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The Playoff Buzzer: Bobrovsky dominant again; Couture, Meier deadly duo

Boston Bruins v Columbus Blue Jackets - Game Three

COLUMBUS, OH - APRIL 30: Sergei Bobrovsky #72 of the Columbus Blue Jackets skates on the ice after being named the first star after defeating the Boston Bruins 2-1 in Game Three of the Eastern Conference Second Round during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on April 30, 2019 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images)

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  • Columbus now holds a 2-1 series lead on the second-place team in the Eastern Conference. They won’t sweep the Boston Bruins, but the way they handled their Round 2 foe in Game 3 should be cause for concern in New England.
  • A Logan Couture hat trick and a Timo Meier three-point effort put the San Jose Sharks in front in Game 3 and in front in the series, 2-1 vs. Colorado.

Blue Jackets 2, Bruins 1 (CBJ leads 2-1; Game 4 airs on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, stream here)

Matt Duchene scored the game winner again, Sergei Bobrovsky made some ridiculous saves and the Blue Jackets stymied the Boston Bruins’ best players en route to a 2-1 win and a 2-1 series lead.

Boston had no answer for Columbus’ suffocating style, nor could they solve the Bob puzzle. That makes for a long night at the office. The Blue Jackets are playing a style of hockey right now perfect for teams as talented as Boston (and Tampa), and it’s working to a T. Throw in what appears to be an incredible environment at Nationwide Arena and the Bruins have their work cut out for them come Thursday and a pivotal Game 4.

Sharks 4, Avalanche 2 (Sharks lead 2-1; Game 4 airs on Thursday at 10 p.m. ET on NBCSN, stream here)

The Logan Couture Show set up shop in Denver on Tuesday night and disappointed the Colorado faithful. It’s not that his performance was poor, it’s just that he didn’t have an Avs jersey on.

Couture’s hat trick propelled the Sharks to a 4-2 win and a 2-1 series lead. Timo Meier had a three-point night of his own, scoring one and helping Couture do the same on two of his three.

Martin Jones made 25 saves to ensure nothing went awry.
[NBC 2019 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF HUB]

Three stars

1. Sergei Bobrovsky, Columbus Blue Jackets

Remember when Bob couldn’t play in the playoffs? Now he’s nearly unbeatable.

Bobrovsky made 36 saves in a 2-1 win for the Blue Jackets. And my goodness were some of those saves spectacular.

Bob is now 6-1 in these playoffs with a .937 save percentage.

2. Logan Couture, San Jose Sharks

A hat trick for Couture in Game 3 of the series was a nice entrance into the matchup between the Sharks and the Avalanche.

Couture hadn’t scored in the first two games, not since he found the back of the next twice in that now infamous Game 7 against the Vegas Golden Knights.

But Couture was cocked and ready to fire in this one. He opened the scoring, scored the go-ahead goal in the third and then sealed the deal with his hat trick goal with 30 seconds left. Another splendid performance from a guy with tremendous playoff savvy.

3. Timo Meier, San Jose Sharks

Meier’s three-point night sits in the shadows of Couture’s heroics, but it shouldn’t go unnoticed.

Meier scored a beautiful goal to put the Sharks ahead 2-0 in the second period and assisted on Couture’s first two goals of the game. Meier has been fantastic for the Sharks in the playoffs.

Highlights of the night

Meier’s goal off the rush:

Nathan MacKinnon saw that and raised one of his own:

Factoids

Wednesday’s games

Game 3: Islanders at Hurricanes, 7 p.m. ET, NBCSN (CAR leads 2-0) (Live stream)
Game 4: St. Louis Blues at Dallas Stars, 9:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, (Blues lead 2-1) (Live Stream)


Scott Billeck is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @scottbilleck