The Ducks won a genuine coin flip — neither side controlled the run of play.
The Ducks won 7-5 against a Bruins team that controlled the game — and got nothing for it. Boston held 58% of shot attempts (42–30 on goal), but the underlying metrics told a different story: Anaheim's efficiency at even strength was lethal, and the Bruins' goaltending offered no resistance.
The expected-goals split was nearly even at 4.17–4.33 in Anaheim's favor. Where the game tilted was in shot quality: the Ducks recorded 8 high-danger chances to Boston's 5, and more importantly, generated 0.069 expected goals per shot compared to Boston's 0.051. That margin compounds across 30 shots.
The goaltending gap was decisive. J. Korpisalo's 23/29 performance (0.793 SV%) cost the Bruins 1.67 goals against expectation; P. Mrazek's 37/42 (0.881 SV%) was only 0.83 below par. One goalie collapses, one competes — the margin between 7-5 and a much tighter game.
Anaheim's rush game was the difference: 6 goals on 33 chances. Boston managed 2. The Ducks scored 2 goals from low-danger spots despite outchancing the Bruins everywhere else, while Boston's 3 low-danger tallies were a consequence of being pressed all game.
Three Stars
- M. Granlund (ANA) — 2G, 3A in 20:46
- N. Nesterenko (ANA) — 4A in 15:17
- J. Trouba (ANA) — 1G, 1A in 28:34