sleddy2008
04-24-2010, 01:56 AM
C/P from TSN.ca
WASHINGTON -- After a one-game absence, Jaroslav Halak came back with 36 saves to allow the Montreal Canadiens to stave off elimination with a 2-1 victory Friday over the Washington Capitals in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference quarter-final.
Mike Cammalleri and Travis Moen scored for the Canadiens, who still trail the best-of-seven series 3-2, but will now head back to play Game 6 in front of their rabid fans at the Bell Centre.
Alexander Ovechkin scored for the Capitals, giving him 16 goals in his last 16 playoff games.
But that was all the Capitals could muster on Halak, who played brilliantly to allow the Canadiens to steal the game.
Halak was pulled in Game 3 after allowing eight goals on his previous 30 shots, and he sat and watched Game 4 as Carey Price got the start and allowed four goals in a 6-3 loss.
But Halak came back with an effort as strong as Game 1, when his 45 saves allowed the Canadiens to steal a 3-2 overtime win in this same building.
He was at his best in the third period with 12 saves, including big ones on Alexander Semin and Tomas Fleischmann on an early power play, and robbing Ovechkin on one of his trademark rushes down the left wing midway through the period.
The Capitals did not have history on their side entering the game.
This was the ninth time the franchise has led a series 3-1, but the Capitals all-time record fell to 2-7 in Game 5 of those series. History doesn't bode well for the Capitals future, either, as the team has gone on to lose the series in three of the previous six times they lost that fifth game.
The Canadiens got the start they needed, scoring twice on their first five shots to grab a 2-0 lead in the first.
Cammalleri quickly got Montreal on the board, converting a blind backhand pass from Andrei Markov with a wrist shot high to the stick side on Varlamov at 1:30 for his third of the playoffs.
Cammalleri is the only member of the Canadiens with a point in every game of the series, and he now has seven points in the playoffs.
Canadiens coach Jacques Martin switched his lines by placing Moen on the left of Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta, and it paid quick dividends when Moen scored on a backhand from the slot for his first of the playoffs at 7:01.
Halak had to be sharp in the first to allow the Canadiens to enter intermission with a 2-0 lead, particularly when he stopped Semin on a dangerous wrister from the slot and again later in the shift on a great chance at the side of the net.
The Capitals did not wait long in the second to cut the deficit in half. Rookie sensation John Carlson put a point shot on net and Mike Knuble took a swipe at the rebound in front before Ovechkin poked it home at 3:52 for his fifth of the playoffs.
But Halak and the Canadiens held the fort the rest of the way, heading into the third up 2-1.
Montreal appeared content to protect that lead in the final frame, generating little on attack and sitting back in the neutral zone to wait for the Capitals.
The strategy worked, but largely because of the guy in the Canadiens net.
Notes: The Canadiens scratched forwards Ben Maxwell and Mathieu Darche, while defenceman Jaroslav Spacek missed his second game with an illness. . . Capitals defenceman Shaone Morrisonn missed his second game with an undisclosed injury. Tyler Sloan took his spot in the lineup for a second straight game. . . Scott Walker, Quintin Laing, David Steckel and John Erskine were scratched for Washington. . . It was the first game in series Nicklas Backstrom was held off the scoresheet. He had five goals and four assists in the first four games. . . The two top power play teams from the regular season combined to go 0-for-10 with the man advantage, with five opportunities apiece.
WASHINGTON -- After a one-game absence, Jaroslav Halak came back with 36 saves to allow the Montreal Canadiens to stave off elimination with a 2-1 victory Friday over the Washington Capitals in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference quarter-final.
Mike Cammalleri and Travis Moen scored for the Canadiens, who still trail the best-of-seven series 3-2, but will now head back to play Game 6 in front of their rabid fans at the Bell Centre.
Alexander Ovechkin scored for the Capitals, giving him 16 goals in his last 16 playoff games.
But that was all the Capitals could muster on Halak, who played brilliantly to allow the Canadiens to steal the game.
Halak was pulled in Game 3 after allowing eight goals on his previous 30 shots, and he sat and watched Game 4 as Carey Price got the start and allowed four goals in a 6-3 loss.
But Halak came back with an effort as strong as Game 1, when his 45 saves allowed the Canadiens to steal a 3-2 overtime win in this same building.
He was at his best in the third period with 12 saves, including big ones on Alexander Semin and Tomas Fleischmann on an early power play, and robbing Ovechkin on one of his trademark rushes down the left wing midway through the period.
The Capitals did not have history on their side entering the game.
This was the ninth time the franchise has led a series 3-1, but the Capitals all-time record fell to 2-7 in Game 5 of those series. History doesn't bode well for the Capitals future, either, as the team has gone on to lose the series in three of the previous six times they lost that fifth game.
The Canadiens got the start they needed, scoring twice on their first five shots to grab a 2-0 lead in the first.
Cammalleri quickly got Montreal on the board, converting a blind backhand pass from Andrei Markov with a wrist shot high to the stick side on Varlamov at 1:30 for his third of the playoffs.
Cammalleri is the only member of the Canadiens with a point in every game of the series, and he now has seven points in the playoffs.
Canadiens coach Jacques Martin switched his lines by placing Moen on the left of Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta, and it paid quick dividends when Moen scored on a backhand from the slot for his first of the playoffs at 7:01.
Halak had to be sharp in the first to allow the Canadiens to enter intermission with a 2-0 lead, particularly when he stopped Semin on a dangerous wrister from the slot and again later in the shift on a great chance at the side of the net.
The Capitals did not wait long in the second to cut the deficit in half. Rookie sensation John Carlson put a point shot on net and Mike Knuble took a swipe at the rebound in front before Ovechkin poked it home at 3:52 for his fifth of the playoffs.
But Halak and the Canadiens held the fort the rest of the way, heading into the third up 2-1.
Montreal appeared content to protect that lead in the final frame, generating little on attack and sitting back in the neutral zone to wait for the Capitals.
The strategy worked, but largely because of the guy in the Canadiens net.
Notes: The Canadiens scratched forwards Ben Maxwell and Mathieu Darche, while defenceman Jaroslav Spacek missed his second game with an illness. . . Capitals defenceman Shaone Morrisonn missed his second game with an undisclosed injury. Tyler Sloan took his spot in the lineup for a second straight game. . . Scott Walker, Quintin Laing, David Steckel and John Erskine were scratched for Washington. . . It was the first game in series Nicklas Backstrom was held off the scoresheet. He had five goals and four assists in the first four games. . . The two top power play teams from the regular season combined to go 0-for-10 with the man advantage, with five opportunities apiece.