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Nathan Horton’s OT goal lifts Bruins past Montreal
AP
Photo
Montreal Canadiens' goaltender Carey Price, bottom, is scored on by Boston Bruins' Patrice Bergeron (37) as Canadiens' Scott Gomez (11) and Bruins' Brad Marchand (63) look for a rebound during second period of Game 4 of a first-round NHL Stanley Cup playoff series in Montreal, Thursday, April 21, 2011.
Associated Press
BOSTON
It took Nathan Horton six years to make the playoffs.
Once he got there, he showed the value of patience.
Horton scored his second overtime goal of the postseason on Wednesday night, waiting until 5:43 of the extra period in Game 7 to give Boston a 4-3 victory over the Montreal Canadiens and help the Bruins advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals.
“Just getting to the playoffs is all I was really thinking about. This has been a dream come true,” said Horton, who never reached the postseason while spending the first six years of his career with Florida Panthers. “I’m really enjoying it. I’m enjoying it more every day.”
Boston will open conference semifinals in Philadelphia on Saturday with a chance to avenge last year’s epic collapse against the Flyers. The Bruins led that series 3-0 before Philadelphia came back to force a decisive game; in Game 7 in Boston, the Bruins led 3-0 before losing 4-3.
“I get at least until midnight before I’ve got to start thinking about that,” said Bruins goalie Tim Thomas, who stopped 34 shots.
Horton scored on his only shot of the night off a pass from Milan Lucic, setting off a celebration on the Bruins bench and in the stands. It was Boston’s third overtime win in the series, including Game 5 on Saturday night when Horton scored 9:03 into the second extra period.
“He’s been saving it for seven years, right?” Bruins coach Claude Julien said with a smile. “So he had a lot of game-winning goals in him.”
The Canadiens were eliminated by the Bruins for the second time in three years.