Bruins eliminate Rangers in Game 5 with 3-1 victory

The Bruins will play the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Eastern Conference final.

The Bruins set up the third-round date by beating the Rangers in Game 5 at TD Garden on Saturday, 3-1. Gregory Campbell finished the Rangers with an empty-net goal with 50.4 seconds left.

The Bruins, down 1-0 after 20 minutes, scored the only two goals of the second period. They started their rally with a power-play goal by Torey Krug at 3:48. Mats Zuccarello was in the box for hooking.

Brad Marchand made the key play by driving over the offensive blue line and pulling up, which opened space at the point. Marchand connected with Tyler Seguin, who saw Krug rolling over the boards. After Krug took the pass, the rookie rifled a one-timer over Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist’s left shoulder to tie the score at 1-1. It was Krug’s fourth goal of the playoffs, who became the first rookie defenseman to score four goals in his first five playoffs games, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

The Bruins pulled ahead on a fourth-line goal. Daniel Paille picked off a Roman Hamrlik clearing pass to start the attack. Campbell finished the play by driving to the net and burying the puck at 13:41. Campbell’s goal capped heavy second-period pressure by the Bruins.

“It was a man’s game,’’ Campbell told NBC Sports Network after the game. “The Rangers play hard. It will be good to get some rest for the next round.’’

The Rangers scored the only goal of the first period. After a whistle at 9:45, David Krejci tangled with Carl Hagelin. Krejci was whistled for cross-checking. Hagelin evaded a penalty.

During the power play, Brian Boyle set up in front of Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask. With the 6-foot-7-inch Boyle screening Rask, defenseman Dan Girardi ripped a one-timer past the goalie at 10:39 to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead. Rask didn’t appear to see Girardi’s release.

Milan Lucic had the Bruins’ best scoring chance in the first. After taking a pass from Krejci, Lucic snapped an uncontested shot from the slot. Lundqvist gloved Lucic’s shot at 13:27.

Shawn Thornton and Derek Dorsett fought at 6:49. Dorsett was having words with Paille when Thornton stepped in. The two continued to throw after the fight was over, which netted them both unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.

The Eastern Conference final will open at Pittsburgh. The Penguins are the top seed in the conference and dispatched the Ottawa Senators Friday night in five games.

The Penguins present a stark contrast to the way the Rangers play. Pittsburgh is the highest-scoring team in hockey, led by arguably the game’s best two players, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.