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(Photo Credits: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

By: Liz Rizzo | Follow me on Twitter @pastagrl88

There was no lack of action nor love lost between these two heavy-handed teams as the Bruins shut out the Rangers tonight at the Madison Square Garden. Boston is now 10-1-2 and currently leads the East Division as they win their fifth straight victory.

GAME BREAKDOWN

It was a chippy start to the game as Bruins Connor Clifton was called for a delay of play penalty, giving the Rangers the man advantage in the first minute of the game. Boston’s defense was able to keep New York at bay as they killed the Ranger’s power play. Both teams had some good chances early on, however, both goaltenders were able to block any shot attempts. The Bruins would be on the power play as Craig Smith was tripped by New York’s Kaapo Kakko. Unfortunately, no score for the Black and Gold.

A few miscues from both teams led to some great scoring opportunities, as Bruins Jaroslav Halak was forced to make some timely saves with the Rangers putting pressure on Boston. Not be outplayed, the Bruins spent a good amount of time buzzing around New York’s net. The Rangers would get a late power play as Brandon Carlo was called for interference against New York’s Brett Howden. Despite some dangerous looks, the Bruins made it hard for the Rangers to get any pucks past Halak. No score at the end of an evenly paced first period.

END OF FIRST: BOS- 0, NYR-0

SHOTS ON GOAL: BOS- 6, NYR–11

Boston’s Charlie Coyle would get called for a slashing penalty giving the Rangers their third power-play for the night. No shots on goal for New York and within seconds the Bruins would draw their second power-play of the night. Boston had a few close chances but was unable to capitalize. The Rangers Jacob Trouba was called for roughing after a hit against Jakub Zboril. Teammate Charlie McAvoy was then called for roughing against Trouba after taking some shots of his own for retaliation on the hit to Zboril. The Bruins would be on the power-play once again but remained scoreless.

Boston’s Nick Ritchie would get the Bruins on the board 1-0 scoring off of his own rebound. At this point, things started to get a little heated on the ice. A fight between Brendan Lemiuex and Trent Frederic opened up right at the start of the face-off. Both players would get five minutes for fighting. Shortly after, a big scuffle between the two teams led to penalties being called against the Bruins and one against New York: Marchand for cross-checking; Kuraly for boarding. New York’s Brett Howden was called for a slashing penalty against Marchand. The Rangers would be awarded the power play, however, did not get any shots on goal.

With four minutes left to the period, things got heated once again as Jeremy Lauzon threw his fists against Pavel Buchnevich. Both players received a five-minute penalty for fighting and opted to head to their respective locker rooms to serve their minutes. Lauzon was given an additional 10-minute game misconduct.

END OF THE SECOND: BOS-1 , NYR-0

SHOTS ON GOAL: BOS-18, NYR- 6

Boston would get on the power-play as the Rangers Jacob Trouba was called for holding against Anders Bjork in the first moments of the third period. New York was able to kill the penalty to keep the score 1-0. Charlie McAvoy would be called again for a tripping penalty against Kaapo Kakko, however, Boston killed their power-play chances. Both teams continued to bring physicality to their game as many shots were stifled by both Jaro Halak and Igor Shesterkin.

As the Rangers tried to regain control of the puck, the Bruins were there to clear their zone. With a minute left to the period, Charlie McAvoy would get sent to the box for a delay of game. Not wanting to give an inch, Boston was able to shut out the Rangers, winning 1-0 in an anxiety-inducing ending to a very physical game.

FINAL SCORE: BOS-1, NYR-0

TOTAL SHOTS ON GOAL: BOS-30, NYR-21

NEXT GAME: Boston Bruins versus New York Islanders, Saturday, February 13th with puck drop at 7: 00 pm. NESN, MSG+