OTTAWA—Brian Boyle quickly is becoming a huge thorn in the Ottawa Senators’ side.
The New York forward scored the winner last night as the Rangers nipped the Senators 1-0 in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference quarter-final.

The Rangers lead the series 2-1. Game 4 is set for tomorrow in Ottawa.
Boyle hardly can be considered a superstar. But aside from goalie Henrik Lundqvist, he has made the biggest difference in this series.
He has scored in all three games and been a dominant physical presence for the Rangers.
“We’ve got to make sure we pay attention to him,” said Senators’ coach Paul MacLean.
“He’s a big, strong guy and went to the net and got himself a goal, and that’s the way he’s been doing it.
“And that’s good for them, good for him, and we just have to make sure we mark him a little bit better,” MacLean stressed.
It’s no surprise the Senators didn’t anticipate Boyle being a difference-maker in this series, but not even the 27-year-old expected this kind of success.
“If I’m the villain to them that’s good,” Boyle said after the game. “If I knew [I would score this often], I probably would have tried to do it a lot earlier.
“It’s been fortunate bounces.”
Both goalies had to be at their best and on this night they matched one another save-for-save, with the exception of one.
Henrik Lundqvist earned the shutout stopping 39 shots while Ottawa’s Craig Anderson stopped 22.
Lundqvist’s biggest save came in the last minute, robbing Kyle Turris with a quick pad save.
“I think we all felt we needed this [win],” said Lundqvist, who picked up his fourth career playoff shutout.
“We needed to close this one off after we let the last one slip away.
“It’s an unbelievable feeling,” he added.
The Senators admitted to feeling some frustration regarding the outcome of the game, but at the same time feel confident heading into Game 4.
“I thought we played really well and thought we took it to them for the majority of that game, it’s just Lundqvist was really good for them,” said Ottawa’s Nick Foligno.
“That’s not to take anything away from [Anderson] because he was outstanding, but they were able to find a squeaky one.
“I think we need to do more of the same except to get a couple [goals],” he added.
The Senators played without captain Daniel Alfredsson, who continues to suffer the effects from a hit to the head by Carl Hagelin in Game 2.
Bobby Butler replaced Alfredsson.
Hagelin was suspended for three games and in his absence Chris Kreider was inserted into New York’s lineup. Kreider was making his NHL debut.
While MacLean would have preferred to have Alfredsson in the lineup, he had no complaints regarding his team’s performance.
“We could be standing here talking about us winning 1-0 just as easy as we’re talking about them beating us 1-0,” he reasoned.
“Certainly we missed Alfie in the game, but I thought the team really stepped up and played well in his absence.”
Scoreless after 40 minutes, the third period promised to be entertaining and it didn’t disappoint.
The Senators dominated play early in the period, forcing Lundqvist to make a number of saves. It was following one of these flurries that the Rangers regained possession and opened the scoring.
Boyle took a rebound off the side of the net and backhanded it past Anderson to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead at 7:35.
The Senators haven’t won a playoff game on home ice since Game 3 of the Stanley Cup final back in 2007—a losing streak that now spans seven games.
Ottawa is now 0-3 in the post-season when playing without Alfredsson in the lineup.
Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference, Boston beat Washington 4-3 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round series.
In the West, St. Louis downed San Jose 4-3 for a 2-1 series lead.