BUFFALO, NY – Should the Buffalo Sabres rally to win this series from a 3-1 deficit this game will be known as the turning point. The Sabres capitalized on a sour effort from the Boston Bruins while bringing their own “A” game to the contest and won going away by a 4-1 count.
As seen in the last game of the New Jersey and Philadelphia series some teams go down easily in defeat. That was not the case in Buffalo as the Sabres outhit and blocked many more shots than the Bruins did in a last ditch effort to stay alive.
Through two periods of the game the Sabres were up 3-0 and had limited the Bruins to just 14 shots on goal.
Meanwhile the Bruins can only wonder what would have happened had Buffalo goaltender Ryan Miller not stoned David Krejci just a minute into the contest. The emotions of the game–and perhaps the series–swung less than a minute after Miller’s larceny.
Buffalo’s Adam Mair followed the puck behind the Bruins net and his attempted centering pass banked off Boston netminder Tuukka Rask’s skate and into the goal.
The Sabres then collected the game’s back-breaking goal thanks to a bad bounce. With just less than two minutes remaining in the first period Boston defender Andrew Ference appeared to have corralled a loose puck near the Bruins blueline. However, Ference’s clearing attempt hit teammate Vladimir Sobotka’s skate and Buffalo’s Tyler Ennis picked up the deflection. Ennis and teammate Derek Roy quickly worked the puck down low to Jason Pominville who slid the puck past Rask.
Buffalo continued to dominate the contest through the second period and added to their lead when Mike Grier beat Rask cleanly with a wrist shot off a faceoff which had been won by Paul Gaustad.
The third period was all Boston, and in response, Miller, as the Bruins fired 21 shots on the Buffalo cage. But it was far too little and far too late. Johnny Boychuk did manage to break Miller’s shutout bid when he fired a blistering slapshot past the Buffalo tender late in the period. But Buffalo managed to respond to that goal when Ennis outraced Bruins defender Dennis Wideman and swept the puck into an empty net for his first career playoff goal.
Even the schedule seems to favor the Sabres at this point. Riding the high on their Game 5 success the Sabres will have an extra night to enjoy it as the series takes an extended two night break. The poor effort may carry over in a tangible way for in Game 6 for Boston as their captain Zdeno Chara was slapped with an instigator penalty during a last second scrum. Such a penalty carries an automatic one-game suspension, but there is a feeling of uncertainty in the air.
The Bruins are claiming Chara was slashed by Gaustad at game’s end which set the melee off. In addition everyone connected with the Bruins remember last season when Carolina’s Scott Walker’s automatic instigation suspension was magically rescinded after Walker punched then Bruins defender Aaron Ward without provocation during a series last year.
No matter how the suspension turns out, the poor effort gives Buffalo new life and sets up Game 6 as perhaps the Bruins best chance to move on. Should Buffalo win on Monday night in Boston they would then host the deciding Game 7 in New York on Wednesday.
Contact Tom.Schettino@prohockeynews.com
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