Final: Blues top Bruins 3-2 in overtime to take Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final
Carl Gunnarsson of the St. Louis Blues is congratulated by his teammates after scoring the game-winning goal during the first overtime period to defeat the Boston Bruins 3-2 in Game 2 of the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Final at TD Garden on May 29, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
By Matt Dolloff, 985TheSportsHub.com
The Bruins and Blues get back to work in the Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday night at TD Garden. Check below for live updates, instant analysis, and highlights from the game. And while you’re here you might as well listen live above for the call of the game from Judd Sirott and Bob Beers.
Live Updates: Overtime
— 16:09: Carl Gunnarsson ends it in overtime for the Blues. After a delayed penalty call on Brandon Carlo, Gunnarsson rockets it home from the point.
Recap: Third Period
— Third Period Thoughts: The Bruins continue to have the same issues with puck management and team defense. And in this period they looked gassed. The loss of Grzelcyk seems to be catching up to them. It’s hard to determine which team should be favored the longer this game goes. If the Bruins weren’t down a man I’d give them the edge. But the Blues have been the better team for the majority of the night. This feels like it’s going to come down to a bounce of the puck and a goal from someone you’d least expect.
— 0:50: The Blues hit the post with just under two minutes remaining. It looked from here like the puck might have gone in, but play continued. David Pastrnak got a late shot of his own off, but Binnington came up with the massive save.
Jordan Binnington, man. pic.twitter.com/Ff6iMSuHE7
— Cristiano Simonetta (@CMS_74_) May 30, 2019
— 2:33: Binnington made an incredible stop on a point-blank Bergeron shot. Maybe the best chance for either team since the first period.
— 6:38: Bruins have a power play after a slashing call on Brayden Schenn. Potential for a demoralizing score, because the B’s are not playing well right now. It’s hard to feel confident they’ll be any better here, but we’ll see.
— 9:41: Bruins are continually playing with fire in their own zone. The Blues are getting significantly more pressure on them offensively than they did in Game 1. And while the B’s have had their opportunities offensively, the finish hasn’t been there.
— 15:29: Torey Krug makes a kick-save in front. Eventually Brad Marchand gets an opportunity for a breakaway, but lets up at the end and loses his edge.
— 16:45: Tuukka Rask makes his first save of the third period. Once again, the Bruins’ third line of Marcus Johansson, Charlie Coyle, and Danton Heinen has a great shift. They’ve been the best line for either team tonight.
Recap: Second Period
— Second Period Thoughts: An interminable slog of a period. Felt like a month. The Bruins played sloppy in their own end and the neutral zone and succumbed to the Blues’ forecheck for most of the frame. They’re fortunate to be facing a team that’s not particularly creative on offense or dynamic in terms of skill. The Blues have a 24-14 shots on goal advantage and it felt like none of their shots were legitimate threats. The B’s need to get their legs back under them in the third or this thing could simply come down to a bounce of the puck if the Blues just keep firing away.
— 1:40: An absolute gift of a penalty by the Blues. Jaden Schwartz with the second goaltender interference penalty of the night for St. Louis as he bowls Rask over.
— Joakim Nordstrom ignited the TD Garden crowd with an excellent shift on the penalty kill that included two blocked shots. The second one looked like it hurt, but he popped back up and continued playing. A Gregory Campbell moment for Nordstrom, who also scored tonight.
????@Jo92No | #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/Vi8dCQzEuu
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) May 30, 2019
— 4:21: Connor Clifton to the box for high-sticking. Tyler Bozak was bloodied on the play, so it’s a double-minor.
— 4:53: The Bruins’ power play was almost unreasonably, excessively poor. Minimal zone time and one total shot attempt. This has been a sloppy period at both ends for them. If the Blues didn’t have such a generic offense they might be playing from behind.
— 7:41: Bruins back to the power play. Joel Edmundson whistled for tripping on Jake DeBrusk. Similar call to the Schenn/Clifton incident.
— 9:42: Legitimate scoring chance for Nordstrom in front off a point shot from McAvoy. Probably the Bruins’ best shift of the period so far.
— 10:49: David Backes flattened Sammy Blais with an open-ice hit while carrying the puck through the neutral zone. A sign of life in what’s been a largely lifeless period for the Bruins so far.
Backes has been a force this series #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/GrzbVBuwOK
— Boston Bruins on CLNS (@BruinsCLNS) May 30, 2019
— 16:26: Connor Clifton whistled for interference. It’s a bad call. Brayden Schenn fell because of incidental contact with Clifton’s hip. With all the stuff they’ve let go tonight, makes little sense to call that one.
— 20:00: Matt Grzelcyk is not on the Bruins’ bench to start the second period. Not looking good for his status for the rest of the game. The hope is he didn’t suffer a head injury, but it sure looked like one on the hit he took.
Recap: First Period
— First Period Thoughts: The only way the Blues can score is by a fluke bounce from a puck flipped in from the half boards, or a bad defensive lapse by the Bruins. That’s how this game is tied after one period instead of the Bruins holding a two-goal lead. The Blues have little answer for the Bruins’ bottom-six, and the Bergeron line had their chances as well. Brad Marchand needs to clean it up on the backcheck and hopefully Matt Grzelcyk is OK. But other than that, not a horrible period for the Bruins. If the Bruins clean up a few things on the back end they should prevail.
— 2:03: Bruins get another power play, but potentially at a cost. Oskar Sundqvist crushes Matt Grzelcyk into the glass with a bit of a high hit. Grzelcyk has to be helped off. But Sundqvist goes to the box for boarding.
— 5:05: The Blues have battled back to tie it again. Brad Marchand is covering for Charlie McAvoy on the back end, but drifts all the way to the opposite side of the ice to backcheck against Vladimir Tarasenko and it leaves Jaden Schwartz wide open against Zdeno Chara. After a Rask save and a couple of rebounds, Tarasenko knocks it in to make it 2-2.
.@tara9191 ties it 2-2! #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/X6AhxbrPqP
— NHL GIFs (@NHLGIFs) May 30, 2019
— 9:43: Just 40 seconds later, the Bruins answer. Joakim Nordstrom backhands it under Jordan Binnington from low in the slot and just like that, the Bruins are back up 2-1.
There they go again.@Jo92No | @kurals9 | #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/zbJu5hvrI8
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) May 30, 2019
— 10:23: Robert Bortuzzo just got a hell of a bounce. The Blues defenseman fires it from the half boards just seeing what happens, and what happens is it deflects off Matt Grzelcyk and over Tuukka Rask’s shoulder. Blues tie it up.
— 15:16: Jake DeBrusk feeds Charlie Coyle in the slot, and the Bruins get a quick power play goal off the Blais penalty. A back-breaking swing for the Blues. Bruins are up 1-0 early.
You know where he's from, right?@CharlieCoyle_3 | #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/mccmv6sreP
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) May 30, 2019
— 16:05: Sammy Blais with the first real chance of the game, but he basically stuck his ass in Tuukka Rask’s face as he broke in on him. So he’s called for goaltender interference and the Bruins will go on the power play.
— 17:56: Things got a little squirrelly in front of Tuukka Rask. Puck took a bad bounce out in front and a Blues player fanned on a shot, but Rask froze the puck as soon as it drifted into his area.
Pregame Updates
— Here’s the Bruins’ starting lineup and full lines for Game 2. Same as Game 1, except they will start with the Patrice Bergeron line.
Lining up like this for Game 2.#NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/Uo5Wl68jbs
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) May 30, 2019
— The Bruins confirmed that Patriots head coach Bill Belichick will be the fan banner captain for Game 2. He will wave the flag along with Mass. Special Olympian James Coffey.
Matt Dolloff is a digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff or email him at matthew.dolloff@bbgi.com.
