Another set of game ones kicked off last night for the Stanley Cup playoffs semifinals. Over in the Eastern Conference, the two underdogs Flyers and Bruins faceoff in a high scoring match. In the Western Conference, the 2nd and 3rd ranked teams Blackhawks and Canucks kick off a rematch of last year’s semifinal playoff series. All four teams are showing some of their flaws and the winner of each series just might depend on how much they can cover it up with offensive firepower or perhaps whether they can take advantage of a slip-up by the other team.

Philadelphia 4 @ Boston 5 (OT) – For the first time in the second round, having more rest seemed to be a disadvantage. The Flyers started off dull but picked up the pace to tie the game with less than eight minutes to go in the game. From there, it became a goaltenders’ duel (or at least as much as one with a total of nine goals could be). Brian Boucher stood on his head but on the 15th shot of overtime, Marc Savard lit the lamp to end the game. It was Savard’s first game since he suffered a concussion but he made his return in a big way. Unfortunately for Boston, Marco Sturm went down on the first shift of the game and will be out for the rest of the playoffs with a lower-body injury. It just doesn’t get any better for the B’s.
Boston leads the series 1-0

Vancouver 5 @ Chicago 1 – There were questions surrounding the goaltending situation for the Chicago Blackhawks. Despite a mixed bag of results from Antti Niemi in the first round, they were able to slide past the Predators in 6, but things aren’t looking so good once again. The Canucks lit up the scoreboard five times during the first two periods of the game after a mere 25 shots on Niemi. Despite the blowout win, the Canucks were outshot in the game. Roberto Luongo had to deflect 36 of 37 shots to help pull the team to victory. As with the quaterfinal matchup with the Kings, the penalty kill for Vancouver was also a bit rusty as the only Blackhawks goal came from a powerplay in the third period. Both teams are showing major signs of weaknesses, so this might be a tighter battle than anticipated.
Vancouver leads the series 1-0

Three Stars of the Night:
1. Roberto Luongo (Vancouver) – 36 saves
2. Marc Savard (Boston) – 1 goal
3. Mike Richards (Philadelphia) – 1 goal, 2 assists

Sunday’s Schedule:
Montreal at Pittsburgh – PIT leads 1-0 (TV: CBC, NBC)
Detroit at San Jose – SJS leads 1-0 (TV: TSN, Versus)