Washington Capitals 2 New York Rangers 1 – The Rangers got off to a good start when Nik Antropov scored his second goal of the series to give New York a 1-0 lead. However, Alexander Semin tied the game late in the first period with assists from Nicklas Backstrom and Mike Green. Sergei Fedorov scored with 4:59 left in the third period to give the Capitals a 2-1 lead. Washington went on to win the game and the series.
Carolina Hurricanes 4 New Jersey Devils 3 – The New Jersey Devils were less than two minutes away from the Eastern Conference Semifinals until Carolina scored two goals to steal a ticket to the second round. Jussi Jokinen tied the game with 1:20 left in the third period, and Eric Staal won it with 31.7 seconds left. Staal blasted a shot from the right faceoff circle to lift the Hurricanes to a comeback victory over the Devils. Hurricanes goalie Cam Ward stopped 32 of 35 shots while New Jersey’s Martin Brodeur made 27 saves on 31 shots. The Hurricanes will play the Boston Bruins in the conference semifinals.
