Boston Bruins 2019/20 Season Chatter

[Brewin Flames]

PP goals by Bergeron, DeBrusk send B's past Coyotes again

 

Game # 55

 

 4   2

 

 

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By

Associated Press

Updated: 1 day ago

BOSTON -- Charlie Coyle scored two goals, and the Boston Bruins beat Arizona 4-2 on Saturday for their 16th straight victory over the Coyotes.

 

The NHL-leading Bruins earned their sixth consecutive win. 

 

Patrice Bergeron and Jake DeBrusk each had a power-play goal 2:29 apart in the second period, and Coyle's second was an empty-netter that sealed it in the final minute.

 

It's Boston's longest winning streak ever against any opponent, surpassing a 15-game stretch against the Philadelphia Flyers during the Bobby Orr-era from 1970-1972 when the Bruins captured two Stanley Cups ('70 and '72).

 

Boston's last loss to the Coyotes came on Oct. 9, 2010, a 5-2 setback in what was a Bruins' home game in Prague.

 

Tuukka Rask made 29 saves for Boston, including a diving stop on Taylor Hall's wrist shot with about three minutes to play.

 

Rask extended his home point streak to start the season to 18 games (12-0-6), setting a club record. Gilles Gilbert owned the old one at 17 games (16-0-1) in 1973-74.

 

"It's just one of those things. I think we've played good as a team at home," Rask said. "We battled back from multigoal deficits in the third period, and that shows how resilient we are as a group and I just try to give us a chance to win. I guess it's been working, trying to get points at home at least."

 

Phil Kessel and Jakob Chychrun scored for Arizona, which has lost five of its last six games (1-3-2) overall and six in a row on the road. Adin Hill stopped 29 shots.

 

"We had some good stretches today, but I don't think enough," Kessel said. "We've got to get some wins here."

 

Boston broke ahead 2-1 when Bergeron, positioned in the slot, redirected David Pastrnak's shot from the left point behind Hill just six seconds into a power play midway through the second period.

 

"You prepare like any other game, whether you're starting or backing up," said Hill, who found out during warmups that he was starting because Antti Raanta wasn't feeling well.

 

DeBrusk made it 3-1 at 14:35 when his tip of Pastrnak's shot from the left circle hit Hill's glove, bounced up and trickled into the net between his right arm and body.

 

Bruins defenseman Jeremy Lauzon was given a match penalty for a check to the head on Derek Stepan late in the first and the Coyotes took advantage, moving ahead 1-0 on Kessel's power-play goal 3:26 into the second.

"I didn't think it was a match penalty," Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said.

 

Rask made a save, but defenseman Zdeno Chara cleared the rebound right to Kessel near the right circle, where he fired it over a diving attempt by Boston's goalie.

 

Just four seconds after its power play expired, Boston tied it when Coyle flipped a shot into the net from near the edge of the crease following Charlie McAvoy's nice backhand pass across the front.

 

The Coyotes clearly had the best scoring chance of the first when Rask made a splendid glove save on Conor Garland's wrist shot from the right circle.

 

Garland, who had a wide-open shot on a rebound during a power play, just looked upward and smiled after Rask's save.

 

HAIL Z

 

The Bruins had a 10-minute pregame ceremony honoring Chara for recently reaching 1,500 career games and 1,000 with the Bruins -- all as the team's captain.

 

He was presented with a watch and a trip to any destination from his teammates, and a gold stick and a painting from the club that was presented by president Cam Neely.

 

There was a video tribute played on the scoreboard, which included his highlights along with congratulatory remarks from many of the league's star players.

 

He was joined by his wife, daughter and two sons on the ice. He got numerous loud cheers, with a fan yelling down from the balcony: "We love you Z!."

 

"There was a lot of emotions going through my head," Chara said. "Everyone did such an amazing job. I was extremely happy that my family could be there because those are the ones that make, especially my wife, so many sacrifices over the course of my career."

[Brewin Flames]

NHL-worst Red Wings beat league-best Bruins 3-1 for 2nd time

 

Game # 56

 

 1  3

 

By

Associated Press

Updated: 1 hour ago

DETROIT -- The NHL's worst team beat the best.

 

Again.

 

Andreas Athanasiou snapped a tie midway through the third period and scored an empty-net goal in the final minute, lifting the Detroit Red Wings to a 3-1 win over the Boston Bruins on Sunday.

 

"When we're playing good hockey and we get good goaltending, we're going to give anybody a hard challenge," Detroit coach Jeff Blashill said.

 

"That's just the way the NHL is. The parity's at an all-time high."

 

The Red Wings (14-39-4) are looking up at the rest of the NHL in the standings, but the rebuilding team has defeated the league-leading Bruins (34-11-12) in both of their games this season.

 

"It seems like they get excited to play us," said Torey Krug, who scored Boston's only goal. "For whatever reason, it's a tough matchup for us."

 

Boston had won six straight until the Red Wings stopped the streak with their second win in three games.

 

"Give Detroit credit for winning the hockey game, but I don't think they were the better team," Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy.

 

Detroit had the better goaltender, like it did in the previous meeting.

 

Jonathan Bernier made 39 saves for the Red Wings. He also started Detroit's win over Boston three months ago.

 

Boston's Tuuka Rask stopped 17 shots while filling in for Jaroslav Halak, who was dealing with an upper-body injury that flared up Saturday morning.

 

The Red Wings, who have won five straight against the Bruins dating to last season, beat Boston 4-2 on Nov. 8. They play in Boston on Saturday and again in March.

 

Brendan Perlini put the Red Wings up early in the second period and Krug tied it early in the third.

 

Athanasiou restored Detroit's lead on a power play. He sealed the victory by scoring again with 29 seconds left after Rask was pulled to give Boston an extra skater.

 

Detroit took its first lead 2:07 into the second when Perlini skated around defenseman Brandon Carlo and his wrist shot got past Rask's glove.

 

It was Perlini's first goal in 31 games this season. He was acquired in a trade with Chicago in October.

 

The Bruins had a goal negated by video review, which determined they were offside before Brad Marchand scored midway through the second.

 

"I got lucky there, getting that call," Bernier said.

 

Boston's Patrice Bergeron said it was his fault the goal didn't stand because he didn't get onside before going to the bench.

 

"It's on me to get off the ice," he said. "I usually get off on the right side of the blue line."

 

Replay was not needed early in the third when Krug shot into an open net vacated by Bernier, who bit on David Pastrnak's shot fake before he made a cross-crease pass.

 

Athanasiou scored on a shot that got between Rask's glove and the post 7:10 into the third, putting the Red Wings ahead 2-1. His second goal was his seventh of his injury-shortened season.

 

"I think confidence matters again and obviously these two goals will be big for him," Blashill said.

 

Boston's Chris Wagner had an opportunity to tie the game with four-plus minutes left, but he shot wide of an open net.

 

"Twice our forwards missed wide-open nets," Cassidy said. "You have to put those away in close games or it will come back to cost you in the end."

[Brewin Flames]

Pastrnak gets hat trick, Bruins beat Canadiens 4-1

 

Game # 57

 

 4  1

 

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By

Associated Press

7 hours ago

BOSTON -- David Pastrnak has been one of the Bruins' most reliable scorers this season.

 

His latest big night came at the expense of one of Boston's longtime rivals.

 

Pastrnak had his fourth hat trick of the season and the Bruins rolled to their third straight win over the Montreal Canadiens, 4-1 on Wednesday night.

 

“Obviously playing Montreal, it's a big rival," Pastrnak said. "These games are always fun."

 

And even bigger for a Boston team that has won seven of its last eight and took three of four in the season series with its northern nemesis.

 

The Bruins outscored the Canadiens 15-3 over the final three meetings. Montreal has lost two straight as it tries to stay in the hunt for the playoffs.

 

Patrice Bergeron added an empty-net goal and Tuukka Rask had 28 saves for the Bruins to improve to 13-0-6 at home this season.

 

Marco Scandella scored Montreal's lone goal. Canadiens goaltender Carey Price, who had allowed two or fewer goals in seven of his previous 11 starts, had 34 saves.

 

Pastrnak now has eight career regular-season hat tricks and nine overall, all but one coming in the last two seasons.

 

He is the first Bruins player with four hat tricks in a season since Phil Esposito during the 1974-75 season.

 

The only player in Bruins history with more hat tricks in a single season was Esposito, who had seven in 1970-71.

 

Pastrnak becomes the second player in the NHL this season with four hat tricks, joining Washington's Alex Ovechkin.

 

With 41 goals on the season Pastrnak also takes over the NHL lead for goals scored.

 

Ovechkin and Toronto's Auston Matthews both have 40. The Maple Leafs and Capitals were idle on Wednesday.

 

Pastrnak said he isn't taking reaching 40 goals for the first time in his career for granted.

 

“It's something I hadn't accomplished yet in my career, so obviously excited,” he said. “But I couldn't have done it without my teammates. Big thanks come to them and just keep it rolling.”

 

Pastrnak's scoring barrage came on a night in which the intensity was at its usually high level between the longtime rivals. A total of 12 penalties were issued, including six for roughing.

 

The Bruins' 23-year-old forward needed just seven minutes of the first period to post the game's goal.

 

Brad Marchand intercepted a pass at the red line and skated into Canadiens' zone. From there he split defenders Jeff Petry and Brett Kulak, spun and passed to a cutting Pastrnak, who slipped a wrist shot past Price.

 

Marchand spent the final 1:!2 of the first in the penalty box, along with Petry after getting into a brief wrestling match at center ice that was quickly broken up by officials.

 

The exchange started when Petry checked Marchand into the boards. Marchand responded by poking his stick at Petry. He returned the favor, leading to both to drop their gloves.

 

The Bruins made it 2-0 early in the second period after Sean Kuraly took the puck away from Petry to start a 2-on-1 break with Pastrnak, who completed it hard wrist shot past a diving Price.

 

Montreal got a little luck to go their way just 36 seconds later, getting on the board when Scandella's long shot from just inside the blue line ricocheted off teammate Nick Suzuki and by Rask.

 

But after Joel Armia was sent to the penalty box for roughing Torey Krug with 4:46 left in the period, Pastrnak got his final goal of the night on the power play 31 seconds later when he cut off Petry’s clearance attempt of Marchand's shot in front of the crease and pushed it into the corner of the net.

 

Montreal has scored just three goals in its last two losses -- something that winger Brendon Gallagher said much change sooner rather than later.

 

“We haven't really generated all that much for whatever reason," Gallagher said. “It's disappointing in a sense. But we're the desperate team. We need to find a way to collect points.”

[Brewin Flames]

Pastrnak scores 42nd goal; Bruins roll past Detroit, 4-1

 

Game # 58

 

 4  1

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By

Associated Press

Updated: 1 day ago

BOSTON -- As well as the Bruins have played this season, one team that had consistently given them problems was the Red Wings.

 

It took three meetings, but Boston finally figured out how to solve its issues against the NHL’s cellar dwellers.

 

David Pastrnak scored his 42nd goal of the season Saturday to lead the Bruins past Detroit 4-1, giving Bruce Cassidy of the Bruins his 200th victory as an NHL coach.

 

Brad Marchand scored his 25th goal and assisted on Pastrnak's goal for Boston, which has won eight of its last nine games. Charlie McAvoy added a goal and an assist and Charlie Coyle had his 13th goal.

 

 Tuukka Rask finished with 25 saves to improve to 14-0-6 at home this season, tying the overall home points streak by a Bruins goaltender. Tiny Thompson started the 1929-30 season 20-0-0.

 

Darren Helm scored for the Red Wings, who have lost three straight and have the fewest points in the NHL. Jonathan Bernier finished with 37 saves.

 

Cassidy has 153 victories with Boston and 47 with the Washington Capitals.

 

Marchand said even when the Bruins fell behind 1-0 early, there was no panic.

 

“I don't think we were really worried about it,” Marchand said. “We had it tonight. We could tell. We came out so hard and we really controled the play the entire way through the game.”

 

The Bruins were outscored 7-3 in two losses to the Red Wings earlier this season. This time Boston was the aggressor from the outset, outshooting Detroit 41-26 for the game.

 

Though much like in the previous two meetings, the Bruins had trouble finishing off early offensive opportunities.

 

Boston was awarded the game's first power play when Gustav Lindstrom was sent to the penalty box for holding.

 

Boston was on the attack when Helm swiped Torey Krug's pass near the blue line and started a 2-on-1 break.

 

Krug backpedaled and tried to slow down Helm, but Helm was able to get his wrist shot past Rask to put the Red Wings in front 1-0.

 

Things changed in the second period when the Bruins needed less than five minutes to get three straight goals.

 

Boston came up empty on a 3-on-2 break when Marchand's shot was cleared back up the slot in the direction of a trailing McAvoy.

 

He put it through a crowd and into the left corner of the net to tie the game.

 

Less than two minutes later, Bergeron put Boston in front when he took a feed from Marchand, cut inside Adam Erne and backhanded his shot by Bernier.

 

“We made it too easy for them,” Red Wings winger Frans Nielsen said. ““It's a good team, but they at least have to work for their chances.”

 

Boston struck again 2:10 later when Danton Heinen poked the puck out of a scrum behind the Red Wings' net and passed to McAvoy at the blue line.

 

McAvoy fired a shot, which was deflected by Coyle into the net to make it 3-1.

 

“If you're losing to a certain team like we were losing to Washington for about six years, you gotta tie it up at some point,” Rask said. “Every game matters, so it's no different.”

 

Game notes

Rask is the sixth goaltender in NHL history with a home points streak of 20 or more games within a regular season. 

[Brewin Flames]

Surging Bruins earn 3-1 win over Rangers

 

Game # 59

 

 3  1

 

 

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By

Associated Press

Updated: 11 hours ago

NEW YORK -- A loss in the seventh game of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final could have carried over to the following season, except the Boston Bruins’ strong culture has helped them remain at the top of the Eastern Conference standings.

 

Charlie McAvoy, Charlie Coyle and Patrice Bergeron each scored, and the Bruins began a four-game trip with a 3-1 win over the New York Rangers on Sunday.

 

“We expect to play well every night," Bruins alternate captain Brad Marchand said. “When we play well, we are going to win a majority of the games. We just hold ourselves to a high standard. We don’t accept losing in the room, or in the organization.”

 

Jaroslav Halak made 25 saves as Boston picked up its ninth win in 10 games.

 

Mika Zibanejad scored, but the Rangers’ four-game winning streak was snapped. Alexandar Georgiev made his third start in a row for New York and had 31 saves in his team-leading 26th start.

 

Coyle scored the winner with a short-handed goal at 18:42 of the second period.

 

The forward stole a puck from Jacob Trouba at the blueline and outskated everyone on the ice before converting a breakaway for his 14th of the season.

 

“It takes a while to pick yourself up from that,” Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said. “That was the big boost for us."

 

McAvoy opened the scoring at 19:18 of the first period after a puck took an odd bounce over Georgiev's head.

 

McAvoy tossed a shot near the net and the puck bounced off two Rangers skaters before finding the back of the net. McAvoy also scored in the Bruins’ 4-1 win against the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday.

 

“I knew I hadn’t scored, but I wasn’t losing sleep at night,” McAvoy said of his 51-game goal drought to start the season. “It is nice to get a couple in a short amount of time, more importantly we got two wins on this back-to-back.”

 

Zibanejad ended Halak’s shutout bid with a power-play goal at 9:52 of the third period. 

 

Artemi Panarin and Ryan Strome assisted on the play. Bergeron added an empty-net goal in the final minute.

 

“They are a hard team, they defend very well, they have a ton of experience, they are deep down the middle," Rangers coach David Quinn said of the Bruins.

 

“There is a reason why they have the most points in the league."

 

The Rangers had an opportunity midway through the second to even the score when David Krejci was penalized for a four-minute high-sticking infraction.

 

The Rangers’ power play has been one of the top units in the NHL, but failed to come through in the middle period.

 

New York defenseman Ryan Lindgren was forced to leave the game after the Krejci penalty but did return to action after receiving medical treatment.

 

“We are not going to score all the time but we couldn’t even create any momentum from it,” Zibanejad said of the extended power play. “It wasn’t sharp enough, can’t allow that to happen in an important game like that."

 

Henrik Lundqvist dressed as the backup goaltender for the seventh straight game and hasn’t started since being pulled against the Dallas Stars on Feb. 3.

 

New York has carried three goaltenders since recalling Igor Shesterkin from the American Hockey League for the second time on January 29th.

[Brewin Flames]

Pastrnak scores winner in Bruins' 2-1 OT win over Oilers

 

Game #  60

 

 2  1 OT

 

 

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By

Associated Press

6 hours ago

EDMONTON, Alberta -- David Pastrnak scored the winner 1:14 into overtime to give the Boston Bruins to a 2-1 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday.

 

Pastrnak was set up for the goal on a pass from David Krejci. He tucked the puck between Oilers goalie Mike Smith's legs for his 43rd goal of the season.

 

Patrice Bergeron scored his 27th goal for the Bruins, who have won four straight and 10 of their last 11 games.

 

"Typically when we're at our best it's a low-scoring game and we force the other team to stay in the game," Boston head coach Bruce Cassidy said. "I give Edmonton a lot of credit.

 

They've done that lately. They know they're light in their lineup, so good for the American (Hockey) League guys to come up and do that job."

 

Sam Gagner had a goal for the short-handed Oilers, who are expected to be without Connor McDavid for much of the month because of a leg injury.

 

"It's a valuable point for us, but what we want to learn from that game is we need some swagger early on," Gagner said.

 

"Making plays under pressure and having confidence with the puck in the first period would have set us up better. But we clawed our way to a point. There was a lot to like against a really good team."

 

The Bruins had 10 shots on net in the first and held Edmonton to just two shots against Boston starter Tuukka Rask.

 

Edmonton had an 18-9 edge in shots in the second period, but it remained a one-goal game through 40 minutes.

 

The Oilers tied it on a power play four minutes into the third period as Gagner tipped an Ethan Bear shot up high over Rask for his fifth of the season.

 

Boston had a chance to win the game with four minutes to play in the third, but Pastrnak hit the post to eventually send the game to extra time.

 

In the end, the Bruins won another closely contested game.

 

"I think we're used to playing those kind of games right now," Rask said after making 28 saves for the win. "It's nothing unusual for us.

 

We know that we can play that kind of game and that comes with experience in the playoffs and everything for us, so it's no problem for us.

 

"Once you move closer to the playoffs these games are going to become more tight checking, so you better get used to it."

[Brewin Flames]

Bergeron scores twice as Bruins beat Flames 4-3

 

Game # 61

 

 4  3

 

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By

Associated Press

Updated: 6 hours ago

 

CALGARY, Alberta -- Patrice Bergeron is healthy again, and showing no signs of slowing down.

 

Bergeron scored two more goals, and the Boston Bruins beat the Calgary Flames 4-3 on Friday night for their fifth consecutive win.

 

Bergeron has scored 21 times in 32 games since returning from a lower-body injury on Dec. 9.

 

He is tied with Alex Ovechkin for the NHL's second-most goals over that span, behind only Auston Matthews of Toronto with 25.

 

Brad Marchand and Charlie Coyle also scored for Boston (39-11-12), which opened a five-point lead on Tampa Bay atop the NHL's overall standings. David Pastrnak had two assists.

 

Bergeron said playing with Marchand and Pastrnak makes his job "real easy."

 

"I'm trying to take care of the details of the game and go on the attack and from there, simplifying our game," he said. "We're used to each other. We know where to be. I'm trying to get open for them to find me."

 

The 34-year-old Bergeron is up to 29 goals. His career high is 32, accomplished twice during his 16-year career.

"It goes well beyond him scoring as much as he has been. He does every little thing right," Coyle said.

 

"He's always on the right side of the puck. He has a great stick. Really good defensively. He just puts in the work."

 

The Bruins, who have won 11 of 12 overall, also made a trade Friday, acquiring forward Ondrej Kase from Anaheim.

 

Kase has missed the past five games with flu-like symptoms and won't join his new team until the Bruins return home after completing a four-game trip at Vancouver on Saturday.

 

Boston sent veteran forward David Backes, defensive prospect Axel Andersson and a first-round pick to the Ducks in the deal.

 

Mikael Backlund had two goals and Johnny Gaudreau also scored for Calgary (31-25-6), which is fighting for a wild card in the Western Conference. The Flames head out on a five-game trip that begins Sunday in Detroit, before meeting the Bruins again on Tuesday.

 

"We've got to take the right things out of this game and move on, take the positives out of it," interim Flames coach Geoff Ward said. "To hold a team like that to the number of shots that we did and the number of scoring chances we did, I thought it was a good defensive effort from our guys."

 

Marchand gave Boston its first lead 52 seconds into the second period -- making it 4-3 after trailing 3-1 -- deflecting Brandon Carlo's point shot past Cam Talbot.

 

Bergeron got the comeback started at 6:12 of the first when he outmuscled Sean Monahan at the side of the crease to bang in a puck as it bounced out front off the end boards.

 

Boston tied it six minutes later. After Alexander Yelesin's point shot from the Bruins blue line was blocked, the puck was corralled by Karson Kuhlman, who sprung Coyle on a breakaway. He cleanly beat Talbot with a move to his forehand.

 

"They weren't giving us anything. The couple chances we had, most of them we scored on," Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk said.

 

"They've got four lines that can wear you down. Their D move the puck very well. They defend very, very well. You saw that in the third."

 

Boston's Jaroslav Halak, beaten three times on the first four shots, was perfect the rest of the way, making 18 saves to improve to 16-6-6.

 

Talbot's four goals allowed came on 23 shots. He fell to 9-10-1.

 

Calgary got off to a fast start when Backlund scored 20 seconds into the game. Noah Hanifin's shot missed the net and Rasmus Andersson put the carom off the goal post before Backlund put it past Halak.

 

Backlund scored again at 2:34, one-timing a Tobias Rieder saucer pass over Halak's shoulder for his 12th goal of the season and sixth in the last seven games.

 

Boston got on the scoreboard 24 seconds later. Pastrnak's shot went wide off the skate of Flames defenseman Michael Stone before it was flicked in by Bergeron for his 29th of the season.

 

Gaudreau restored Calgary's two-goal lead less than a minute later. He drove to the net and had the puck deflect in off the stick of Bruins center David Krejci.

[Brewin Flames]

Toffoli has 3-point game, Canucks rout Bruins 9-3

 

Game # 62

 

 3  9

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By

Associated Press

Updated: 14 hours ago

 

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Tyler Toffoli scored his first two goals with his new team and added an assist as the Vancouver Canucks routed the Boston Bruins 9-3 on Saturday night.

 

"It feels good," Toffoli said. "Obviously, scoring a goal this early makes it a little easier, but at the same time, you've just gotta keep working."

 

Troy Stecher had a goal and two assists for a career-high three points, and J.T Miller had three assists. Bo Horvat, Adam Gaudette, Tanner Pearson, Loui Eriksson, Elias Pettersson and Jake Virtanen also scored for Vancouver. 

 

Jacob Markstrom made 34 saves.

 

Miller said there is still time for his chemistry with Toffoli to improve.

 

"Oh, there were a couple breakdowns," he said. "He was wide open on a couple. But like we talked on Day 1, he knows to get into that shooting position. The puck's going to come to him and he's got a heckuva shot."

 

David Pastrnak scored his league-leading 44th and 45th goals of the year for Boston. Chris Wagner also scored.

 

 Tuukka Rask made 21 saves before being replaced by Jaroslav Halak with 13:32 left in the third period. Halak gave up three goals on eight shots.

 

"The way I look at it from a goalie's perspective, it's kind of one of those `when it rains, it pours,' type of things," said Rask. "When it's not bouncing, it's not. Doesn't matter if it's 2-1, or 9-3 or 15-3, it's a loss. Move on and try to keep it tight next game."

 

The win moved the Canucks into second place in the Pacific Division. They're two points behind the first-place Vegas Golden Knights.

 

The Canucks were 1 for 3 on the power play, while Boston went 1 for 2.

 

The loss was the first in six games for the Bruins, who were wrapping up a four-game trip. Boston maintains a five-point edge over the Tampa Bay Lightning at the top of the NHL standings.

 

"Listen, you're going to have games like this, so I'm not going to lose sleep over this hockey game," Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said.

 

"I even look at our schedule and sometimes you look at it and go `Boy that's going to be a tough one' at certain parts of the season. This was one that we thought would be a tough one and now Vancouver is fighting for first place, so that's just the way it is sometimes."

 

Stecher opened the scoring for Vancouver at 4:14. His fourth goal of the year was a shot from the right boards that found its way through traffic in front of Rask and into the net.

 

At 7:06, Pastnak broke in alone and made a crafty deke before sliding the puck around Markstrom's left skate.

 

Less than two minutes later, Thatcher Demko briefly stepped into the Vancouver net after Markstrom left the game for medical attention when an errant high stick threaded its way through his mask.

 

Demko was not required to make any saves before Markstrom returned 1:48 later, as Jeremy Lauzon was sent to the penalty box after holding Elias Pettersson.

 

On the ensuing power play, Horvat put the Canucks up 2-1, beating Rask high to the blocker side off a Miller pass from below the goal line.

 

"It was one of the stronger games I've seen Bo play," coach Travis Green said.

 

"I think his game has been trending in the right direction. He's got a lot of tough matchups but he's starting to learn the little areas of the game, just the little details from a checking standpoint that for him pay off offensively as well."

 

Vancouver added to its lead in the second, when Quinn Hughes intercepted Pastrnak's clearing attempt, then evaded him along the boards before feeding Gaudette for his 11th of the year.

 

Emotions ran high after Pearson and Eriksson extended the Canucks' lead to 5-1 lead late in the second. First, Bruins captain Zdeno Chara tangled with Tyler Myers. Later, Canucks captain Horvat traded punches with Charlie Coyle.

 

In the third, Pettersson scored his 25th of the year. Pastrnak and Wagner answered for Boston before Toffoli beat Halak twice.

 

After Virtanen rounded out the scoring with 1:45 remaining, the fans at Rogers Arena chanted "We want 10!"

 

With the win, the Canucks closed out their six-game homestand with a 3-2-1 record.

[Brewin Flames]

Monahan, Backlund score 2G each, Flames beat Bruins 5-2

 

Game # 63

 

 

 2  5

 

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By

Associated Press

Updated: 17 hours ago

 

BOSTON -- Sean Monahan scored a pair of goals 1:12 apart in the second period and the Calgary Flames beat the Boston Bruins 5-2 on Tuesday night.

 

Matthew Tkachuk had a goal and two assists for the Flames and Erik Gustafsson picked up an assist in his debut for Calgary after coming over in a deal with Chicago at Monday's trade deadline.

 

Mikael Backlund also scored twice for Calgary, helping seal the win on a goal with 1:30 left in the third and adding an empty-netter in the final minute.

 

The Flames snuffed out any hopes of a comeback by the Bruins, holding them to just seven shots in the third period.

 

"There were some big blocks. Guys were paying the price," Monahan said. "We're here to win and you've got to do what you've got to do to get those two points."

 

The Flames remained on top of the Western Conference wild card standings with their first victory in Boston since Nov. 25, 2016.

 

"I thought it was an excellent effort," coach Geoff Ward said. "We played with an awful lot of composure.

 

This is a hard building to play in, but I thought we came in and we did a really good job in terms of staying focused."

 

David Rittich finished with 26 saves for Calgary.

 

Brad Marchand scored a shorthanded goal for the Bruins, who were playing their first home game since Feb. 15 and came out flat after a four-game road trip.

 

"We were stubborn. We kept wanting to put the puck in the middle of the ice and it wasn't there," coach Bruce Cassidy said. "We paid the price in the end."

 

The Bruins, who beat the Flames 4-3 on Saturday in Calgary, have lost back-to-back games for the first time since a four-game skid in early December.

 

It was just the third home loss in regulation for the Bruins, who still lead the NHL with 90 points (39-13-12).

 

"We weren't at our best, for sure. We didn't have it all the way through the game," Marchand said. "Just not our normal, upbeat high-energy game, but that's going to happen in an 82-game schedule. You're not going to be perfect."

 

Tuukka Rask finished with 26 saves for Boston.

 

Marchand tied it at 1-all 10:08 into the second on a breakaway, scoring his 27th career shorthanded goal and extending his point streak to seven straight games.

 

Marchand stared down Backlund after the goal and the two exchanged a few words before officials stepped in and kept them apart.

 

"We were just having a chat," Marchand said.

 

If Marchand was trying to fire up his teammates, the move seemed to backfire over the next few minutes as the Flames regained control of the game and held onto it the rest of the way.

 

Monahan scored his 20th of the season 13:25 into the second on a one-timer from the slot off a pass from Gaudreau, putting the Flames back up 2-1.

 

The Flames went on a power play when Boston's Matt Grzelcyk was called for roughing 14:32 into the second. The Flames won the faceoff after the penalty and scored five seconds later when Monahan redirected a shot by Tkachuk.

 

"I just thought the guys did a really, really good job regrouping," Ward said. "Real good response from a team that's showing resiliency to be more and more of a characteristic every day."

 

Tkachuk put Calgary up 1-0 when he backhanded in a rebound after a slap shot by Backlund went wide and took a hard bounce off the end boards.

 

Wagner poked in a loose puck during a scrum 13:09 into the third to pull Boston within 3-2.

 

Backlund set himself up with a pass off the boards coming up the ice and beat Rask with 1:30 left in the third.

[yave1964]

Have the Bears hit the proverbial wall? Man have they been flat lately.

[Brewin Flames]

Ritchie has goal, assist in Bruins' 4-3 win over Stars

 

Game # 64

 

 4  3

---

By

Associated Press

Updated: 18 hours ago

 

BOSTON -- In Nick Ritchie's second game, the Boston Bruins saw the player they were hoping for.

 

The former Ducks forward had a goal and an assist for his first points since Boston acquired him at the trade deadline, and the NHL-leading Bruins snapped a two-game losing streak by beating the Dallas Stars 4-3 on Thursday night.

 

"Nick was much better than the other night," Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said. "I'm not going to say he's going to get two points every night; probably somewhere in between. But that's what we expect of him."

 

Brad Marchand broke a second-period tie and Ritchie scored 87 seconds later to make it 3-1.

 

Then after Denis Gurianov cut the deficit to one early in the third, Ritchie fed David Pastrnak in the slot to again make it a two-goal game.

 

Jaroslav Halak stopped 31 shots, and Charlie Coyle scored on a double-tipped swat out of the air for Boston.

 

The Bruins earned their 92nd point and first since acquiring Ritchie and Ondrej Kase before the trade deadline.

Ben Bishop made 24 saves and John Klingberg also scored for the Stars, who had won two straight and seven of their previous nine games.

 

"There's no reason we can't play with that team," said Dallas forward Joe Pavelski, who had a fight with David Krejci in the second period. "We felt that tonight."

 

The Bruins traded Danton Heinen to Anaheim on Monday for Ritchie, who flew to Boston that night and was on the ice the next morning for an optional skate.

 

Against Calgary on Tuesday night, he had a turnover that led to a key goal in the Flames 5-2 victory.

 

On Thursday, he was more like the guy who the Bruins think can help them make it back to the Stanley Cup Final.

 

"The energy feels a little higher. I felt better in my legs," he said.

 

Klingberg scored a power-play goal with just over two minutes left in the first on a wrist shot from the point.

But the Bruins tied it on an advantage with 16 seconds left in the period, when the puck bounced off Bishop's chest, Coyle batted it with the shaft of his stick and then knocked it in with the blade.

 

It was still 1-1 midway through the second when Krejci and Pavelski got in a fight, with Krejci landing several solid blows to the Stars center's head.

 

Krejci's first fight since 2011 got the crowd riled up, and a few minutes later Charlie McAvoy -- after whiffing once -- slid the puck over to Marchand to give Boston the lead for good.

 

"That was obviously a big moment," defenseman Zdeno Chara said. "A guy like that who's not known for dropping gloves had a good, physical game, standing up for himself."

 

The Stars cut it to 4-3 with Bishop out for an extra skater when Halak made a great right leg save on Miro Heiskanen, but the puck bounced off Chara's skate and into the net.

[Brewin Flames]

On 2/27/2020 at 3:22 PM, yave1964 said:

Have the Bears hit the proverbial wall? Man have they been flat lately.

 

I don't think so, just came back from a long west coast trip, many games in many night plus travel...perhaps just a tad tired.

[Brewin Flames]

Bruins Down Islanders 4-0

 

Game # 65

 

 4  0

 

 

By

Associated Press

1 day ago

 

UNIONDALE, NY -- The Boston Bruins are winning this season in every manner possible.

 

Against the Islanders for a Long Island matinee, it was the goaltending of Tukka Rask and the offensive prowess of Charlie McAvoy.

 

McAvoy had a goal and two assists and Rask made 25 saves as the Boston Bruins routed the New York Islanders 4-0 on Saturday.

 

The league-best Bruins improved to 41-13-12 for 94 points. The Islanders lost their third straight following a two-game winning streak.

 

David Pastrnak opened the scoring at 4:30 of the first period, beating Islanders netminder Semyon Varlamov with his league-leading 47th goal of the season.

 

Defensemen Torey Krug and Brandon Carlo assisted. Matt Grzelcyk made it 2-0 at 13:10 with his third goal, assisted by Brad Marchand and McAvoy.

 

Marchand scored at 11:06 of the third to make it 3-0 – his 27th goal – with assists to Bergeron and McAvoy.

 

“I'm happy when we win. It's nice to score but we want to win. That's what we play the game for," said Marchand, who leads the Bruins with 56 assists. .

 

McAvoy, a native of nearby Long Beach, then scored his fourth goal this season on a blast from the point make it 4-0 at 16:26, bring loud cheers from Bruins fans sprinkled throughout the Nassau Coliseum crowd.

 

“As far as Charlie goes, that's great," Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said. “He's a Long Island boy so coming home he's probably a little more excited to play, so good for him.”

 

Rask made eight saves in the first period, four in the second and 13 more in the third to secure his fourth shutout of the season. Rask improved to 24-7-6 on the campaign.

 

The Bruins, coming off a 4-3 home win over Dallas on Thursday, entered the contest with a dominating recent record against the Islanders. They are now 14-2-1 in their last 17 contests against the Islanders and 13-1 in their last 14 road games against New York.

 

The Bruins are also 7-2-0 in their last nine road games overall this season. Boston came within one game of winning the Stanley Cup last season, losing to the St. Louis Blues in seven games in the Finals.

 

They have come back with even more resolve this season behind Pastrnak and linemates Bergeron and Marchand who have combined for 228 points through 66 games.

 

”I thought we lost the game in the first 10 minutes," Islanders coach Barry Trotz said. “They executed. They are a deep team.”

 

The Islanders were coming off an overtime loss at St. Louis on Thursday, which followed a home overtime defeat to the Rangers last Tuesday.

 

Before those two defeats, they had won games back home after a disastrous four-game road losing streak in which they scored only two goals combined in the quartet of defeats.

 

They are now in a battle for a wild card playoff spot after spending most of the season second or third place in the tightly packed Metropolitan Division.

 

With five weeks remaining in the regular season, they are just ahead of Columbus, Carolina and the Rangers as those four teams compete for the final two conference playoff berths.

 

Trotz was encouraged despite the defeat. With the 18 games remaining, he saw no reason to be downcast.

“We're not that far off,” he said.

 

OLD HOME: The Islanders will make their Long Island return a full year early, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced ahead of the game.

 

The team will play all home games during the 2020-21 season at the Nassau Coliseum and any home playoff dates will take place on Long Island this season and next. New York State invested $6 million to upgrade to the building’s infrastructure to ease concerns from the NHL.

 

“The Islanders should be on Long Island,” Gov. Cuomo said. “It was complicated more than anything because you had to deal with the NHL issues at this facility and we had to get them done, and get them done quickly. I’m overjoyed because I thought we’d have to wait for the new arena and that’s when they would come back.”

[Brewin Flames]

NHL-best Bruins beat Lightning 2-1 to extend division lead

 

Game # 66

 

 2  1

 

 

---

By

Associated Press

Updated: 6 hours ago

 

TAMPA, Fla. -- Brad Marchand and the NHL-leading Boston Bruins took a big stride toward winning the Atlantic Division with a 2-1 victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday night.

 

Marchand and Jake DeBrusk scored for the Bruins, who opened a nine-point cushion over second-place Tampa Bay with 15 games remaining.

 

Marchand, who has points in 10 consecutive games, played a season-low 14:36 after a bout with food poisoning in the morning.

 

Tukka Rask made 20 saves for Boston, which has won three straight and eight of 10, allowing one goal in the past two games.

 

"The further the season goes and as you get into the playoffs, you're going to need that solid team defense," Rask said.

 

"In the playoffs you're not going to win 6-5 or 5-4, it's going to be tight-scoring games. I think we've gotten used to that this year."

 

Mitchell Stephens scored for Tampa Bay, which has lost five of the past six in regulation. Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 33 shots.

 

"They play hard, they play a really good defensive game and that's why they are one of the top teams in the league," Stephens said. "We have a good team in this locker room and we just need to regroup."

 

The Bruins took advantage of an icing call to grab the lead late in the first period as Boston coach Bruce Cassidy was able to get his top line out against Tampa Bay's fourth line.

 

 Patrice Bergeron won the faceoff from Cedric Paquette and 18 seconds later Torey Krug found Marchand cutting through the left circle with a step on Mikhail Sergachev.

 

Marchand had the puck go off his skate and past Vasilevskiy with 54.7 seconds left in the period.

"That's the exact play we wanted," Krug said. "I wanted that puck to land on his stick and luckily it hit his skate. It was good movement overall."

 

Tampa Bay thought it tied the game at 5:21 of the second on Yanni Gourde's one-timer, but Cassidy challenged for offside. The replay showed Tyler Johnson was a fraction ahead of the play, and the goal was overturned.

 

The Bruins took a two-goal lead 4:34 later as Gourde sent a pass back to the point that was deflected out of the zone. DeBrusk shook off Zach Bogosian's swipe check that tripped him up before regaining his balance and finishing off the play for his 19th goal of the season, first since Feb. 8.

 

"Anytime it goes in the net it's always a nice feeling," DeBrusk said. "I haven't seen that in a while. It was nice, the play overall. That's what I want to be ... use my speed and effort. It's just nice to contribute at that time of the game."

 

The Lightning cut into the lead with 2:32 left in the second. Stephens was parked on top of the crease to clear a path for Johnson before wheeling around and firing a rebound past Rask for his third of the season.

 

Rask kept Boston in front, denying Anthony Cirelli on a breakaway at 5:06 of the third. It was one of 22 shot attempts in the period, though only seven were on goal.

 

"We got a little more aggressive in our game, we changed our attitude, shot the puck a little bit more," Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman said.

[Brewin Flames]

Krug scores in OT, Bruins rally past Panthers 2-1

 

Game # 67

 

 2  1 OT

 

 

---

By

Associated Press

Updated: 17 hours ago

 

SUNRISE, Fla -- Torey Krug bailed out the Boston Bruins on a night the NHL leaders didn't have their best.

 

Krug scored 4:08 into overtime, Patrice Bergeron also had a goal and the Bruins beat the Florida Panthers 2-1 Thursday for their fourth straight win.

 

Moments before he scored, Krug led a 2-on-1 rush with David Pastrnak that was disrupted by MacKenzie Weegar's poke check.

 

Pastrnak recovered the puck in the corner and passed to Krug, who wheeled into the high slot and slapped the winner past Chris Driedger.

 

“No fear. Just trying to let the screen set up and try to shoot back against the traffic,” Krug said. “It was just a matter of if it was going to go in or not.”

 

Jaroslav Halak stopped 32 shots for the Bruins.

 

“I didn’t think we had our best, our B game for the most part," Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said. “I didn’t love our game, but I loved the fact we stayed in the game and gave ourselves a chance to win.”

 

Driedger made 25 saves and Weegar scored, but Florida dropped a franchise-worst eighth straight home game and lost its fourth game in a row overall.

 

The game was a marked improvement from the past few games for the Panthers, who salvaged a much-needed point.

 

“We’ve got to look on the bright side of things, we stemmed the tide as far as playing the right way," coach Joel Quenneville said.

 

"We still have some time here and have to get points in every single game going forward, that’s got to be the mindset”

 

This was Driedger's first start since being recalled from AHL Springfield on Tuesday.

 

Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo was elbowed in the face by Evgenii Dadonov in the second period. It was initially ruled a major penalty, then reduced to a minor on review. Carlo did not return to the game.

 

Weegar put the Panthers ahead when his shot from the high slot slipped by a screened Halak 6:55 into the second period.

 

“No one likes to lose, especially after the effort we put in tonight,” Weegar said. “I thought we battled hard throughout the whole 60 minutes. It's just a (bad) feeling.”

 

Bergeron tied it on the power play four minutes later, getting his 30th of the season by redirecting Krug's shot. Bergeron has scored at least 30 goals in three straight seasons.

[Brewin Flames]

Cirelli, Sergachev help Lightning beat Bruins 5-3

 

Game # 68

 

 3  5

 

 

---

By

Associated Press

Updated: 10 hours ago

 

BOSTON -- The Tampa Bay Lightning took the lead with two short-handed goals on the same power play and then held off the Boston Bruins.

 

Anthony Cirelli and Mikhail Sergachev scored short-handed goals just 1:02 apart in the first period and the Lightning beat the Bruins 5-3 on Saturday night.

 

Cedric Paquette and Alex Killorn also scored for the Lightning, who took a 3-0 lead. Nikita Kucherov added an emtpy-net goal with 1:02 remaining as Tampa Bay ended Boston's four-game winning streak.

 

"It was an entertaining, gutsy game by both teams and we came out on top," Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said.

 

Andrei Vasilevskiy made 35 saves to help the Lightning get even for a 2-1 loss at home to the Bruins four days earlier. The physical rematch left both teams a little bloody and looking forward to possibly meeting again in the playoffs.

 

By the time it was over, the Lightning and Bruins combined for 36 penalties and 96 penalty minutes in their second meeting in four days.

 

"I think both of us feel we're the best in the Atlantic (Division). We went there and got the two points in their building and they wanted to respond," Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said. "They were more ready to go off the puck drop than we were and that ended up being the difference in the game."

 

Boston still leads the Eastern Conference with 98 points, eight points ahead of the Lightning.

 

David Pastrnak scored his 48th goal for the Bruins, who had won four straight but couldn't rally back from their early deficit. 

 

Charlie McAvoy had a goal and an assist and Sean Kuraly also scored for Boston. Tuukka Rask stopped 20 shots.

 

"That was a great game. A lot of physicality and good plays at both ends of the ice," Rask said.

 

"Obviously, it feels better when you come (out) as a winner, but I thought that was a great way to show our character -- always stick up for each other and just fell short."

 

Boston pulled to 3-2 on goals by McAvoy and Kuraly in the second period, which was held up twice when all five skaters for both clubs locked up after the whistle. The second time started with Zdeno Chara and Pat Maroon tangling near center ice and their teammates followed with 1:06 left.

 

The stoppage gave officials a chance to review what was initially called no goal when Tampa Bay's Brayden Point swept the puck from the goal line, but the replay showed the puck made it all the way over the line and the Bruins had pulled to 3-2.

 

Kuraly was credited with the goal and McAvoy got an assist.

 

Another scrum followed the horn at the end of the second period and led to more penalties.

 

Cirelli's goal 5:08 into the first put the Lightning up 1-0 just 7 seconds after Tampa Bay forward Barclay Goodrow went off for elbowing.

 

The Lightning scored again -- on the same power-play -- 1:02 later after a turnover by the Bruins just outside their zone and Yanni Gourde set up Serbachev for a one-timer from the slot.

 

Paquette put Tampa Bay up 3-0 early in the second period with his seventh of the season.

 

ROUND ONE

 

Boston's Chris Wagner and Goodrow served two-minute penalties in the first period for unsportsmanlike conduct after being separated before either could throw a punch. The penalties only delayed the bout as both came out of the box and immediately threw down their gloves.

 

Goodrow, aquired by the Lightning in a trade with San Jose last month at the deadline, said he's enjoyed his first two games in the Atlantic Division rivalry.

 

"Once you play in it, you realize it right away -- there's no dipping your foot in the water. You're in it and it's fun.

 

These are the games you love to play in," Goodrow said.

 

REMATCH

 

Maroon, who played for St. Louis last season when the Blues beat the Bruins in seven games in the Stanley Cup Final, said winning in Boston is never easy. He said he took on Chara when Boston's 6-foot-9 captain went after Sergchev following a hit from behind.

 

"The look on his face, I kind of got nervous there," Maroon said. "I was just trying to do my job. I'm here to protect my teammates any way I can and stick up for them."

[Brewin Flames]

Bruins snap Flyers' 9-game win streak behind Rask shutout

 

Game # 69

 

 2  0

 

 

---

By

Associated Press

Updated: 15 hours ago

 

PHILADELPHIA -- Scott Laughton sped down the boards, attacked the zone and had his pass set on Kevin Hayes to find an open look at Boston's net.

 

Bruins center Charlie Coyle acted more like a Red Sox player headed toward a triple, doing a head-first dive between the circles, his left arm outstretched with a stick that just broke up the pass and kept a game between two of the top teams in the East scoreless.

 

Coyle had the save of the game. Tuukka Rask took care of the rest, stopping all 36 shots he faced to help the Bruins beat Philadelphia 2-0 on Tuesday night to snap the Flyers' nine-game winning streak.

 

"Hayes was kind of cocked and ready there," Coyle said. "I think that's all I had, so I just went for it and the play went in my favor."

 

So much has gone in the Bruins' favor this season, and they cooled the hottest team in the NHL.

 

 Matt Grzelcyk and Patrice Bergeron scored and the Bruins (44-14-12) became the first team with 100 points this season.

 

Rask picked up his 50th career shutout on his 33rd birthday and became the sixth active goalie with at least 50 shutouts. He has five this season.

 

"I've been around for many years. I guess if you play enough games, those milestones happen," Rask said.

 

Rask stymied a Flyers' offense that had scored at least three goals in each of their nine wins during the streak. They scored five goals four times since the streak started Feb. 18 against Columbus.

 

The Wells Fargo Center was about packed, even with concern over the coronavirus outbreak, for the most anticipated Flyers game of the season.

 

If fans were fearful, they sure didn't show it before the game. They packed the concourse bars, lined up for $13 turkey hoagies, and accepted their giveaway Flyers caps (from rubber gloved arena workers, of course) without the gloom and doom atmosphere over the virus that has spoiled sports around the globe.

 

The Flyers were appreciative 19,689 fans turned out on a day on which other sporting events were canceled or postponed.

 

"I don't think we really care about the coronavirus," goalie Carter Hart said. "Some other people do."

 

The Flyers had been sensational as they shot up the standings and were fighting with Washington for first place in the Metropolitan Division.

 

The Flyers had defeated the Bruins in a shootout in both games of the series this season, including a bizarre ending in January when Boston's Brad Marchand overskated the puck at center ice on a shootout attempt.

 

Gritty poked fun at the misstep before Tuesday's game by holding a photo of an oversized red arrow pointing down at an encircled puck as Marchand looked behind him.

 

The frivolity didn't last for long, and the Flyers pounded Rask, taking 24 shots over the first two periods.

 

Rask stood tall in net and got the cushion he needed late when Bergeron's shot from the circle appeared to get deflected by a Flyers stick and went in for a 2-0 lead.

 

"Couldn't get anything past him," Flyers coach Alain Vigneault said. "That goal that they got on their power play at the end of the second period seemed like it gave them confidence and momentum because in the third period they were the better team."

 

The Bruins broke through on Hart, the first goalie in NHL history under 22 with two, seven-game win streaks, late in the second.

 

Grzelcyk buried one from the point on the power play for his fourth goal of the year and a 1-0 lead with 1:21 left in the second. At that point, the Flyers had outshot the Bruins 21-13. Also at that point, it didn't matter much to Boston.

 

Boston took the lead only moments after center Coyle dove across the ice and broke up a pass to Hayes just in front Rask that kept the game scoreless. The Flyers had won at least nine straight games for the seventh time in franchise history.

 

"We knew the streak they were on and they are really good at home, so we had to be big in the third and luckily Tuks made good saves all night and we just tried to keep the puck moving," Grzelcyk said.