GAME SUMMARIESPLAYOFFS ROUND 3: EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS
Updated: Tuesday June 1, 1999 12:24AM EST
Monday May 31, 1999 Buffalo at Toronto
Buffalo wins 4-1
Not even the replay machine could derail the Buffalo Sabres.
Erik Rasmussen scored midway through the third period Monday night to snap a tie as the Buffalo Sabres rallied to beat Toronto 4-2 and capture the Eastern Conference final in five games.
The goal came just over two minutes after the Sabres had a goal by Vaclav Varada disallowed and sent Buffalo to the Stanley Cup finals for only the second time since the team joined the NHL in 1970. The Sabres and their famed "French Connection" line of Gilbert Perreault, Rick Martin and Rene Robert were beaten 4-2 in the 1975 finals by the Philadelphia Flyers.
This group of Sabres is far from flashy, but they proved again that the way the game is played today, there is no substitute for grit.
Despite a raucous hometown crowd, which hasn't seen their beloved Maple Leafs in the finals since they won their last Cup in 1967, the Sabres persevered again despite a spirited effort from the Maple Leafs.
Twice the Sabres fell behind and twice they battled back. Rasmussen broke a 2-2 tie off a brilliant effort by Brian Holzinger. Holzinger broke into the Toronto zone along the left boards, stopped, spun around and fired a hard drive at Curtis Joseph. The puck skidded to Rasmussen and drilled it back in at 11:35 before Joseph could recover.
Toronto got a terrific chance to tie the game again when Buffalo defenseman Alexei Zhitnik was called for holding with just under three minutes left.
Toronto pulled goalie Curtis Joseph for an extra attacker, but Dixon Ward scored into the empty Toronto with 1:02 left before the Maple Leafs could manage a shot on Dominik Hasek.
Amazingly, neither goalie really was a factor. Both finished with 20 saves.
Varada appeared to break a 2-2 with 10:37 left in the third period. But the game officials in the replay booth high above the ice ruled that the puck was kicked into the net.
After a scoreless first period, the Maple Leafs finally got a good shot at Hasek on a power play that carried over from the first period and scored. Sullivan scored his third goal of the playoffs with a nifty deflection that floated over Hasek just 33 seconds into the period.
It seemed to be the psychological boost the Maple Leafs needed. With Hasek's health suspect in the previous two games -- the two-time NHL most valuable player sat out the first two games of the series with an injured groin -- the Sabres had prevented Toronto from really testing him.
The Maple Leafs appeared to have a second goal at 2:28 when Mats Sundin scored on a power play. But the goal was disallowed after a review by game officials because one of Sundin's skates was in the crease.
And that's when the gritty Sabres dug in. Curtis Brown tied it for Buffalo with a great individual effort at 7:14. Brown skated nearly the entire length of the ice, went around Toronto defenseman Dimitri Yushkevich along the right side and beat Joseph with a backhander from in close.
Undeterred, the Maple Leafs came back, and again it was Sundin who led the charge. After Joseph made a great pad save on a screen shot by Geoff Sanderson, Toronto stormed back down ice. Sundin gained control behind the Buffalo net and swung out in front. His wraparound attempt went off the left goalpost, but Kris King scored off the rebound at 12:54. It was his first goal of the playoffs.
Upset at the goal, Hasek threw his stick when play resumed and jostled the net behind him as the crowd broke into a thunderous ovation. His teammates kept on working and tied it 2-2 on a power play.
Joseph stopped a tricky shot by Brian Holzinger during a scramble in front of the net, but Vaclav Varada flipped the rebound over the fallen goalie at 18:20.
The Maple Leafs came out hard as expected and played the close-checking, hard-hitting game the Sabres used to take command in the first four games of the series. Consequently, there were virtually no scoring opportunities in the opening period -- the teams combining for just nine shots.
The Maple Leafs were so effective at disrupting the Buffalo attack -- they outhit the Sabres 17-11 in the period -- that the Sabres failed to get a shot on goal in the final 15 minutes.
But the biggest hit briefly cost Toronto the services of veteran Steve Thomas, who had been shaken up after a hard crash into the boards in Game 4 Saturday night in Buffalo. Thomas left with 3:57 remaining in the opening period after a tough check by Varada in the Buffalo zone but returned after the intermission and finished the game.
Saturday May 29, 1999 Toronto at Buffalo
Buffalo leads 3-1
If Dominik Hasek's groin injury is bothering him, nobody can tell. For the second straight game, the Buffalo Sabres
protected their star goalie with dogged checking, and Geoff Sanderson scored twice to key a 5-2 victory over the
Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night. Sanderson's goals highlighted a four-goal second period as the Sabres sent
the Maple Leafs to the brink of elimination in the Eastern Conference finals. "We've been doing that for a while
now," Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. "We really set the tone. The key to it all was we came out skating hard. We
came at them in waves." The victory, Buffalo's seventh straight at home without a loss in the playoffs, gave the
Sabres a 3-1 lead in the series, which resumes Monday night in Toronto. The Sabres are one win away from making
the Stanley Cup finals for only the second time since the team entered the NHL in 1970. Buffalo assumed command
when its relentless attack forced the Toronto defense into mistake after mistake in front of beleaguered goalie Curtis
Joseph. "It's been the key to the series," Ruff said. "We've been very opportunistic and we took advantage of some
careless giveaways. You've got to realize that every game there's going to be 10 or 12 mistakes. It's whether you
score on them or not." They did. Brian Holzinger began the barrage at 2:51 of the second, intercepting a bad
cross-ice pass by Toronto's Steve Sullivan in the slot and beating Joseph between his pads. If Toronto had any hopes
of a comeback, the Maple Leafs probably figured they were done when Rob Ray scored at 5:04 on a nifty backhand
deflection in front. It was Ray's first goal in 111 games. Sanderson ended any doubts when he scored just 22 seconds
later on the rebound of a shot by Miroslav Satan. The Maple Leafs rebounded from 2-1 deficits to win the previous
two series, against Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, but this time their luck may have run out. "They beat us to every
loose puck. They initiated every hit," said Mats Sundin, who scored both Toronto goals -- the first on a penalty shot
-- in the third period. "Every play for the first two periods, it looked like our heads were somewhere else, like we
were too tense to play." Toronto coach Pat Quinn expects a different team to hit the ice at Air Canada Centre for
Game 5. "I know the guys in our room," Quinn said. "I know they won't not show up to play." The Sabres gained a
1-0 lead on a short-handed goal by Dixon Ward late in the first period, then rallied in the second just like they did in
their 4-2 win in Game 3. Hasek was rarely tested despite making 31 saves. He won Game 3 after sitting out the first
two games with an injured groin. The game threatened to turn into a slugfest early when Kevyn Adams rammed
Hasek at 12:53 of the first, especially when Hasek was whistled for interfering with Mike Johnson behind the Buffalo
net less than two minutes later. That gave Toronto its first good chance to score the important first goal. But with the
Maple Leafs pressing the attack on the ensuing power play, the Sabres struck for their second short-handed goal in
two games. The loss was another harsh setback for Joseph, whose often spectacular goaltending during his first
season with the Maple Leafs had been credited for allowing the younger players on the team to develop more
quickly. He was always there to atone for their mistakes, but not on this night. Joseph, who was relieved by Glenn
Healy to start the third period, finished with 22 saves.
Thursday May 27, 1999 Toronto at Buffalo
Buffalo leads 2-1
For a change, Dominik Hasek didn't dominate. This time his Buffalo Sabres teammates made it so he didn't have
to. Miroslav Satan, Joe Juneau and Stu Barnes scored goals just over seven minutes apart in the second period
Thursday night as Buffalo rallied past the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference
finals. Again, as they did in losing the first game of the series to a goalie who had never started a Stanley Cup
playoff game, the Maple Leafs wasted an opportunity to take a lead in the series. Game 4 is Saturday night at
Buffalo's Marine Midland Arena. After sitting out the first two games of the series with an injured groin, Hasek
was back in his familar spot after being replaced by backup Dwayne Roloson. With Hasek not his usual acrobatic
self because of the injury, the Maple Leafs gained a 1-0 lead on a goal by Yanic Perreault late in the first period,
then self-destructed and never recovered. Satan, Buffalo's leading scorer during the regular season, made a
sparkling return to the lineup after missing nine playoff games with an injured foot. After testing Maple Leafs
goalie Curtis Joseph with a hard, rising backhander that caromed off Joseph's glove and just missed going in
midway through the first period, Satan regained the scoring touch that produced 40 goals during the regular season.
Satan slipped a soft shot past Joseph at 3:07 after Toronto defensemen Sylvain Cote and Tomas Kaberle gave
away the puck in front of the goal. A hooking penalty to Buffalo defenseman James Patrick just 22 seconds later
seemed to spark the Sabres and their sparkplug captain, Michael Peca. The 5-foot-11 center, Buffalo's leading
scorer in the playoffs but held without a shot in the first two games after playing a dozen games against three 6-4
centers, finally came alive. Peca scooped up a loose puck at center ice, crossed the Toronto line and unleashed a
hard drive that hit a stick in front of Joseph. The puck then ricocheted off the goalie's right skate out in front to the
unguarded Juneau, and he flipped it into the empty net at 3:45. It was a stunning turnaround, and it wasn't over.
Barnes scored on a power play at 7:38 for a 3-1 Buffalo lead. After Joseph had made a terrific pad save on Brian
Holzinger in front, Barnes chopped in the rebound before the defense could react. It was his fourth power-play goal
of the series, gave the Sabres at least one extra-man goal in all 13 of their playoff games, and turned Hasek into a
cheerleader. Alexander Karpovtsev pulled the Maple Leafs within a goal, scoring on a Toronto power play at
13:09. Hasek made a nice save on the initial shot but lost his stick as the Maple Leafs scrambled for control.
Karpovtsev got the rebound and his shot zoomed in off a skate of Buffalo defenseman Richard Smehlik as he was
trying to hand Hasek his goalie stick. Hasek made three game-saving stops in the third period, foiling a hard drive
by Sergei Berezin and shots from the side of the net by Toronto captain Mats Sundin and Steve Thomas. The
Maple Leafs pulled Joseph, who made 20 stops, for an extra attacker to try for the tying goal in the last minute, but
Curtis Brown scored into the empty net with 29 seconds left. It was his team-leading sixth playoff goal. The
penalty-marred contest ended in the final minute with 10 misconduct penalties handed out, five to each team. The
Maple Leafs managed just three shots on goal in the first period as the Sabres did everything they could to protect
Hasek, who finished with 24 saves. The first good shot came on a hard drive by Lonny Bohonos from the right
circle midway through the period. The puck hit Hasek's blocker and deflected to the boards, but Hasek did not look
like the goalie that had won the last two league MVP awards and led the Czech Republic to the Olympic gold medal
at the 1998 Nagano Games. The Maple Leafs scored on their third shot of the game, and the aura of invincibility
that usually surrounds Hasek was gone just like that. Perreault stole the puck from Juneau just inside the Buffalo
blue line and kept it in the zone. After taking a return pass from Garry Valk, Perreault skirted the Buffalo defense,
sailed in alone from the right side and beat Hasek with a hard, rising shot that made the all-star goalie flinch as it
sailed into the net with just under four minutes left in the period. It was Perreault's third goal of the playoffs, but it
didn't take long for the Maple Leafs' glee to turn to gloom.
Tuesday May 25, 1999 Buffalo at Toronto
Series tied 1-1
It didn't take the Buffalo Sabres long to find out the real Curtis Joseph was back in the Toronto goal Tuesday night.
Midway through the first period, Stu Barnes broke in alone on Joseph in a bid to score the game's first goal. But
Joseph smothered the hard shot, and less than two minutes later the Leafs had a 2-0 lead and were on their way to a
6-3 win that squared the Eastern Conference finals at a game apiece. It was sweet revenge for Joseph, who was
beaten for five goals on just 21 shots in Buffalo's 5-4 win in Sunday's opener. "You want to make those saves early,"
said Joseph, who finished with 30 stops. "You want to give your team confidence." Steve Sullivan and defenseman
Sylvain Cote staked Toronto to a 2-0 lead with goals 18 seconds apart, and this time the Leafs didn't wilt as they did
on Sunday. "Joseph was his old self tonight," said Garry Valk, who scored the game's final goal into an empty net in
the last minute. "He was moving the puck well, yelling, and doing a lot of talking. He was a big boost." The Leafs
sent an early message to Buffalo goalie Dwayne Roloson, who was subbing for the injured Dominik Hasek for the
second straight game. Sullivan was called for goaltender interference just 4:28 into the game as Toronto seemed
intent on rattling Roloson. Despite several standout saves in the opening minutes, the 29-year-old netminder fell
victim to a flurry of shots at 10:28. Sullivan slammed home a rebound from in front of the goal crease after Roloson
had stopped close-in shots by Daniil Markov and Mike Johnson. After the ensuing faceoff, Cote got behind the
Buffalo defense at center ice, took a perfect feed from Mats Sundin, and beat Roloson from in close on a breakaway
at 10:46. "We got off to a good start," said Joseph, who allowed three power-play goals. "`Our defense let me see
the shots." Jason Woolley pulled the Sabres within 2-1 with a screened shot that sailed past Joseph at 10:03 of the
second. But hopes of a Buffalo comeback seemed to vanish just over five minutes later after an icing call against the
Sabres. Yanic Perreault won the ensuing faceoff deep in Buffalo ice and got the puck to Sergei Berezin in front of the
goal, and he flipped it past Roloson at 15:25 for a 3-1 lead. "You can't do anything about those," Sabres coach Lindy
Ruff said. "He made several key saves at key times to get us back in the game." Roloson, who allowed the three
goals on just 15 shots and finished with 27 saves, faltered again at 1:57 of the third when Perreault slipped a
backhander past him from a severe angle near the edge of the right circle for a 4-1 Toronto lead. But the gritty
Sabres weren't finished. Barnes capitalized on two penalties to Cote and scored power-play goals at 6:53 and 9:47 to
narrow the Toronto lead to 4-3. "We're a hard-working team and we take pride in that," said Barnes. "Even though
we were down 4-1, we wanted to try to win and we continued to battle. It's disappointing to come that close."
Pressing the attack again, the Sabres were victimized by Steve Thomas, who scored on a three-on-one break with
7:43 remaining. The series shifts to Buffalo for the next two games, with Game 3 set for Thursday night. Whether
Hasek, the two-time league MVP, will be able to play remained a mystery as he continued to receive treatment for a
chronic groin injury. And what to expect was anybody's guess -- 18 goals in two games left people wondering what
happened to the supposedly defensive style that teams adopt when the Stanley Cup's on the line. "In the playoffs,
crazy things happen," Woolley said. "We were behind the 8-ball early, we had a couple of breakdowns, and they took
it to us."
Sunday May 23, 1999 Buffalo at Toronto
Buffalo leads 1-0
Surprise! The Buffalo Sabres are more than goaltender Dominik Hasek, and they proved it Sunday to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
With Hasek nursing his chronically injured groin, Dwayne Roloson was given the start in goal for Buffalo in the opener of the Eastern Conference finals. It was his first-ever playoff start, and he measured up, stopping 28 shots as the Sabres escaped with a 5-4 victory.
Hasek practiced on Saturday but appeared to be slow, and Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff knew right away what he would do.
"I wanted to surprise them (the Maple Leafs)," Ruff said of his decision to wait until just before game time to announce that Hasek wasn't playing. "And it worked tonight."
The series was supposed to be a battle of two of the best goalies in the world -- Hasek and Curtis Joseph of the Maple Leafs. Instead, it was a veritable rookie against Joseph, and it was the 10-year veteran who turned in the shaky game in the tense atmosphere of Air Canada Centre.
"I sort of knew what was happening last night but wasn't sure really until this morning," Roloson said. "I just tried to relax. I went for a short walk with a couple of teammates and tried not to get too far ahead of myself. It's hard when you haven't played much."
Roloson, with not as much help from his teammates as he might have liked -- the Maple Leafs had nine power plays _ got enough in the third period when Curtis Brown broke a 3-3 tie at 5:21 and Geoff Sanderson notched the game-winner with just under seven minutes remaining in regulation.
"It seemed like everything they touched turned to a goal," said a disheartened Joseph. "He (Roloson) played very good for a guy who hasn't played in a while. I need to make the big save and I didn't. I suppose I could have tried a little harder on some of the screen shots. I have to and I didn't."
Joseph, who had allowed just 25 goals in 12 games and stopped 291 of 313 shots in leading the Maple Leafs past Philadelphia and Pittsburgh in the first two rounds, allowed the five goals on Buffalo's first 19 shots and finished with 16 saves. Even Stu Barnes got in the act, scoring his first goal since March for the Sabres.
The Maple Leafs will have until Game 2 in Toronto on Tuesday night to contemplate a lost opportunity. Whether they face Hasek or Roloson remained a mystery.
"We made a lot of mistakes," said Toronto captain Mats Sundin, who had two goals and an assist but was on the ice for three Buffalo goals. "When you come to the playoffs you can't afford that. We had a game plan to put a lot of pucks on net, but we shot ourselves in the foot instead. We had all the chances to win and we didn't."
At times, it was difficult to figure out who had a bigger bundle of nerves. Roloson, who relieved Hasek in the third period of Game 5 against Boston in the previous round and played well, didn't appear to be intimidated by the hostile surroundings in this hockey-crazed city.
"I felt a lot better in the third period," he said. "I just tried to keep it simple, stay focused and slow the puck down."
Sanderson's winning goal was stunning. He took a soft pass from Erik Rasmussen near the Toronto blue line, fought off the check of defenseman Sylvain Cote with one hand and shoveled the puck past Joseph with the other as he cruised by the crease.
"He was explosive when he got the puck," said Dixon Ward, who scored unassisted in the first period to give Buffalo a 2-1 lead. "He had four or five great shots coming down the wing. Sooner or later something's got to give."
This time it was Joseph. Hasek, meanwhile, said he didn't know what to expect. The injury has plagued him since February, but he has played through the pain until now.
"I'm very worried about it," he said. "I just hope I wake up the next day and be better to play. It never healed 100 percent. I am not right now. I don't have to be 100 percent to play, but I'm not able to go up and down."