St. Louis Blues fend off Boston Bruins, grab 3-2 series lead

June 6 (UPI) -- The St. Louis Blues are one win away from the franchise's first NHL championship after a 2-1 victory over the Boston Bruins in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on Thursday night.

Blues goalie Jordan Binnington had a superb performance in net, stopping 38 of the 39 shots he faced. St. Louis has secured back-to-back wins since suffering a 7-2 blowout loss at home in Game 3.

"[Binnington] was excellent all game and did a great job in the first period," Blues head coach Craig Berube told reporters. "We were tested in the first, for sure, and Binners stood tall. Big reason we won the game. ... Our goalie was good and our team was gutsy."

Blues forward Ryan O'Reilly notched the first goal of the night in the opening minute of the second period. Zach Sanford tossed a no-look, between-the-legs pass to O'Reilly, who fired a backhand shot past Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask.

St. Louis forward David Perron made it 2-0 in the third period with a shot that bounced off Rask's pad and into the net. The Bruins cut the deficit to one goal with under seven minutes remaining when Torey Krug dished the puck to Jake DeBrusk for a one-timer that beat Binnington.

The Bruins pulled Rask late in the final period and had several scoring chances, but couldn't solve Binnington with the man advantage.

The Blues hold a 3-2 series lead. Game 6 is Sunday night at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis.