Jokinen Scores OT Winner for Canes

For three periods, Boston's Tim Thomas proved why he was one of three NHL netminders nominated for this year's Vezina Trophy. He singlehandedly kept the Bruins in a game in which they were getting dominated.

The Bruins managed only 23 shots on the night, doubled by Carolina's total of 46. That included only four shots in the third period as the Canes continued to pour it on. Thomas gave the Bruins a chance to win, but finally, in the first overtime, Jussi Jokinen scored to give Carolina the win and a 2-1 lead in the series.

---

---

Now, for the first time in these playoffs, the Bruins are in trouble. They've lost two in a row -- both in convincing fashion -- and still have a game to play on the road before they head home for Game 5. They got great play between the pipes from Thomas, but will need help from their top scorers to win this series -- Marc Savard, David Krejci and Phil Kessel have all failed to find the scoresheet during the two losses. On the other hand, the Hurricanes are riding high after knocking off the Bruins twice in a row. Friday night's game in Raleigh could be the B's last stand, as a 3-1 deficit against these Canes would be hard to come back from.

For Jokinen, it was his third big goal of these playoffs. If you remember, he scored the game-tying goal against the Devils in Game 7 of their first round series and netted the game winner in Game 4 with two tenths of a second remaining. He's got five goals and two assists in the playoffs thus far and his mid-season acquisition from Tampa Bay is looking better every day.