May 26, 2002 3 min read

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – Could this be the start of yet another playoff comeback by the Toronto Maple Leafs? Darcy Tucker scored in the first period and Curtis Joseph turned away 27 shots as the Maple Leafs beat the Carolina Hurricanes 1-0 Saturday night to stay alive in the Eastern Conference finals.

With assistant coach Rick Ley filled in for an ailing Pat Quinn behind the bench, Toronto snapped Carolina’s three-game winning streak and now returns to the Air Canada Centre for Game 6 Tuesday night trailing 3-2 in the best-of-seven series.

If necessary, Game 7 would be in North Carolina on Thursday night.

It was the fourth elimination game that the Leafs have won this postseason. Toronto won Game 7 against the New York Islanders in the first round and took Games 6 and 7 against Ottawa last round.

The Prince of Wales Trophy was in the arena, but Carolina couldn’t clinch its first trip to the Stanley Cup finals despite desperate hockey in the third period – the kind of play it could have used much earlier. A shot by Rod Brind’Amour with 17.3 seconds could have tied it, but he hit the post and spun out of the crease.

The Maple Leafs rallied to win their first two series over the New York Islanders and Ottawa Senators in seven games, and have gotten a host of injured players back in this series.

One of them was Tucker.

His goal late in the first period on a power play was his third career postseason game-winner. Meanwhile, Joseph notched his third shutout of this postseason and 15th of his career to prolong the series many believed would end Saturday night.

Joseph didn’t get much work in the first two periods, but was sensational in the third, stopping 15 shots as Carolina poured it on offensively. He kept out a Bates Battaglia attempt from close in 3:19 into the period, then stopped Battaglia with a diving stop six minutes later as the Maple Leafs backed into a defensive shell.

Quinn was released from a Toronto hospital earlier in the day when his irregular heartbeat became normal, but doctors said it was too risky for him to travel to North Carolina.

So the veteran coach watched from home as the Maple Leafs still have a shot at their first trip to the Cup finals since 1967.

The record crowd of 19,016 was jacked up at the start of the game, but Carolina gave its rabid fans little to cheer about through two periods, throwing just 12 shots at Joseph.

The Hurricanes missed several opportunities to get back in the game when the Maple Leafs, undisciplined through most of the postseason, took four straight minor penalties over a 61/2-minute span in the middle of the second period.

At one point, Carolina had a two-man advantage for 59 seconds, but didn’t get a shot on goal.

Carolina’s best scoring chance came midway through a Gary Roberts high-sticking penalty, but Joseph made a great sliding save on Bret Hedican’s attempt from the left circle.

Neither team produced much offense in the first period – just like most of the series.

Joseph made the first key save when he stopped Battaglia’s backhander on a 2-on-1 break with Erik Cole 10 minutes in.

Carolina was sloppy in its own end most of the period and Toronto finally cashed in on the power play with 1:28 left as Bryan McCabe’s shot bounced off Hurricanes’ defenseman Sean Hill and Tucker’s skate past Irbe.

It was the first time in the five games that the Maple Leafs have scored first.