NOTTINGHAM, England (AP) — Erling Haaland came off the bench and sealed a 2-0 win for Manchester City over Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Sunday.
Haaland had missed the previous two games through injury and was only named as a substitute for City's trip to the City Ground.
But he was quickly back among the goals after a typically deadly finish just nine minutes after coming on.
Victory saw second-place City close the gap on league leader Arsenal back to one point after its title rival beat Tottenham 3-2 earlier in the day.
Haaland's goal, meanwhile, saw him move ahead of Chelsea's Cole Palmer as the league's leading scorer with 21 goals this season.
City has a game in hand on Arsenal and will lift a fourth-straight title if it wins its remaining four games this season. It would also be its sixth title in seven years during a period of almost complete domestic dominance.
City went ahead in the 32nd minute through Josk Gvardiol's near-post header from Kevin De Bruyne's corner.
Forest had chances to level the game with Chris Wood twice failing to provide a clinical finish from close range.
Haaland then put the result beyond doubt, with De Bruyne the provider again.
Collecting the ball just outside the box Haaland showed quick feet to get past Murillo and then swept a low shot into the far corner to beat Matz Sels.
A concern for City was an injury to goalkeeper Ederson who went off at halftime after appearing to hurt his shoulder.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Manchester City's Erling Haaland celebrates scoring his side's 2nd goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Nottingham Forest and Manchester City at the City Ground stadium in Nottingham, England, Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)
Manchester City's Erling Haaland scores his side's 2nd goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Nottingham Forest and Manchester City at the City Ground stadium in Nottingham, England, Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)
Manchester City's Erling Haaland, center, celebrates scoring his side's 2nd goal past teammate Julian Alvarez during the English Premier League soccer match between Nottingham Forest and Manchester City at the City Ground stadium in Nottingham, England, Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)
Manchester City's Erling Haaland celebrates scoring his side's 2nd goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Nottingham Forest and Manchester City at the City Ground stadium in Nottingham, England, Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)
Boston knows a 3-1 lead in a playoff series guarantees nothing. It's a lesson the Bruins learned last year, when they had such an edge over the Florida Panthers.
And they lost in seven.
This year, it's Florida with a 3-1 lead on Boston — a deficit that the Bruins have never overcome in their 100-year history. The Panthers can close out the Bruins and move into the Eastern Conference Finals with a win on home ice Tuesday night, the second elimination game that Boston has faced so far in these NHL playoffs.
“The reality is that we're going to go to Florida and we're going to play the same game and we're going to get it done,” Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman said. “I have no doubt in this group. And we have a lot of confidence and a lot of motivation to bring it back to Boston.”
It has been a series of big swings and big hits, lots of talk on the ice and lots of talk off it as well.
Boston rolled in Game 1. Florida rolled in a Game 2 that turned into a third-period penalty festival. The Panthers won again in Game 3 when the Bruins lost captain Brad Marchand after a hit with Florida's Sam Bennett that had Boston claiming foul. And Florida rallied from a 2-0 deficit to win Game 4, where Bennett was once again the center of controversy — his tying goal came on a play where he knocked the Bruins' Charlie Coyle into Swayman and Boston claimed interference, to no avail. Marchand couldn't play in Game 4 and is still listed as day-to-day for Game 5.
Add it all up, and the Panthers — who will get forward Sam Reinhart back for Game 5, after he missed much of the final third of Game 4 with a nasty facial laceration courtesy of a puck shot his way by a teammate — are a game away from the NHL's final four.
“The elimination games are usually the hardest,” Florida forward Evan Rodrigues said Monday. “That's when they're going to be pushing the most. We have to be prepared to match that intensity and, yeah, looking to get the job done.”
Game 5 of Florida-Boston is the first of two games on Tuesday's schedule. Vancouver visits Edmonton in Game 4 of that matchup later Tuesday, after the Canucks won 4-3 on Sunday for a 2-1 series lead.
The intensity is flowing — maybe overflowing — in that series as well, especially after Oilers star Connor McDavid was cross-checked by Vancouver defensemen Nikita Zadorov and Carson Soucy after time expired Sunday night. Zadorov, who hit McDavid in the back, was fined $5,000, the NHL said Monday. Soucy, who hit McDavid in the face, has been suspended for Game 4, the league later announced.
“We just regroup and get ready for Game 4,” Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl said.
The Bruins have to regroup, or else.
Florida has outscored Boston 16-10 in the series — 15-5 in the last three games — and outshot the Bruins 146-79. Florida has 21 power-play chances to Boston's 11, six power-play goals to Boston's one and has been the team that doesn't get rattled.
Boston has been called for 29 penalties to Florida's 20, and that got Bruins star David Pastrnak to note that perhaps his club needs a new approach with officials.
“Maybe we have to stop yelling at them,” Pastrnak said. “Be nice to them, I guess. Smile at them.”
The Panthers have won five consecutive playoff games in Boston, but that hardly means Florida is enthused about the chance of going there for a Game 6 in this series. The reigning East champs have three shots at a close-out and they'd obviously prefer just to get it wrapped up Tuesday.
“We're not done yet," Panthers defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson said.
Shots on goal through three games in this series is one-sided, with Edmonton leading 94-61. And it doesn't matter.
Canucks goalie Arturs Silovs is doing more than enough to keep the high-octane Oilers at bay, stopping 89% of the shots he's seeing. Edmonton isn't getting the same level of goaltending, with Stuart Skinner allowing a goal on one out of basically every five shots he sees (79%).
“The kid's giving us games,” Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said of Silovs. “It's a big stage and he's not blinking. ... This is good for him. These are pressure games.”
The pressure is on Edmonton now. A 3-1 deficit, with Vancouver set to play host to Game 5 and then a Game 7 if necessary, obviously would be far from ideal.
“I thought we were the better team for the most part (in Game 3),” Draisaitl said. “It should have resulted in a win but that's not the way hockey works sometimes.”
AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Vancouver Canucks goalie Arturs Silovs (31) makes a save against the Edmonton Oilers during the third period of Game 3 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup second-round playoff series in Edmonton, Alberta, Sunday, May 12, 2024. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)
Vancouver Canucks' Brock Boeser (6) checks Edmonton Oilers' Zach Hyman (18) as the linesman jumps out of the way during the second period of Game 3 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup second-round playoff series in Edmonton, Alberta, Sunday, May 12, 2024. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)
Florida Panthers' Sam Bennett (9) scores against Boston Bruins' Jeremy Swayman (1) as Bruins' Charlie Coyle (13) defends during the third period in Game 4 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup second-round playoff series, Sunday, May 12, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
Florida Panthers' Aleksander Barkov (16) celebrates after his goal with Kyle Okposo (8), Gustav Forsling (42) and Vladimir Tarasenko (10) during the third period in Game 4 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup second-round playoff series against the Boston Bruins, Sunday, May 12, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
