Alex Steen stole the puck from goalie Jonathan Quick behind the net and scored a short-handed goal to give the St Louis Blues a 2-1 victory over defending Stanley Cup Champions the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday night.
Steen scored unassisted on a backhander at 13:26 of overtime less than a minute after Blues defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk was whistled for a double-minor high sticking when he cut Dustin Penner.
Steen also scored on a power play in the first period for the Blues, who ended an eight-game losing streak against the team that swept them in the second round last spring.
Photo: AFP
Quick, last year’s Conn Smythe winner as playoff MVP, made 35 saves in regulation, keeping the Kings in it for Justin Williams’ tying goal with 31.6 seconds left. Game 2 is tonight.
BLACKHAWKS 2, WILD 1
In Chicago, Bryan Bickell scored in overtime on a two-on-one rush as the Blackhawks started the playoffs on a winning note after dominating the regular season.
Corey Crawford settled down after allowing a weak goal in the opening minutes. Marian Hossa also scored, and the Blackhawks took the early lead in this first-round series.
Game 2 is tomorrow at the United Center.
The Blackhawks finally put this one away when Johnny Oduya chipped the puck off the boards to Viktor Stalberg on the right side. Stalberg then dished it to Bickell on the two-on-one rush in front for the winner at 16:35.
DUCKS 3, RED WINGS 1
In Anaheim, California, Teemu Selanne scored the tiebreaking power-play goal early in the third period and Jonas Hiller made 21 save, as the Ducks beat the Red Wings 3-1.
Nick Bonino also scored a power play goal, and Francois Beauchemin added an empty-netter for the second-seeded Ducks. They hung on in the final minutes of the opener in just their second playoff series in four years.
The 42-year-old Selanne came up with yet another huge goal for the Pacific Division champions, putting a perfectly placed one-timer over Jimmy Howard’s shoulder while gliding backward.
Howard stopped 24 shots and Daniel Cleary scored on a power play for the Red Wings in their 22nd consecutive postseason appearance. Game 2 is tonight at the Honda Center.
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