It was the opposite result from Game 2, when Miller pinched and ended up scoring the third goal for the Bruins in their 7-3 win. On that first-period goal, Miller came off the bench and slid down the left side, making him available to take a pass from forward David Pastrnak. After some spins around Maple Leafs forward Tomas Plekanec, Miller banked the puck off the skate of Toronto defenseman Nikita Zaitsev and in.
"I go back to Game 2, Kevan Miller is active, we score a goal off it," Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said. "If that doesn't bounce in, they get possession, they recover, loose puck retrieval in their end, off their wingers go. So, we need a forward to cover for Kevan down there, or we have to replace [him] on time. That's the trade-off."
It has worked for the Bruins sometimes. They have caught the Maple Leafs, as Cassidy put it, "I don't want to use the word 'cheating,' but leaning the other way."
But it doesn't always work. Sometimes, as in the case of the Marleau goal, it costs them.
Not that the Maple Leafs, who have the speed to often use those stretch passes to their advantage, have seen many such opportunities in the series. They were contained, mostly, when Boston outscored them 12-4 in winning Games 1 and 2 at TD Garden.
"I think anytime you can transition from defense to offense fast, you can have a chance for success for sure," Toronto coach Mike Babcock said. "In saying that, the Bruins have done a pretty good job against us and we haven't had the amount of success we've normally had.