Leafs rally, force Game 7; Caps never trail, advance

Frederik Andersen stopped 32 shots to lead the Maple Leafs to a 3-1 win over the Bruins on Monday night, forcing a decisive Game 7 in the first-round series.

William Nylander, Mitch Marner and Tomas Plekanec scored for the Leafs, who trailed the series 3-1 before winning two straight. They also trailed 1-0 early in the second period of this one. Nikita Zaitsev added two assists, and Marner and Plekanec each had one.

Jake DeBrusk scored for the Bruins, and Tuukka Rask — pulled in Game 5, finished with 27 saves.

Game 7 is Wednesday night in Boston with the winner advancing to face the Lightning in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

There was a moment of silence before the opening faceoff at Air Canada Centre to honor the 10 people killed Monday when a van mounted a sidewalk in Toronto’s north end and struck multiple pedestrians. Fifteen others were injured.

The Leafs fell behind the Bruins 3-1 the last time the clubs met in the playoffs back in 2013 before tying the series 3-3 with back-toback 2-1 victories.

The Leafs then became the first team in league history to blow a three-goal lead in the third period of a Game 7 as the Bruins stormed back from a 4-1 deficit and won 5-4 in overtime.

Capitals 6, Blue Jackets

3: Alex Ovechkin scored twice and Braden Holtby had 35 saves as the Capitals advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals with the Game 6 win on the road.

The Capitals will next face the Penguins in the second round of the playoffs for a third straight year. The Penguins won each of the last two years on the way to winning Stanley Cup championships.

Chandler Stephenson had a goal and an assist, and Dimitry Orlov, Devante Smith-Pelly and Lars Eller also tallied for Capitals, who never trailed in the game after prevailing in overtime in Game 5 on Saturday.

The Blue Jackets lost in the first round of the playoffs for the second consecutive season and fourth time overall. They’re the only active NHL franchise never to win a playoff series.