Sean Kuraly scored early in the third period as the Boston Bruins rallied to beat the St. Louis Blues in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final. The Bruins lead the best-of-seven series one game to none.
Game 2 will be at 8 p.m. Wednesday at the TD North Garden.
Brayden Schenn and Vladimir Tarasenko provided goals to give the Blues a two-goal lead before the Bruins rallied to get the victory.
Connor Clifton and Charlie McAvoy scored in the second period to help Boston get back into the game. Tuukka Rask made 18 saves for the Bruins. Brad Marchand scored an empty net goal to seal the deal.
Jordan Binnington stopped 34 shots for St. Louis.
Fast Start for St. Louis
The Blues didn’t look like they were intimidated by the experienced Bruins as they got off to a fast start with the goal by Schenn. Boston seemed to look rusty from its 11-day layoff after beating the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final.
St. Louis jumped ahead early and it looked like they’d steal the opening game of the series. However, the last 39 minutes were dominated by Boston.
Bruins Flip the Switch
Boston found its feet after Tarasenko’s goal put St. Louis up 2-0. Connor Clifton sored one minute and 16 seconds after the Blues went up two goals. The Bruins picked up the intensity and the hitting to get back in the game.
McAvoy then potted an unassisted power-play goal to even the game at two. Boston got rewarded for its hustle and forechecking with a well-deserved goal. The Bruins reeled off 18 shots in that second period. Shots pretty much dried up for St. Louis as the Blues only put three shots on the net in the second.
The Bruins put a lot of volume on Jordan Binnington until they finally cracked him. The St. Louis rookie had to scramble to keep his team from giving up more goals.
Sean Kuraly Seals It
Kuraly once again showed a penchant for scoring huge playoff goals with his tally in the third period. His Game 1 goal was his third of the post-season. The Dublin, Ohio native finds a way to score key goals.
Boston’s top line gets a lot of love, but it was the Bruins role players who have come through over the last few games, including Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final.
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