Canadiens Win in 2 Overtimes, Take 2-1 Lead

Chimes in cathedral bell towers all over Montreal had already struck midnight by the time the Canadiens’ Ryan Walter scored 18 minutes 8 seconds into the second overtime Saturday morning.

While the Canadiens were dancing around on the toes of their skates and the capacity crowd of 17,899 had the banner-filled rafters ringing with their celebration of the 4-3 victory over Calgary that gave the Canadiens a two-games-to-one lead in the Stanley Cup finals, the Flames were getting in a few last angry words with referee Kerry Fraser.

Mark Hunter, especially, wanted to let the officials know how he felt about the boarding call that sent him to the penalty box at 16:08 of the second overtime.

It set up the only power play of the two overtimes, a Canadien attack that had Stephane Richer swooping around at the left side of the net, trying to get clear of the post for a shot, then sending the puck across the crease so that Walter could knock it past Calgary goalie Mike Vernon before Calgary wing Hakan Loob could flatten Walter.

Technically, it was was not a power-play goal. When the clock ticked to 18:08, Mark Hunter’s penalty was over, but he didn’t have time to get from the penalty box to the front of the net to help out.

The Flames, who have never won a Stanley Cup title, are avoiding all references to 1986, the only other time they played in the final. Then, they won the first game at home (as they did last Sunday) but lost the next four to Montreal.

Calgary Coach Terry Crisp, still managing to smile, promised everyone that the series is far from over. “We came into a tough building to play a good, tough hockey team,” Crisp said. “We took them late into double overtime, and they needed a power play to do it.

“As a coach, I’ll have no trouble getting up in the morning and looking my players right in the eye and saying, ‘You played your hearts out.’ ”

It’s going to be a tough morning after for Mark Hunter, who not only got the late penalty, he got it after hitting the left post on one of the best chances of the night, while Canadien goalie Patrick Roy was on his knees at the right side of the net. The net was wide open for that moment.

There were precious few chances for either team as the defensive units dominated. Roy won by stopping 34 of 37 shots in the second-longest Stanley Cup playoff game since 1931. Vernon stopped 31 of 35 shots.

As Montreal Coach Pat Burns said after the game, “We don’t waste shots.”

Mats Naslund sent the game into overtime with a shot through the slot that found its way into the upper right corner of the Flames’ net, barely over the outstretched glove of Vernon with 41 seconds left in regulation.

The Canadiens had pulled Roy in favor of a sixth attacker, and Russ Courtnall had tipped the puck away from Brad McCrimmon as he tried to carry it out of the Flames’ zone. The puck hopped right over to Naslund, who wasted no time aiming a shot at the goal and wiping out the Flames’ 3-2 lead.

“Of course, you feel like you dodged a bullet when that happens,” Burns said. “You pull the goalie and hope for the best.”

The first 20-minute overtime was a standoff between the careful, defensive-minded teams that Crisp likened to two boxers sparring. And the first 18 minutes of the second overtime went the same way.

On the winning goal, Walter said: “Stefane made a great play. He went wide on the defenseman (Rob Ramage), pulled up on the short side of the net and got a shot over Vernon’s stick. I just happened to be there. I saw the puck in the net, and the next thing I know, Larry Robinson is grabbing me and punching my helmet into my face. I could hardly breathe.”

The price of fame.

Richer added: “Before the shift, Ryan told me that when I got the chance, to get the shot on the net and he would be there. Ryan is so strong in front of the net, he’s a good rebounder. We did the perfect play.”

At that point, more than five hours after the game had begun, the Canadiens were feeling stronger than at the start. Burns credited “all those tough practices they complain about.”

Montreal had trailed, 2-1, going into the third period. But Bobby Smith tied it for Montreal off a pass that Naslund sent across the crease.

But when the rebound of a shot by Tim Hunter bounced off to the side, Doug Gilmour hit a quick backhanded shot to put the Flames ahead at 13:02.

Montreal wing Mike McPhee had scored the first goal of the game, beating Vernon on the glove side with a shot from the top of the left circle. He scored on the Canadiens’ second shot of the game, on one of only four shots by the Canadiens in the first period.

Flame wing Joey Mullen tied it at 17:15 of the first period on the Flames’ 13th shot of the period, deflecting in a pass from McCrimmon, who had taken the puck off the left sideboards.

Roy made 12 stops in the first period, one so impressive it earned him a standing ovation.

But Mullen beat Roy again in the second period, giving the Flames the lead at 15:35 on a power play while Brian Skrudland was in the penalty box for roughing. Mullen’s shot from the top of the left circle beat Roy wide after he had gone to his knees to protect the right corner.

“Nobody has anybody out of it yet,” Burns said. “The teams are too equal. We won a battle tonight. We didn’t win the war.”

Crisp agreed, saying: “It’s not over yet. Believe me, it’s not over yet.”

Stanley Cup Notes

Game 4 of this series will be played at the Forum Sunday night. The series will return to Calgary for Game 5 Tuesday night. . . . With his assist on Joey Mullen’s goal in the second period Friday, Calgary defenseman Al MacInnis surpassed Denis Potvin’s 1981 playoff performance of 25 points. That put him second on the list of playoff points in a season for defensemen. Paul Coffey holds the playoff record for defensemen with 37 points, scored for Edmonton in 1985. . . . On May 19, 1984, the Oilers won their first Stanley Cup, with Coffey and Wayne Gretzky getting 11 points each in the final series. . . . MacInnis also extended his scoring streak to 14 games to tie the record for defensemen set by Bobby Orr when he scored in 14 straight playoff games for the Boston Bruins in 1970. . . . MacInnis leads in this year’s playoff scoring with 26 points (five goals and 21 assists), passing Tim Kerr of Philadelphia, who had led with 25 points. If MacInnis finishes the series as the points leader, he will be the first defenseman ever to do so. Larry Robinson of Montreal and Brad Park of Boston tied for the lead with Guy Lafleur in 1978. Orr tied with Phil Esposito in 1972, Pierre Pilote of Chicago tied with Gordie Howe of Detroit in 1961. And Cy Wentworth of the Montreal Maroons tied with Baldy Northcott of the Maroons in 1935.

General Manager Rogie Vachon of the Kings said that his Thursday meeting with Detroit assistant coach Colin Campbell went well. But he said the Kings would continue to bring in candidates to be interviewed, adding that the original time frame was still in effect. A new coach will not be hired until after the Stanley Cup finals end. There was believed to have been a candidate scheduled to see Vachon this weekend. It is popular to speculate here that Pat Burns should be considered for the Kings’ job. It would be quite a coup for the Kings to hire away a coach from a Stanley Cup team. And Burns has expressed exasperation recently with the pressure involved in coaching at Montreal. He reportedly is working with a one-year contract worth only $90,000. Burns’ first professional coaching job was with Hull of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The Hull owner who hired him was Gretzky. Also, former Olympic coach and former New York Rangers coach Herb Brooks is frequently mentioned. Brooks is not commenting on whether he should be considered a candidate. But he hasn’t counted himself out, and the Kings have not counted him out.