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Ladd, Ward help Hurricanes keep Bruins sliding

Feb 13, 2008 - 4:25 AM By Brian Devine PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

BOSTON (Ticker) -- Cam Ward was great all game, save for a late lapse that nearly cost his team two points.

Andrew Ladd scored twice and Ward stopped 32 shots as the Hurricanes hung on for a 3-2 victory over the Boston Bruins on Tuesday.

Captain Rod Brind'Amour registered a pair of assists for Carolina, which had lost three of four and not scored more than two goals in that span.

Unbeatable for more than 54 minutes, Ward was in line for a shutout until Shawn Thornton scored his first two goals of the season in a span of 27 seconds late in the third period to draw Boston within one.

Thornton cut the deficit to 3-1 with a wrist shot from the right faceoff circle with 5:10 remaining.

"(It was) an innocent-looking play," Ward said. "It wasn't the fact that I didn't feel comfortable or let up on it. It curved on me a bit and hit the top of my glove, and it is in the back of the net."

A member of Anaheim's Stanley Cup championship team last season, Thornton then pounced on a puck that squirted between Ward's legs and was laying in the crease with 4:43 left, making it a one-goal game.

"It would have felt a lot better if we had got the two points, let's put it that way," Thornton said of his first career multi-goal game.

However, Ward and the Hurricanes were able to weather the storm and keep the Bruins winless in their last four home games.

"He made some real big saves," Hurricanes coach Peter Laviolette said. "It was not a lot of work for him, but there were times when he had to make some big ones."

Carolina opened the scoring as Ladd took a pass from Brind'Amour on the left wing and ripped a wrist shot over goaltender Alex Auld's shoulder 3:01 into the first.

The fourth overall pick of the 2004 draft struck again at 6:33, except this time he used his skate rather than his stick. The play was reviewed and, even though video replay appeared to show Ladd kicked in the puck, the goal stood.

"I just turned my foot, so it was more reaction than anything else," Ladd said. "I saw it coming and I didn't know where my stick was, so I just kind of turned my foot, and fortunately, it went in.

"It was huge. Our starts this year have not been that great, and luckily, we were able to hang on."

Boston coach Claude Julien took exception to the ruling.

"In my mind, there is no doubt it is not a goal," Julien said. "I don't know how they can even think of calling that a goal. It is upsetting because it means we could have gotten a point tonight, and maybe even two."

Former Bruin Sergei Samsonov then came back to haunt his former team, scoring with 91 seconds remaining in the second period for a 3-0 bulge.

Defenseman Frantisek Kaberle fired a shot from the point that was stopped by Auld, but Samsonov buried the rebound from the left side for his fifth of the season.

"We are battling for a playoff spot right now," Samsonov said. "And for us, it was almost a playoff game, so it's a nice way to start and get some confidence."

Auld stopped 20 shots for the Bruins, who were 0-for-3 on the power play.

"They got off to a good start and we were pretty flat to start, so the combination of that really put us behind the eight ball," Auld said.