As the Bruins and Senators met for game two of the Stanley Cup playoffs at the Canadian Tyre Centre, Boston having already won game one, the Senators were going in to this game wanting to level the score in front of their home fans before heading to 
Boston for game three.
The first period had a pair of penalties, the first for Drew Stafford for tripping Erik Karlsson gave the Senators a few seconds of a powerplay, but twenty six seconds later Alexandre Burrows went to the Senators penalty box after interference against Adam McQuaid.
Ten shots to the Bruins, and nine for the Senators, and the period ended 0-0.
With the second period well underway, the puck was being fired at the Senators goal, Craig Anderson blocking shots well, not letting anything through, but the Bruins kept piling the pressure on.
Zdeno Charra passed out from the corner to David Backes at the boards, who crossed it over the front of the goal. Viktor Stalberg got his skate to it, sending the puck away from the goal but directly in to the path of an incoming Drew Stafford. Stafford’s one timer put the puck in to the roof of the net.
A minute later, Clarke MacArthur levelled the score, the assists coming from Derick Brassard and Bobby Ryan. This was a powerplay goal for the Senators, with Frank Vatrano in the sin bin after tripping Ryan Dzingel. The noise meter in the Canadian Tyre Centre registering just over 105 decibels following the goal.
Zach Smith and Matt Belesky had words with each other, Smith getting two minutes Belesky getting 2+2 so taking Vatrano to the box with him.
Being short handed didn’t slow the Bruins down this time, Dominic Moore helping Tim Schaller put them back in the lead.
Barely six minutes from the first goal, the fourth goal of the game came from Patrice Bergeon – a powerplay goal, Chris Wideman taking a turn in the box after he tripped David Pastrnak – Pastrnak and Ryan Spooner getting the assists on this goal.
The score at the start of the third period sat at 3-1 to the Bruins, and then the Senators started the comeback.
With the puck in the corner behind the Bruins goal, it was scooped out and fell to Dion Phaneuf back near the blue line. With a screen of white in front of him, Phaneuf sent the puck across the ice to Wideman whose wrist shot passed through the Bruins defence, the Senators offence, and the tiny gap under Tuukka Rask’s arm.
Keeping on the pressure, Phaenuf earned another assist with his quick short pass to Erik Karlsson. Karlsson took the puck on a tour of the Bruins zone, passing across in front of the goal to Brassard in space. Brassard’s one timer levelled the score at 3-3, causing an eruption in the stadium.
With more than twelve minutes left in the period, the puck went back and forth, neither team wanting to leave a gap, but always looking for the space to get in to the lead. The only penalty in the whole period coming with just thirteen seconds left, this for delay of game after Zdeno Chara knocked the puck over the glass. With not enough time to get anything going, this saw the clock out and the game headed to overtime.
Overtime, however, didn’t last that long – less than two minutes.
Mark Stone, near the crease, under pressure and Rask filling all the available space, Stone passed the puck back to the point. Phaneuf – already with two assists in the game – unleashed an almighty one timer that went between Rask and the post.
Somehow, the Senators bench was empty with the entire team hugging Phaneuf on the far side of the ice, before Rask even got back to his feet.
“We didn’t draw it up like that, for sure, but playoffs, it’s about momentum, sticking to it, continuing to find a way to push your game,” Phaneuf said. “That’s the biggest one I’ve scored. It feels great to do it here, in front of our fans. Just incredible.”
Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said. “A team that’s behind, they’re at home, they’re desperate, they’re going to push hard and they did. What’s disappointing is we’re generally are pretty good at closing out games.”
[WATCH: All Bruins vs. Senators highlights | RELATED: Complete Boston vs. Ottawa series coverage]
Rask made 25 saves in taking the loss.
“We want to make it 2-0. I’m not going to sit here and tell you I’m satisfied with a split. We were 20 minutes away from being up 2-0. That’s the way I look at it,” Boston’s head coach Bruce Cassidy said after the loss.
Game three of this best of seven series, will be played at the TD Garden, Bruins home ice, Monday night.
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