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Bruins knock out Canadiens on Horton's OT goal

Apr 28, 2011 - 7:15 AM Boston, MA (Sports Network) - Nathan Horton scored 5:43 into overtime as the Boston Bruins advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals with a 4-3 Game 7 win over the Montreal Canadiens.

P.K. Subban had tied the game for Montreal on a power play late in regulation, but the Bruins won the game on Horton's third goal of the series.

Milan Lucic found himself with the puck deep in the Montreal end and skated up to the right circle. From there, he dished the puck up to the high slot for Horton, who slid over to the right and slapped a shot that beat Carey Price cleanly for the win.

"I don't remember too much except for Lucic coming up with the puck and I just tried to get open," said Horton. "I wanted to get the puck towards the net and luckily it deflected off someone and went in."

Boston moved on to face the Philadelphia Flyers for the second year in a row, and that series will begin Saturday in Philadelphia.

Last year, the Bruins took a 3-0 lead in the series only to drop the next four games to become just the third team in NHL history to blow a three-game lead in a best-of-seven series.

The last time Boston won a Game 7 was a 5-3 decision in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals on April 29, 1994 against Montreal. Boston went on to lose its next four Game 7s while Montreal won its next four before Wednesday.

Chris Kelly, Mark Recchi and Johnny Boychuk each had a goal for the Bruins, who are in the semifinals for a third straight season. Tim Thomas made 34 stops in the win.

"I've never been part of a series that was this close," said Thomas. "Both teams played with a bunch of character and it was back and forth the entire series."

Tomas Plekanec had a goal and an assist while Yannick Weber also scored for the Canadiens, who were looking to repeat on last year's success that saw them advance to the Eastern Conference finals. Price made 30 stops in the loss.

"We battled hard and I thought it was a misfortune that we didn't win," said Price. "I thought we deserved better, but teams that win Stanley Cups have a lot of skill and some luck and that team over there had both."

The Bruins brought the pressure early and it paid off 3 1/2 minutes in as Boychuk's slap shot from the right point beat a screened Price.

It was a 2-0 game just over two minutes later as a chip pass by Andrew Ference at the right circle went over to the slot where Recchi buried it to the low left side.

The Canadiens got one back near the midway mark of the first period on the power play as a cross-ice pass from Roman Hamrlik at the left boards over to the right saw Weber snap a perfect wrister into the net.

Skating shorthanded, Montreal tied the game as a turnover in the neutral zone saw Plekanec go on a clean break and beat Thomas to the left post with a little wrister at the 5:50 mark of the second.

Kelly gave Boston a 3-2 lead halfway through the third when he backhanded in a rebound of a Ference shot down low.

However, Patrice Bergeron was called for high sticking with 2:37 to play and Subban scored 40 seconds later when his one-timer from the top of the left circle beat Thomas to the glove side to send the game to overtime.

Game Notes

It was the 33rd time these two teams met in the playoffs and Montreal has won 24 of them. However, Boston has won six of the last nine...Boston is now 10-10 in Game 7s while Montreal fell to 13-9...There were four seven-game series in the opening round of the playoffs this year, the most in 16 years...Boston went 0-for-2 on the power play while Montreal was 2-for-4.