[ Game summary ]

By John Powers, Globe Staff, 10/28/2001

rother, can you spare a goal? Yeah, the economy's in the dumper and consumer confidence (on Causeway Street) is sinking, but any goal will do. A 50-foot slapper, a doorstep roofer, a bing-bing-banger.

Or one like Theo Fleury scored (but didn't score) last night with 25 seconds left in overtime to push the New York Rangers past the scoring-starved Bruins, 2-1, before 16,491 frustrated FleetCenter fans.

''The goals are going to come,'' vowed Boston coach Robbie Ftorek, whose charges have managed just eight in their last six games after averaging four in their first three. ''They will come. Sammy got us one. We would have liked another. Maybe we'll get it in Chicago.''

At least the Bruins got enough - on Sergei Samsonov's power-play goal with five minutes left in regulation - to get themselves a point. But Ftorek, whose club had been perfect at home (4-0), wanted 2.

So as the clock ticked down, he put four forwards on the ice, but Boston couldn't crack goalie Mike Richter, who made 45 saves.

Then the Rangers came storming in, defenseman Brian Leetch fired the puck toward where Fleury was parked, and the puck went off Brian Rolston's stick and past goalie Byron Dafoe to the far side.

The goal was credited to Fleury, but nobody argued. Not the Bruins, who didn't care whose name was on the bullet. And certainly not the Rangers, who were happy to get anything after losing their last three games by huge margins.

''Maybe we should play four-on-four all the time,'' mused center Petr Nedved, whose teammates hadn't beaten Boston here in four games since March of 1999. ''It would be good. Maybe if we can do it for the rest of the season, we could win all our games.''

The Bruins, who'd been rolling sevens on home ice ever since they raised Ray Bourque's 77 to the rafters on opening night, had figured to keep it going against the Rangers, who had lost by a combined 15-4 to Tampa Bay, San Jose, and St. Louis after starting the season 4-2-1 with two overtime victories.

But once the Bruins couldn't cash in on two power plays in the first five minutes, they got nothing. All night long they peppered Richter, who may well be the US goalie at the Olympics in February. Samsonov had nine shots, Joe Thornton eight, Bill Guerin six.

The final tally was 46-28. But until Samsonov tipped in Rolston's slapper from the point at 15:01 of the third, the Bruins went hungry. ''We outshoot everybody,'' Dafoe shrugged. ''We don't score.''

The Rangers, who'd been giving five goals to anyone who asked, suddenly looked as stingy as Scrooge. Until Samsonov equalized, Boston's best chance was a shorthanded breakaway bid by Scott Pellerin early in the third.

''I lost sight of the puck when I went to the backhand,'' said Pellerin, whose shot was stuffed by Richter. ''I didn't know if it went in or not. I guess it hit his back leg.''

As the evening wore on, New York's sole goal, a crafty screened wrister by winger Andreas Johannson off a Mark Messier feed at 3:28 of the second period, was looking huge.

Midway through the final period, the Bruins were scrambling to survive, skating two men down for 1:23 with Rolston and P.J. Axelsson in the box. The Bruins weathered the Ranger power play, though, and went back on the attack.

Finally, at 15:01, came Boston's breakthrough on the power play with Messier in the box. Thornton set up Rolston at the point for a slapper, which Samsonov tipped in and it was tied.

So it went to overtime, with Boston playing for victory. That was understood.

''I explained to the players why we were going for 2 points,'' said Ftorek. ''If we can get them here and now, we've got to go after them.''

For the first few shifts, the Bruins went with three forwards and a defensemen. Then, they went for broke - and got busted. New York came back two-on-one, Leetch looked for Fleury, Rolston went to knock the puck away, and then the red light was on. ''Oops,'' Dafoe thought.

One goal makes an excellent appetizer but a poor dinner. Seconds, anyone?

''It will come,'' Dafoe insisted. ''I hope it comes sooner rather than later. I don't want to keep saying this for another 10 games.''

This story ran on page C1 of the Boston Globe on 10/28/2001.
© Copyright 2001 Globe Newspaper Company.