Canadiens eliminated by Rangers
Lundqvist stones Montreal again in series-clinching 3-1 win
NEW YORK — The most painful of truths are the ones that are self-realized.
And so, it fell to Claude Julien to be candid during a moment of raw disappointment.
“We weren’t good enough,” Julien said after his Montreal Canadiens lost 3-1 to the New York Rangers on Sunday in Game 6 of their Eastern Conference quarter-final.
The Canadiens dropped the best-of-seven series 4-2. The Rangers will meet the winner of the Ottawa-Boston series. The Senators lead 3-2 with Game 6 today in Boston.
“We needed more,” said Julien, who added the Canadiens “had offence. We just lacked finish.”
Mats Zuccarello scored two goals in an 11:05 span in the second period and Derek Stepan added an empty-netter with 17.8 seconds left. Henrik Lundqvist made 27 saves.
Alexei Emelin scored Montreal’s lone goal. Carey Price made 20 saves on the same day he was named a finalist for the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goalie, along with Washington’s Braden Holtby and Sergei Bobrovsky of Columbus.
Trailing 1-0 at the start of the second period, it only took 2:26 for New York to draw even on Zuccarello’s power-play goal. Zuccarello’s shot from the left face-off dot appeared to sneak through Price’s body. He put New York ahead for good at 13:31.
Zuccarello’s two goals marked his first career multi-goal game in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
“It’s not every day you beat Carey Price,” Zuccarello said. “That was big for us.”
“It’s a bitter disappointment,” Price said. “We couldn’t catch a break all series. We thought we could have gone further.”
“(It) definitely feels like a missed opportunity,” added Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty.