WASHINGTON — With the score tied in the third period, the Rangers did what they do best — kill off a power play.
Then Markus Naslund popped out of the penalty box and set up the winning goal.
Naslund fed Brandon Dubinsky, who made a move that left Jeff Schultz sprawled on the ice. Dubinsky then beat goalie Jose Theodore inside the near post with 8:17 remaining, lifting the Rangers to a 4-3 victory over Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference series.
Nik Antropov and Naslund scored power-play goals on back-to-back shots to give New York a 3-1 lead in the second period. The Capitals rallied to tie when Viktor Kozlov netted late in the second and Alexander Semin on a power play early in the third.
Canucks 2, Blues 1
VANCOUVER, B.C. — Daniel Sedin had a goal and an assist, Roberto Luongo made 25 saves and Sami Salo added a power-play goal for Vancouver, 14-1-1 at home since the start of February.
Brad Boyes scored on a power play with 1:44 left in the second period to pull the Blues within a goal, but that was the lone bright spot for St. Louis. Penguins 4, Flyers 1
PITTSBURGH — Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin each had a goal and an assist, while goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, idle for long stretches in the first two periods as his teammates controlled play at the other end, made 26 saves for Pittsburgh.
Devils 4, Hurricanes 1
NEWARK, N.J. — Zach Parise and Jamie Langenbrunner each had a goal and an assist and Martin Brodeur, who set the regular-season record for NHL career wins last month, came within 11 minutes of tying Patrick Roy’s record for career playoff shutouts at 23 before Ray Whitney scored on a rebound.
The Associated Press
