnt take advantage of the three they got, either.

Ruslan Fedotenko went off for high-sticking in the opening minute, Mike Rupp was called for charging Jim OBrien with 6:12 left, and Callahan went off for roughing when he came to the defense of Marian Gaborik, who was knocked to the ice by a late hit from Ottawas Colin Greening that went unpenalized.

Lundqvist was particularly sharp in the second, making 12 saves — including a handful of tough chances created by misplays by his teammates.

Notes

The 19-year-old Stone helped Canada win the silver medal at the World Junior Championship. The Rangers power play was 1 for 11 in the opening three games of the series before a pair of goals in the first period of Game 4 gave New York a 2-0 lead. But since then, it has failed on nine straight chances.

GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Chicago Blackhawks have been oh-so-close throughout their series against the Phoenix Coyotes, lamenting their missed chances while falling into a two-game hole.

After Jonathan Toews buried an opportunity into the back of the net early in overtime, the Blackhawks are headed back home with hope that the improbable is now possible.

The Blackhawks scored another tying goal in the third period and Toews punctuated it by scoring 2:44 into overtime, helping Chicago stave off elimination with a 2-1 win over the Coyotes Saturday night.

“We stuck with it,” Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said. “We kept talking about shots and shots and traffic; we had a nice break and a nice play on the last goal, but its that tight.”

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The Blackhawks tied it in the third period for the fourth time in the series, though this one came a little earlier than the others with Nick Leddy scoring midway through the period.

That led to the fifth straight overtime game — a first in the NHL since 1951 — and Toews came through, beating Mike Smith stick side for his first goal since the opener to pull the Blackhawks to 3-2 in the series.

Corey Crawford stopped 18 shots after allowing relatively-soft goals in overtime the previous two games, giving the Blackhawks a chance with some comeback history on their side; they rallied from 3-0 down to push Vancouver to a Game 7 in the second round last season.

Their chance to even the series against the Coyotes comes Monday night in Chicago for Game 6.

“Weve got to come out and have a strong effort in Chicago,” Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook said. “Were going home, which is going to be good, and try to get a lift from the fans and try to get a big win.”

With Gilbert Brule scoring his first career playoff goal in the second period and Smith turning away everything through a busy first two periods, Phoenix appeared to be headed into the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 1987, when the franchise was still in Winnipeg.

Instead, the Coyotes gave up another third-period goal and couldnt come through in overtime, forcing them to win in Chicago for a third time in the series or face an anything-can-happen Game 7 Wednesday at home.

After losing forward Raffi Torres to a 25-game suspension earlier Saturday for his Game 3 hit on Marian Hossa, it was not a good day for the Coyotes, who blew a 3-1 lead to St. Louis in the first round of 1999 playoffs.

“Its obviously disappointing; you never want to give up the lead and [want] to find ways to win at home for your fans, but give them credit, they played a good game,” Coyotes captain Shane Doan said. “We didnt play as well as we needed to.”

A tight and testy series has come down to a few big plays at just the right times for Phoenix.

The clog-the-lanes Coyotes bogged down the fleet Blackhawks through the first four games, giving Chicagos skill players little room to maneuver while getting superb goaltending from Smith.

The Blackhawks have had trouble getting traffic in front of Smith, their best chances coming in the closing seconds of regulation, when theyve used frenetic flurries to score.

Once the games got to overtime, the Coyotes had dominated. Mikkel Boedker had extra-period goals in the two games in Chicago to put Phoenix up 3-1.

The series also has been brutally physical, filled with big hits and numerous scrums between players.

Along with dozens of bone-rattling hits, Chicago rookie Andrew Shaw was suspended three games for upending Smith in Game 2, and Torres received the second-longest suspension in NHL history for an on-ice action with his hit on Hossa, who didnt make the trip to Arizona.

The barbarity has hit the Coyotes the hardest.

Forwards Martin Hanzal and Lauri Korpikoski missed both games in Chicago and leading goal-scorer Radim Vrbata played just one shift in the opening game. The everyone-chips-in Coyotes havent flinched when players have gone out, using their depth and diversity to grind out victories.

Phoenix opened Game 5 just as it did in all the others, allowing Blackhawks plenty of scoring chances. Smith, as he has all series, wouldnt let them in, turning away 12 shots in a first period that included consecutive power plays by Chicago late.

The Coyotes were at their counterattacking best early in the second quarter, with Smith getting the puck out quickly to pick up an assist on Brules breakaway goal.

The Blackhawks have been resilient all series, though, and kept clawing until Leddy scored from the right point midway through the third period on a shot Smith had trouble seeing after being clipped on the mask by Chicago center Dave Bolland.

“They were coming hard,” Coyotes coach Dave Tippett said. “That was their season on the line for them, so you knew they were going to come hard.”

And they kept coming in overtime, getting the big play at the right time instead of the Coyotes.

Scrambling off a faceoff, Toews gathered a loose puck near the right circle and let it fly. Unlike the previous two games, when Chicago couldnt beat Smith in overtime, Chicagos captain managed to slip one past, sending the Blackhawks back to the Windy City with momentum blowing on their side.

Notes

LW Viktor Stalberg was called for all four of Chicagos penalties. The Blackhawks are 0-10 when trailing a series 3-1. Brules goal came in his fourth playoff game. Chicago is 1-for-17 on the power play in the series after failing on four chances in Game 5.

SUNRISE, Fla. — After spending most of the previous two games watching from the bench, Floridas Jose Theodore sent the New Jersey Devils to the brink of elimination.

Theodore made 30 saves for his second postseason shutout, Kris Versteeg scored a goal and used a burst of speed to set up another, and the Panthers moved a win away from their first series triumph in 16 years with a 3-0 victory over the Devils on Saturday night.

Scottie Upshall and Tomas Kopecky also scored for Florida, which leads the Eastern Conference first-round series 3-2. The Panthers last series victory came in the 1996 East finals, and theyll have two chances to snap that drought.

“A huge win, obviously,” Theodore said. “I keep saying this: The next game is always the biggest in the playoffs.”

Martin Brodeur made 30 saves for New Jersey, which hosts a win-or-else Game 6 on Tuesday night. If necessary, Game 7 is at Florida on Thursday night.

“They did a lot of things better than we did tonight,” Devils coach Pete DeBoer said. “It was a good lesson for us. The fourth game is always the toughest to win and were going to make it as tough as possible.”

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New Jersey forward Ilya Kovalchuk said after Game 4 that he thought Saturdays outcome would decide the series.

And now?

“Nobody said it was going to be easy,” Kovalchuk said.

Heres one that few hockey fans might have expected a few weeks ago: Of the Easts top three seeds, the Panthers are in the best position.

The top-seeded New York Rangers trail their series with Ottawa 3-2. The reigning Stanley Cup champion and No. 2 seed Boston Bruins trail Washington 3-2. The Panthers? One win from the second round.

Go figure.

“Theres a lot of wins left to get,” Panthers defenseman Brian Campbell said.

Clinging to a one-goal lead for more than half the game, Florida had plenty of chances for the insurance score. It came with 6:43 left – and was earned.

With the sellout crowd already roaring as Upshall and Shawn Matthias battled to fight the puck up the boards and eventually clear it into the New Jersey zone, Brodeur skated around his net to make a play. On a forecheck, Versteeg beat Brodeur to the puck, sending it in front for Upshall, who had empty net to shoot at and give Florida a 2-0 lead.

“I saw the puck kind of slow-rolling,” Versteeg said. “I dont know if he kind of double-guessed himself whether he could get it or not. But obviously, it was a great finish by Uppy.”

From there, red towels waved, people stomping and clapping in unison, a scene that Panthers fans havent enjoyed often over the past decade.

Theodore gave them plenty to celebrate.

He shut the door, and when Brodeur got to the bench with 2:14 left and the Devils down by two, Theodore never got rattled, either. New Jersey had a 6-on-4 when Erik Gudbranson was called for roughing with 2:08 left, but never solved Theodore.

“We didnt challenge him enough,” Devils forward Zach Parise said. “He got real lucky on a lot of them.”

The Devils had the best penalty-killing percentage in the NHLs modern era this season, thwarting power plays 89.6 percent of the time. But in the series, Florida has thrived when it has the extra skater on the ice.

And the trend continued.

On a play that started with a faceoff win — another Florida strength over large stretches of this series — Stephen Weiss got the puck between the circles, then sent a sharp pass to the left corner of the rink to Versteeg, who fired a one-timer by Brodeur for a 1-0 lead at exactly 4:00 of the second period.

It was Floridas first goal in nearly two full games, a span of 117 minutes, 26 seconds.

Teams had gone 7 for 77 on the power play against New Jersey to close the regular season. After Versteegs goal, the Panthers were 7 for 17 in the series with the man advantage.

Turns out, the way Theodore was playing, Florida only needed one goal anyway.

“I just think we got outworked today,” New Jerseys Travis Zajac said. “We didnt win enough battles to create scoring chances.”

Though Dineen didnt blame Scott Clemmensen for the 4-0 loss at New Jersey on Thursday night, it was little surprise he went back to Theodore — the No. 1 goalie option in Florida this season — for Game 5. Theodore was pulled after giving up three goals in the first 6:16 of Game 3, one where Clemmensen was perfect in relief and Florida eventually won 4-3.

If anyone wondered if Theodore was up to the task, he tried to provide the answer in the early going.

Patrik Elias had a chance to stuff in the rebound of his own blocked shot with 7:20 left in the opening period, only to have Theodore kick it aside. Two minutes later, Zajac tried to score from down low, with Theodore again holding his ground. And with Florida caught in a change with four minutes left, Stephen Gionta had a clear shot from the top of the right circle, which Theodore smothered.

That set the trend for the night.

“For me, thats Theo,” Dineen said. “Thats what I expected from him.”

Notes

Theodores only other playoff shutout was April 19, 2004, 2-0 for Montreal at Boston. The teams combined for one shot in the first 6 1/2 minutes. Florida has outscored New Jersey 7-1 in second periods of the series. With defensemen Jason Garrison and Keaton Ellerby out with injuries, the Panthers called up D Tyson Strachan from San Antonio of the AHL for the game.

SUNRISE, Fla. — After spending most of the previous two games watching from the bench, Floridas Jose Theodore sent the New Jersey Devils to the brink of elimination.

Theodore made 30 saves for his second postseason shutout, Kris Versteeg scored a goal and used a burst of speed to set up another, and the Panthers moved a win away from their first series triumph in 16 years with a 3-0 victory over the Devils on Saturday night.

Scottie Upshall and Tomas Kopecky also scored for Florida, which leads the Eastern Conference first-round series 3-2. The Panthers last series victory came in the 1996 East finals, and theyll have two chances to snap that drought.

“A huge win, obviously,” Theodore said. “I keep saying this: The next game is always the biggest in the playoffs.”

Martin Brodeur made 30 saves for New Jersey, which hosts a win-or-else Game 6 on Tuesday night. If necessary, Game 7 is at Florida on Thursday night.

“They did a lot of things better than we did tonight,” Devils coach Pete DeBoer said. “It was a good lesson for us. The fourth game is always the toughest to win and were going to make it as tough as possible.”

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New Jersey forward Ilya Kovalchuk said after Game 4 that he thought Saturdays outcome would decide the series.

And now?

“Nobody said it was going to be easy,” Kovalchuk said.

Heres one that few hockey fans might have expected a few weeks ago: Of the Easts top three seeds, the Panthers are in the best position.

The top-seeded New York Rangers trail their series with Ottawa 3-2. The reigning Stanley Cup champion and No. 2 seed Boston Bruins trail Washington 3-2. The Panthers? One win from the second round.

Go figure.

“Theres a lot of wins left to get,” Panthers defenseman Brian Campbell said.

Clinging to a one-goal lead for more than half the game, Florida had plenty of chances for the insurance score. It came with 6:43 left – and was earned.

With the sellout crowd already roaring as Upshall and Shawn Matthias battled to fight the puck up the boards and eventually clear it into the New Jersey zone, Brodeur skated around his net to make a play. On a forecheck, Versteeg beat Brodeur to the puck, sending it in front for Upshall, who had empty net to shoot at and give Florida a 2-0 lead.

“I saw the puck kind of slow-rolling,” Versteeg said. “I dont know if he kind of double-guessed himself whether he could get it or not. But obviously, it was a great finish by Uppy.”

From there, red towels waved, people stomping and clapping in unison, a scene that Panthers fans havent enjoyed often over the past decade.

Theodore gave them plenty to celebrate.

He shut the door, and when Brodeur got to the bench with 2:14 left and the Devils down by two, Theodore never got rattled, either. New Jersey had a 6-on-4 when Erik Gudbranson was called for roughing with 2:08 left, but never solved Theodore.

“We didnt challenge him enough,” Devils forward Zach Parise said. “He got real lucky on a lot of them.”

The Devils had the best penalty-killing percentage in the NHLs modern era this season, thwarting power plays 89.6 percent of the time. But in the series, Florida has thrived when it has the extra skater on the ice.

And the trend continued.

On a play that started with a faceoff win — another Florida strength over large stretches of this series — Stephen Weiss got the puck between the circles, then sent a sharp pass to the left corner of the rink to Versteeg, who fired a one-timer by Brodeur for a 1-0 lead at exactly 4:00 of the second period.

It was Floridas first goal in nearly two full games, a span of 117 minutes, 26 seconds.

Teams had gone 7 for 77 on the power play against New Jersey to close the regular season. After Versteegs goal, the Panthers were 7 for 17 in the series with the man advantage.

Turns out, the way Theodore was playing, Florida only needed one goal anyway.

“I just think we got outworked today,” New Jerseys Travis Zajac said. “We didnt win enough battles to create scoring chances.”

Though Dineen didnt blame Scott Clemmensen for the 4-0 loss at New Jersey on Thursday night, it was little surprise he went back to Theodore — the No. 1 goalie option in Florida this season — for Game 5. Theodore was pulled after giving up three goals in the first 6:16 of Game 3, one where Clemmensen was perfect in relief and Florida eventually won 4-3.

If anyone wondered if Theodore was up to the task, he tried to provide the answer in the early going.

Patrik Elias had a chance to stuff in the rebound of his own blocked shot with 7:20 left in the opening period, only to have Theodore kick it aside. Two minutes later, Zajac tried to score from down low, with Theodore again holding his ground. And with Florida caught in a change with four minutes left, Stephen Gionta had a clear shot from the top of the right circle, which Theodore smothered.

That set the trend for the night.

“For me, thats Theo,” Dineen said. “Thats what I expected from him.”

Notes

Theodores only other playoff shutout was April 19, 2004, 2-0 for Montreal at Boston. The teams combined for one shot in the first 6 1/2 minutes. Florida has outscored New Jersey 7-1 in second periods of the series. With defensemen Jason Garrison and Keaton Ellerby out with injuries, the Panthers called up D Tyson Strachan from San Antonio of the AHL for the game.