For the second straight year, the Boston Bruins failed to secure a series win at the first opportunity.
Jim Montgomery’s squad failed to match Toronto’s desperation early and entered chase mode after Jake McCabe’s seeing eye-shot beat a screened Jeremy Swayman 5:33 in.
Yet, in a 20-minute frame where the Bruins fired two shots on goal, generated little attacking zone time, committed multiple icings and won four of 20 faceoffs, they somehow went into their dressing room tied 1-1 after Trent Frederic capitalized on a friendly bounce for his third of the series.
The Bruins found their rhythm in the final 40 minutes, but they couldn’t capitalize on their quality chances, leaving room for the Leafs to extend the series.