Irbe Blanks Maple Leafs

Archived from 2001-02 season.

2002 Playoffs

Arturs Irbe stopped 31 shots for his first career playoff shutout as the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-0 to take a commanding 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference finals.

"I got a couple of lucky saves, pucks bounced off me," said Irbe, 35. "I'm past that age when you're pulling for the shutout, the bottom line is to get the win."

Sami Kapanen and Ron Francis each had a goal and assist, while Jaroslav Svoboda also scored for the Hurricanes.

"I think the reason (we won) is sitting next to me," Francis said, seated next to Irbe at a post-game press conference. "We didn't play enough to win that rocky game. Archie stole it for us."

Toronto's coach Pat Quinn made a surprising return after spending the past two days in hospital because of an irregular heartbeat.

"We really wanted to win this game for him," Leafs captain Mats Sundin said. "We had the right focus, and I thought we had the work ethic. We just couldn't finish it off."

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