[ Game summary ]

By Nancy Marrapese-Burrell, Globe Staff, 11/21/2001

ONTREAL - Halfway through the game, the Bruins were cruising along with a 2-0 lead over the Canadiens, apparently in full control.

Halfway through the third period, the Bruins were clinging to a 2-1 lead.

Can you see where we're going with this?

All they needed was a little killer instinct, a little desperation to put the contest out of reach. Instead, the Bruins let the Habs hang around and hang around.

A goal at 12:19 of the final period tied it and another with 3:12 left in regulation finished it as the Canadiens earned a 3-2 victory at Molson Centre, ending Boston's winning streak at three games.

''Tonight was a bit of a gift on our part,'' said goaltender Byron Dafoe. ''We pretty much had the game in hand with eight minutes to go. To come out on the short end like that is pretty disappointing.''

It didn't have to be that way. The game was all Boston at the start.

Brian Rolston, arguably the Bruins' best player in the first quarter of the season, skated the puck up the right side and dished a cross-ice pass to P.J. Axelsson. Axelsson cut through the left circle and lifted a backhander over goaltender Jose Theodore to make it 1-0 at 7:44. It was Axelsson's second goal of the season.

Rolston gave Boston a two-goal lead at 17:17 on an unassisted goal at even strength. Rolston made a nice move to cut through the left circle and put a backhander on Theodore that bounced off the netminder's blocker. The puck popped into the air and Rolston, attempting his best Derek Jeter imitation, tried to bunt it on his forehand but fanned. Still, it glanced off the glove of Theodore and into the net. It was Rolston's ninth goal of the season.

''I never touched the puck after I made the initial shot,'' said Rolston. ''As it came down, I took a swat at it and missed it. It came back down and hit off the back of his glove and went in.''

With about three minutes gone in the second, the Bruins had a good chance to get more when Bill Guerin teed up a slapper from the left circle but rattled it off the left post.

The rest of the period pretty much belonged to the Canadiens, who looked like a different team than they had in the first. For some reason, the Bruins failed to keep the pressure on and basically let Montreal back into the game instead of delivering the knockout punch.

At 12:12, the Canadiens pulled within 2-1 when Yanic Perreault scored his eighth of the year. Perreault's shot, from the left circle, beat Dafoe under his right arm.

The trouble in the third period started when rookie defenseman Nick Boynton was called for slashing at 12:11. Then Rolston lost a faceoff to Perreault and the Habs were on their way to tying the game only seven seconds into the man advantage. Defenseman Patrice Brisebois wristed a shot from the right point that was tipped in by left wing Martin Rucinsky at 12:19.

''A guy tips it like that, you're going one way, it's tough to come back,'' said Dafoe. ''He put it pretty much where it had to go, short side.''

Rolston, who is normally steady in the faceoff circle, had a tough night against Perreault, who is one of the best in the league at taking draws. Rolston won just three and lost nine faceoffs. Perreault won 13 and lost just four.

''He's good on draws and I struggled against him all night,'' said Rolston.

It appeared that, once again, the Bruins would be heading into overtime. Instead, on the ultimate broken play, Andreas Dackell got the puck in front of Dafoe, taking a backhanded pass from Jan Bulis behind the net, and rifled home the winner at 16:48.

''It's a hard one,'' said coach Robbie Ftorek. ''It's one we would've liked to have done better at.''

''For 25 minutes, we dominated play, there's no question,'' said Rolston. ''To be winners, you have to get that killer instinct.''

This story ran on page D1 of the Boston Globe on 11/21/2001.
© Copyright 2001 Globe Newspaper Company.