Stanley Cup Game 2: Easy As Paille

By Kevin Aherne

It took nearly two full periods for the Bruins to remember how to play hockey, but the Blackhawks were unable to capitalize on Boston's sluggishness, keeping the door open for a Boston victory.

After Boston was outshot 19-4 in the first period of game 2, it seemed like the Bruins had a long night ahead of them... But Tuuka Rask put the entire team on his shoulders Saturday night, sending the Stanley Cup Finals back to Boston tied at one.

While the ice seemed tilted for much of the first two frames, Rask was unphased. He thwarted scoring opportunity after scoring opportunity, and kept Boston alive in a game that easily could have been a bloodbath.

Yes, it took a few blown calls, another overtime, and a precison shot by Daniel Paille in overtime to even the series, but Tuukka Rask was the real hero in this game.  Golatending has been the real story for both clubs, as both teams have been able to ride their red-hot backstops through the playoffs... and the winner of this series, it seems, will be the last goalie standing on his head.

Here are the 2013 Playoff Goaltending statistics for the Stanley Cup goalies:

Corey Crawford

Record
13-5
GAA
1.72
Save Pct
93.5%

Tuukka Rask

Record
13-5
GAA
1.73
Save Pct
94.4%

The series moves to Boston for Game 3, Monday... Puck Drops at 8:00 PM