Playoffs - Sat, 01 Jun - Results

Los Angeles v Chicago 1-2 - Game 1 - It took the Chicago Blackhawks half the game to discover what they already knew, that perimeter shots with no one in front of the net won't get it done against the Los Angeles Kings, or any team for that matter. Once the Blackhawks figured that out, they did what they do best: strike quickly to take a lead they rarely give up. Patrick Sharp and Marian Hossa scored less than four minutes apart in the second period Saturday at United Center, solving Kings goalie Jonathan Quick with a rebound goal and a tip-in goal. Chicago's NHL-best penalty kill did its job in the third period, and Corey Crawford finished with 21 saves in a 2-1 victory in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final. The Blackhawks improved to 6-0 in the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs when leading after two periods. They were 26-1-2 in such games during the regular season. They're also 42-for-43 on the penalty kill in the playoffs. The Kings left the first period with a 1-0 lead but never established their forecheck and had trouble negating the Blackhawks' speed once they finally got going shortly after the midway point. Los Angeles' goal came when Justin Williams redirected Bolland's failed clearing attempt past Crawford with 5:37 left in the first. The Kings now have six losses in the playoffs this year, all 2-1. They are 1-6 on the road after going 10-1 last spring on the way to their first Stanley Cup. Game 2 is this best-of-7 series is Sunday at United Center (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, TSN, RDS). The Blackhawks held a misleading 17-2 first-period advantage in shots on goal. Most were from the outside, and Quick saw them all. Most were not dangerous. They rarely had bodies in front of the net. All that changed in the second period, when Sharp scored his eighth goal of the playoffs off a rebound from the slot at 12:29 to tie the game 1-1. Hossa scored his sixth of the postseason with a tip-in from the slot 3:53 later to give the Blackhawks a 2-1 lead.

The Blackhawks had a 31-14 advantage in shots on goal through two periods, and with a 2-1 lead, the shot differential now mattered. It proved Chicago was getting rewarded for playing the way it wanted to play and that Los Angeles never could get to its heavy forechecking game, the style that has been so successful for six straight rounds in the playoffs. The Blackhawks don't always have to put pucks behind the Kings defense because they're more adept at scoring off the rush. However, the key to making their rush opportunities count against the Kings is to get in the right position so they can make good on their second-chance opportunities because they know Quick is likely going to stop the first one. That's what Sharp did to score his goal. Michal Handzus made a quick pass up the ice to Sharp to clear the zone and start a 2-on-2 rush. Sharp came into the offensive zone with speed, dropped a pass to Johnny Oduya, who was trailing him, and darted to the net. Oduya shot, and Sharp evaded Kings defenseman Drew Doughty to pounce on the juicy rebound that came off Quick's left pad. Sharp shot it into the net, inches from Quick's already stretched out left leg. It was the blueprint for how the Blackhawks have to beat Quick. That's how Chicago got to Quick again with 3:38 left in the second period, with a shot from the point, traffic in front of the net, and a deflection by Hossa, who gained inside position on Kings center Mike Richards. The Kings felt they were better in the third period, but coach Darryl Sutter commented on how he didn't get nearly enough from his top players throughout the game. Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown, Jeff Carter, Richards and Doughty combined for four shots on goal.

Boston v Pittsburgh 0-3 - Game 1 - In a series filled with stars, Boston Bruins center David Krejci shined brightest during Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final. Dwarfed in attention by the shining lights in the Pittsburgh Penguins' lineup as well as the high profiles of a few of his own teammates, Krejci provided another compelling argument to be included among the game's elite talents, scoring Boston's first two goals Saturday in a shocking 3-0 victory against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Consol Energy Center. Krejci now has a Stanley Cup Playoff-best 19 points; his seven goals are tied for second behind the eight by Patrick Sharp of the Chicago Blackhawks. Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby and Pascal Dupuis also have seven goals. Krejci has 45 points in his past 45 playoff games. Nathan Horton, who assisted on both of Krejci's goals, scored the third and Tuukka Rask made 29 saves for his first playoff shutout as the Bruins seized home-ice advantage in this best-of-7 series. Game 2 is here Monday night (8 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CBC, RDS). Krejci has largely flown under the radar for much of his NHL career. His performance this spring is threatening to change that. Krejci wasn't quiet Saturday, allowing the Bruins to survive a rocky start and take the lead against the run of play by scoring 8:23 into the game on Boston's third shot of the game. He took a pass in the high slot from Nathan Horton and hesitated an instant as Pittsburgh defenseman Paul Martin slid to the ice to block the potential shot. Instead, Krejci's low shot ticked off the top of Martin's skate and changed direction just enough to pinball through the five-hole of goaltender Tomas Vokoun and trickle across the goal line. The goal quieted the sellout crowd of 18,628 that had been roaring from the start as the Penguins carried play. Even when the night was over and Krejci had two goals and Pittsburgh's coterie of stars had none, Krejci wasn't ready to lump himself into the elite category occupied by players like Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. That team came together to shut down a Pittsburgh team that averaged 4.27 goals through its first 12 games during this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs. It was the first shutout against the Penguins in 96 games since the Toronto Maple Leafs did it on Feb. 1, 2012. Pittsburgh hadn't been blanked in a playoff game since a 1-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 7 of their first-round series in 2011. It was also Boston's first victory in seven games against the Penguins, and the first by the Bruins against Pittsburgh in the playoffs since Game 2 of the 1991 Wales Conference Final. Pittsburgh won the next four games on the way to its first Stanley Cup, then swept the Bruins in the same round the following year before sweeping the Chicago Blackhawks in the Final for back-to-back championships.

Like those teams, these Penguins have used a high-octane offense to wear down the opposition. But on this night it was Boston's defense and Rask's goaltending that ruled the ice, complemented perfectly by the Bruins' opportunistic offense. Yet the Penguins felt they were right there throughout the game, they hit at least three posts and dominated the first period, and that success can be had against this Boston team. The game became more physical and heated in the second period, beginning when Pittsburgh forward Matt Cooke hit Boston defenseman Adam McQuaid behind the Boston net 92 seconds into the second period. McQuaid left the game briefly, but returned later in the period. Cooke was assessed a five-minute major and a game misconduct for checking from behind, but Boston only got a three-minute power play after Chris Kelly was assessed a minor penalty for roughing for going after Cooke after the hit. That hit not only ramped up Boston's offense, the Bruins had four of their 10 second-period shots on the power play, but it also turned up the heat on a game that had been played at a low boil to that point. The final seconds of the second period were a perfect illustration. With 30 seconds remaining, Boston forward Brad Marchand took a minor penalty for boarding James Neal in front of the Pittsburgh bench. At the end of the period, a nasty scrum around Rask, started by Zdeno Chara and Crosby, moved toward center ice and ended with Pittsburgh star center Evgeni Malkin and Boston stalwart Patrice Bergeron exchanging punches at center ice before falling to the ice in a heap.