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NHL Three Stars: Rask, Krejci lead Bruins over Penguins; Blackhawks edge Kings


Rask was so good tonight he didn't even need to look at the puck to make saves.

No. 1 Star: Tuukka Rask, Boston Bruins

Rask earned his first career postseason shutout with a 29-save performance as the Bruins beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-0 in Game 1. One of his biggest saves came at the end of the first period on Evgeni Malkin:

No. 2 Star: David Krejci, Boston Bruins

Krejci's pair of goals led the Bruins in their win and put him on 19 points in the postseason, tops among all players.

No. 3 Star: Corey Crawford, Chicago Blackhawks

He wasn't as busy as Jonathan Quick, but despite the lack of action Crawford was solid as he made 21 saves for the Blackhawks as they edged the Los Angeles Kings 2-1 to take the opening game of their series.

Honorable mention: Marian Hossa, who tipped home the game winning goal for the Blackhawks, has points in four straight games ... Chicago is now 7-1 at United Center ... Nathan Horton scored a goal and assisted on two others. He has six points in his last three games ... Hit of the night goes to Viktor Stalberg on Jake Muzzin:

Conn Smythe Watch: 1. David Krejci, Boston Bruins; 2. Jonathan Quick, Los Angeles Kings; 3. Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins; 4. Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins; 5. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins; 6. Corey Crawford, Chicago Blackhawks; 7. Tuukka Rask, Boston Bruins. 8. Nathan Horton, Boston Bruins; 9. Mike Richards, Los Angeles Kings; 10. Pascal Dupuis, Pittsburgh Penguins;

Dishonorable mention: There was no update on Mike Richards after he took this hit from Dave Bolland ... Matt Cooke was given a five-minute major and game misconduct for hitting Adam McQuaid from behind ... The Penguins hadn't been shutout in 96 games ... The Kings managed just two shots in the opening period ... LA is now 1-6 away from Staples Center ... Evgeni Malkin and Patrice Bergeron fighting? Whaaaat?