Photo Credit: Winslow Townson (USA TODAY Sports)
By: KG Follow me on Twitter: @kgbngblog
PREGAME NOTES
We knew going into the game that the Bruins would be without veteran players Patrice Bergeron and David Backes. This meant that Frank Vatrano would slide into the lineup, along with Riley Nash. Torey Krug was also unavailable to play with a jaw injury. DeBrusk, Bjork, and McAvoy were all making their regular season debut.
PERIOD ONE
The Bruins rookies came out firing on all cylinders. Bjork and DeBrusk showing their skill set early by making good passes and using open ice to their advantage. McAvoy helped Pastrnak open up the scoring early with a one-timed power-play goal. The B’s were persistent in the entry of the zone throughout the period.
Scoring
BOS – Pastrnak (McAvoy, Krejci)
NSH – Arvidsson (Johansen)
PERIOD TWO
The Bruins really started to show their speed in the second. DeBrusk was all over the ice in the 2nd, popping a goal and almost having a couple more. The B’s only took two penalties that period, down from their three in the first. So that’s a good start. Charlie McAvoy added to the total with his first as a Bruin. It seems like the young guys are fitting in quite nicely.
Scoring
BOS – DeBrusk (Krejci, Bjork), McAvoy (Krejci, DeBrusk)
NSH – N/A
PERIOD THREE
The Bruins came out doing exactly the opposite of what they needed to do. ANOTHER penalty. But after that, they became more focused on attacking the Predators defense with unmatched energy. Every time that Nashville looked like they were making some progress, one of the lines would pop off and get a flurry of shots, also including the defense on the rushes. Rask held off any shots during the majority of the third. There were chances flying everywhere, just overall domination by the Bruins. And then they got another penalty. But Marchand comes out of nowhere to fire a shot from his own end to put it to 4-1 with about 3 minutes left. The dreaded three-goal lead. Tuukka Rask was a wall in nets for 58 minutes, but when the Bruins ended up 6 on 3 after another penalty/pulled goalie, it was pretty hard for him to keep it out of the net. It seemed as though the B’s started to coast after the Marchand goal, and it showed. But after almost giving up the tying goal, they cleared it and ended the game. Overall, a good game for everyone, and a great display of what an offseason with only Bruce Cassidy at the helm looks like.
Scoring
BOS – ENG Marchand (Carlo)
NSH – Hartnell (Johansen, Arvidsson), Forsberg (Jarnkrok, Subban)
FINAL 4-3 BOS
POSTGAME
This is a great motto for the “New age Bruins”. Stay on the puck handler, not stay in the penalty box.
Hoping that we get more lines like this from Cassidy.
KG’s Three Stars Of The Game
1st: David Krejci – After everyone talking about the young kids putting up numbers, Krejci put up three assists on the nonempty net goals, and won 17/22 (77%) of his faceoffs tonight. That was a huge help with Bergeron out of the lineup.
2nd: Jake DeBrusk – In his debut as a Bruin, he popped a goal and an assist. He also had a whole bunch of chances, along with setting up a lot of situations. His puck movement was incredible to watch.
3rd: David Pastrnak – Pastrnak found his usual spot on the powerplay, and converted with a rocket of a shot. He was once again a focal point of the offense, creating goal opportunities with his wicked shot. Yet another great night for Pasta, and another reminder of why we are so happy that he’s on our side.
MUP (Most Under–Appreciated Player): Kevan Miller – Miller’s +/- was 1 with four hits over 21:35 of ice time. That was third highest for defencemen. He played a solid game overall and was good in his defensive role to pair with McAvoy’s offensive play style.
BIRDHOUSE – Round-up of the best Tweets during the game
NEXT GAME
Monday, October 9th, 2017 against the Colorado Avalanche
Sources: Tsn.ca, Twitter.com, NHL.com
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