Brad Marchand, Bruins Come Back to Beat Blues, Take 1-0 Lead in Stanley Cup Final

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The Boston Bruins took the opening game of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final, defeating the St. Louis Blues 4-2 on Monday at TD Garden in Boston.

Sean Kuraly scored the go-ahead goal for the Bruins in the third period, pouncing on a rebound from a shot by Zdeno Chara.

Brad Marchand tacked on an empty-netter with 1:49 left in the game to seal the victory.

Tuukka Rask, who had averaged 1.84 goals against through 17 postseason games, stymied the Blues’ attack and made 18 saves.

Although Jordan Binnington was credited with 34 saves, few would argue the Blues goaltender had a good night. Kuraly’s goal capped off a game in which Binnington’s inexperience appeared to be an issue.

The way in which Binnington slowly unraveled mirrored his team’s performance.

The Blues seized a 2-0 lead in the second period. Brayden Schenn scored the opening goal with 7:23 off the board in the opening frame, and Vladimir Tarasenko added St. Louis’ second at the 1:00 mark of the second period.

Tarasenko’s goal seemed to be exactly the wake-up call the Bruins needed, though. Boston out-shot St. Louis 18-3 in the second period en route to tying the score.

Connor Clifton missed the mark with his close-range effort but had some good luck as the puck deflected into the goal off Binnington.

With 7:19 left in the period, Charlie McAvoy scored unassisted on the power play, beating Binnington on the goaltender’s glove side.

Despite having a raucous home crowd cheering them on from the start, the Bruins stumbled out of the gate. That might have been because Boston hadn’t played a competitive game since it swept the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final, which wrapped up May 16.

That was a long layoff, so from that perspective, going six games against the San Jose Sharks might have worked to the Blues’ benefit.

But any edge St. Louis might have had evaporated in the second period.

Kuraly’s goal was predictable based on how much the Bruins were dominating. NHL Public Relations noted this was the first time the franchise had ever overcome a multi-goal deficit in a Stanley Cup Final game.

Blues coach Craig Berube can’t start panicking after one loss, yet his team threw away a golden opportunity to take a 1-0 series lead and wrest away home-ice advantage.

And while Binnington might rebound in Game 2, his level of composure was a clear question mark coming into the Stanley Cup Final. This time last year, the 25-year-old was wrapping up a season in the AHL with the Providence Bruins.

Considering Boston entered Monday averaging 3.35 goals per game in the playoffs—second-best of the postseason—St. Louis needs more from Binnington if it’s going to capture its first Stanley Cup.

What’s Next?

The teams return to the ice Wednesday for Game 2 in Boston. The puck drops at 8 p.m. ET. The Bruins will look to extend their eight-game winning streak.