Predators Blank Bruins In Nashville (10/22/24)

For the first time this season, the Boston Bruins got their asses kicked. Yes, they lost by two goals to the Florida Panthers but they were in the game. Tonight the Nashville Predators utterly spanked them. Jeremy Swayman was under fire from the opening whistle, facing 41 total shots before the game was over. The Bruins did manage 33 shots against Juuse Saros of Nashville, but he was a brick wall in net. The Bruins took four penalties in the first period and the Max Jones tripping call led to a Ryan O'Reilly power play goal in the first period. Thomas Novak scored in the second period and Gustav Nyquist scored in the third to put the game away. Head coach Jim Montgomery pulled Jeremy Swayman with just over 6 minutes left in the game and Luke Evangelista did the honors with the empty net goal. It all added up to a 4-0 Panthers win over the Bruins at Bridgestone Arena. How many goals did the Bruins score Dean Wormer?

The tone was set just 13 seconds into the game when David Pastrnak was called for hooking. Just nine seconds after that, Ryan O'Reilly was bagged for interference to make it four on four just like that. Old pal Jeremy Lauzon was robbed by Swayman and on the other end, Nikita Zadorov was robbed by Juuse Saros. Then just 3:15 into the game, Mark Kastelic said "put em up" with Luke Schenn. Kastelic pounded him to the ice mostly taking advantage of the fact Luke is a lefty. Swayman managed to barely get a pad on a Thomas Novak shot 7:32 into the period and shortly after, Brady Skjei was sent to the box for tripping. Brad Marchand failed to get a puck past Saros on the power play then robbed Elias Lindholm as well. Pavel Zacha was denied at the doorstep as well. Then Max Jones was penalized for interference with 8:35 left in the first. One minute into the power play, Swayman lost his stick behind the net as the Predators circled. Steven Stamkos fired on net but it went wide. The puck was cleared and Swayman made a mad dash to retrieve his stick. The Bruins killed off the penalty and Schenn's slapshot was gloved by Swayman with 5 minutes left in the period. Then disaster struck when Jones was sent to the box for tripping with 2:55 left. Filip Fosberg passed it to Roman Josi who fired on net, tipped in by Ryan O'Reilly to give the Predators the lead. Pastrnak had a chance to tie it on a breakaway but Saros stopped it. Marchand was also stopped on the doorstep and the Bruins went to intermission down 1-0.

                                                                 Preds up early

The second period was a defensive clinic put on by the Predators. 7 minutes into the period, Zadorov was sent to the box for hooking to put the Predators on the power play. Marchand had a shorthanded breakaway but Saros saved the shot. Gustav Nyquist's slapshot hit the post and the Bruins killed it off. With 7:07 left in the period, Charlie McAvoy was tagged for a double minor high sticking penalty. Just as it was just about killed off, Skjei passed it down low to Luke Evangelista. He threw it in front and Novak banged it in to put the Predators up by two with 3:05 left in the period. The Bruins were in trouble heading in to the third down 2-0.

                                                       Predators are dominating

Pastrnak had a wide open breakaway just nine seconds into the third period but he slipped onto the ice, crashing into Saros instead. Still, the Bruins got their last chance to get back in the game when Cole Smith was whistled for high sticking 2:42 into the period. Pastrnak passed to Zacha in front of the net but Saros BARELY got his pad on the shot to deny Pavel. With 7:13 left, Josi passed the puck up to O'Reilly who dished it up the ice to Nyquist. Nyquist's shot from the point went in for a softie allowed by Swayman, he definitely should have had that one. It was 3-0 Nashville with the game all but over. For whatever reason, Montgomery pulled Swayman with 6 minutes left in the game and in a microcosm of the game, Pastrnak completely whiffed on the shot from the point. Evangelista then flipped the puck into the Bruins net for the empty net goal to complete the embarrassment. With 4:21 left, Skjei took a tripping penalty to put the Bruins on the power play. With 3:30 left, a shot deflected to the stick of Brad Marchand. Somehow Marchand failed to lift the puck over the glove of Saros for the final boot to the ass. The Predators killed off the penalty and won the game 4-0.

                                                        Saros shuts out the Bruins

Reaction:

That was the first game all season the Bruins looked completely inept in all three phases of the game. Swayman allowed some soft goals, the defense was non-existent on others and they couldn't crack Saros at all. Marchand and Zacha had open nets or prime positions to score and they failed. The defense left Swayman out to dry more often than not, and those are on the shots he didn't save. There were plenty others he did manage to stop. Bad games are going to happen this season and this was their first truly bad game. Hopefully they don't make a habit out of it. The Bruins look to shake off this disaster this Thursday night at home against Tyler Seguin and the Dallas Stars. The game begins at 7:00 PM at TD Garden.

Utah Defeats Bruins in Overtime (10/19/24)

For the first time all season the Boston Bruins offense was shut down by an opponent. Surprisingly, it was done by the ex-Arizona Coyotes now calling themselves the Utah Hockey Club. The Bruins were done in by Utah goalie Connor Ingram who stopped 21 of 22 shots. The Bruins actually scored first in the second period when Cole Koepke found the net for the third time this season. The Bruins defense and Jeremy Swayman was the true stars of the game until tragedy struck. With just five minutes left in the third period, Vladislav Kolyachonok scored to tie the game, plunging it in overtime. In the extra frame, David Pastrnak took a tripping penalty 42 seconds into it. The Bruins managed to kill it off, but just four seconds later Michael Kesselring scored to win the game. The Utah HC's had beaten the Bruins 2-1 in overtime at the Delta Center

                                                                  Dammit

The Bruins got the first power play 6:19 into the period when Kevin Stenlund got bagged for tripping. On the power play, Brad Marchand intercepted a puck and shot on net, but Connor Ingram stopped it. Adam Kerfoot damn near tucked it in on the other hand but Swayman kept it out. Hampus Lindholm was also stoned by Ingram. Mason Lohrei passed it to Pavel Zacha but his shot was denied with 9:50 left in the period. With 8 minutes left, Dylan Guenther passed the puck to Logan Cooley but Swayman made the save. Down the other end, Nikita Zadorov's slapshot was saved by Ingram. With 6:37 left, Kerfoot dished it to Lawson Crouse who's one timer was saved by Swayman. With just over three minutes left, Mark Kastelic dished it to John Beecher but Ingram made the save. With 1:48 left, Guenther dropped the puck to Cooley but Swayman stopped the shot attempt. Then with 1:10 left, McAvoy was sent to the penalty box for high sticking to put the HC's on the power play. Kastelic managed to send the puck to Beecher for a short handed attempt but Ingram made the save. The Bruins managed to get to the end of the period still scoreless.

                                                              Scoreless after one

The HC's had 50 seconds of power play time carried over to the second period but the Bruins killed it off. Crouse batted a puck out of mid-air and shot on Swayman, but it didn't go in. Trent Frederic tried to set up Mason Lohrei on the other end but Ingram made the save. Kailer Yamamoto passed it to Matias Maccelli but Swayman made the save just 2:22 into the period. Just 3:03 into the second, Kastelic got in a chinwag with Robert Burtuzzo and both were sent to the box for roughing. In the four on four portion, Cole Koepke was denied by Ingram and both penalties expired without further shenanigans. After a Pastrnak shot went wide, Zadorov got bagged for hooking 7:44 into the period to put the HC's on another power play. Mikhail Sergachev was robbed by Swayman and then Josh Doan completely missed the net. With 9:25 left, Matthew Poitras was denied by Ingram and on the other end, Swayman robbed Ian Cole point blank. With just 7:11 left in the period, Marchand controlled the puck in the neutral zone and passed up ice to Koepke. Koepke skated in, shot and scored his third goal of the season to put the Bruins on top. Just 24 seconds later, Vladislav Kolyachonok was sent to the box for interference. Michael Kesselring looked to have a shorthanded goal but the puck clanged off the post. Hampus Lindholm got sent to the box for tripping with 49 seconds left in the period and Swayman BARELY stopped a shot from Guenther to keep the Bruins in front. That was it for the period as the Bruins headed to the third period up 1-0.

                                                     Koepke scores

The Bruins killed off the remainder of the power play and two minutes later, Clayton Keller got bagged for hooking. With a chance to ice the game, Zacha tucked the puck past Ingram to put the Bruins up by two. But wait! Utah coach Andre Tourigny challenged that the Bruins were offsides. The refs looked at it and sure enough, the goal was overturned. Cooley was robbed by Swayman on a breakaway and it looked like the Bruins had the game won. Instead, with just 4:09 left, Nick Schmaltz sent the puck to Keller who dished it up the ice to Kolyachonok. Nobody picked him up and he skated in, scoring easily to tie the game. That was it for the period and the Bruins headed to overtime tied 1-1.

                                                           Tie game

Things went bad right from the start of overtime as Pastrnak somehow got called for tripping 42 seconds into it. Keller's blast on net before the penalty was called was saved by Swayman. The HC's circled the net when Pastrnak was just about to come out of the box to make it 4 on 4. Instead, Maccelli passed it to Cooley who found Kesselring wide open in the slot. With Pastrnak on his way, Kesselring scored to win the game. The Utah HC's won the game 2-1 in overtime.

                                                                   Utah wins

Reaction:

Pity point aside, that was a damned choke by the Bruins. They played damn near flawless defense for 55 minutes but that late third period goal sealed their doom. The offense evaporating against the HC's was mostly to blame but allowing that goal was inexcusable. The defense not picking up Kolyachonok was a fatal mistake as it turned out. The power play goal in overtime was just icing on the cake. The Bruins get a point out of it but as always, missing out on the second one could be a big deal come season's end. Where was the offense in this one? How did Pastrnak, Zacha, Coyle and Frederic just disappear like that? Its not like they were playing the Panthers either. All in all it was a bad loss but they got a point out of it. The Bruins look to rebound this coming Tuesday night against the Nashville Predators. The game begins at 8:00 PM at Bridgestone Arena.

Bruins Outlast Avalanche In Denver (10/16/24)

Two days after an ignominious defeat at the hands of the Florida Panthers, the Boston Bruins rebounded against the winless Colorado Avalanche. The Avalanche took advantage of THREE power play goals off dumb Bruins penalties, but Boston hung on. Cole Koepke started the scoring and after the Avalanche tied it, Charlie Coyle pumped in his first goal of the year. The Bruins struck halfway through the second period when Hampus Lindholm and David Pastrnak scored just 13 seconds apart to put the Bruins up three goals. The Avalanche scored the next two to pull within one, but Joonas Korpisalo in net and an empty net goal by John Beecher was enough for the Bruins to hang on. Colorado remained winless on the season as the Bruins won the game 5-3 at Ball Arena.

                                                               Bruins take down the Avs

The Avs got the first big chance one minute into the game when ex-Boston College alum Miles Wood broke away for a goal attempt, but it was stopped by Joonas Korpisalo. The Bruins got the first power play 2:32 into the game when Parker Kelly got bagged for interference. Hampus Lindholm had a good chance but it was stopped by Colorado goalie Alexandar Georgiev. Halfway through the period, Nathan MacKinnon was robbed point blank by Korpisalo after his first shot went off Brandon Carlo. The Bruins struck first with just over six minutes left in the period. Nikita Zadorov passed it to Andrew Peeke. Peeke fired on net and the puck was tipped in by Cole Koepke to put the Bruins on top. Just over a minute later, Riley Tufte got bagged for holding with 5:12 left in the period. Cale Makar passed to Ross Colton. Colton passed to Mikko Rantanen who passed it back to Colton for the one time blast, scoring to tie the game on the power play. Then the Avs screwed up when Oliver Kylington was sent to the box for holding with 3:20 left in the first. On the power play, Mason Lohrei got the puck and skated into the zone, finding Charlie Coyle streaking to the net and hit his stick perfectly. Coyle dumped it in for his first goal of the season to put Boston ahead again. Just before the period ended, Makar had Korpisalo beat clean but the shot rang off the post and out. That was it for the period with the Bruins still ahead 2-1.

                                                     Bruins take it to Colorado early

Georgiev had to make a big save early when Lindholm's blast went off his pad right to Trent Frederic but he failed to score on the rebound. Georgiev then stopped Pastrnak on a breakaway as well. Five minutes into the period, Zacha had a wide open breakaway with no one around him but Georgiev stoned him cold. Two minutes later Georgiev totally robbed Koepke on the doorstep as well. The Bruins caught a break when Rantanen got sent to the box for interference 7:32 into the period. On the power play, Marchand passed to Hampus Lindholm. He fired it on net and Pastrnak tipped it home for the goal to put the Bruins up by two. Just 13 seconds later, the puck was kicked to Hampus Lindholm and his shot went through the skates of Kastelic, through the pads of Georgiev for his first goal of the season. Then we got some fisticuffs as Zadorov got whistled for slashing Mathew Steinburg. Steinburg took exception and said to put em up! After a nice back and forth fight, the Avs went on the power play. MacKinnon passed it to Rantanen who found Makar at the point for the power play goal. The Bruins held the rest of the period to take a 4-2 lead going into the third period.

                                                            Mayhem at the Bell

The Bruins got a quick power play just 1:42 into the third period when Rantanen went off for hooking. The Bruins failed to score on the power play but the Bruins made a big mistake. Tufte got whistled for cross-checking 4:29 into the period. On the power play, MacKinnon passed to Makar. Makar passed it to Rantanen. His slapshot was good for a goal to pull the Avs within one. The Bruins defense then stoned the Avs cold the rest of the way with Korpisalo making some big stops. Then with just over two minutes left, the Avs pulled Georgiev. Beecher stole the puck from MacKinnon and shot it into the net for the empty net goal to put the Bruins back up by two. Colorado pulled Georgiev again and Korpisalo had to stop Makar again. That was it and the Bruins had won the game 5-3.

                                                            Big win

Reaction:

Good bounce back win by the Bruins and it came at a good time. The Avs are struggling to begin the season and the Bruins got a big road win on the team that won the Stanley Cup three years ago. They got a team effort all around with Pastrnak, Coyle, Lindholm and others getting in on the fun. Korpisalo continued to be an enigma as he allowed a really soft goal to Rantanen but made some unbelievable stops as well. If he can be a servicable backup to Jeremy Swayman going forward, it'll soften the blow of losing Linus Ullmark. Mark Kastelic is already becoming a fan favorite in Boston so it would be nice if Korpisalo lives up to his contract. As long as the Bruins stay healthy, they can compete with the other teams in the Atlantic.....except Florida. The Bruins now make their debut in the state of Utah when they face the Utah Hockey Club this Saturday night. The game begins at 9:00 PM Eastern time at Delta Center.

Panthers Frustrate, Beat Bruins (10/14/24)

Its one thing for the Boston Bruins to get frustrated by a borderline olympic diving team like the 2004-11 Montreal Canadiens, its another thing to get beat at your own game. The Florida Panthers once again got the Bruins to lose their composure and beat them on the scoreboard anyway in tonight's game. The Bruins were baited into taking NINE penalties as the Panthers poured it on. The Bruins scored first when John Beecher scored his first goal of the season but after that it was all Panthers. Anton Lundell and Sam Reinhart scored to end the period although Brandon Carlo tied the game. The Bruins back broke when Reinhart scored a shorthanded goal followed by another Lundell goal. Mason Lohrei managed to score his first of the season to bring the Bruins within one but all the Bruins did in the third period is get frustrated. A scrum with one minute left with the Panthers laughing at the Bruins all added up to a 4-3 defeat at the TD Garden.

                                                            Panthers beat the Bruins....again

The Panthers got the first chance one minute into the first period when Jeremy Swayman had to stop a Sam Bennett shot from point blank range. Sergei Bobrovsky denied a Morgan Geekie shot and Brad Marchand overskated the rebound three minutes into the period. Thirty seconds later Matthew Poitras set up Trent Frederic but Trent failed to score. The Bruins finally hit paydirt 4:53 into the period when Mason Lohrei passed it to Mark Kastelic. Kastelic fired on net and it was tipped in by John Beecher to put the Bruins on top. Swayman robbed Bennett again but they bagged Pavel Zacha for hooking on the play. Swayman denied both Carter Verhaeghe and Evan Rodrigues on the power play before Adam Boqvist was nabbed for tripping. Then on the four v four, Anton Lundell bullied Hampus Lindholm off the puck and whacked it behind Swayman to tie the game. Nikita Zadorov was robbed by Bobrovsky once play resumed and Brandon Carlo failed to score as well. Andrew Peeke tried to set up Justin Brazeau but he couldn't get his stick on it. Then 11:23 into the period, old pal AJ Greer looked to have cross-checked David Pastrnak into the boards but the refs didn't call it. Instead, Pavel Zacha resorted to fisticuffs with Greer. Worse, just 22 seconds later the refs called cross-checking on Charlie McAvoy to the dismay of the disgruntled fans. To cap it all off, Adam Boqvist dumped it to Sam Reinhart who scored easily to give the Panthers the lead. Then with 7:06 remaining, Pastrnak was whistled off for interference while Nate Schmidt and Marchand had a chinwag worthy of matching roughing penalties. The Bruins killed off the power play and got one of their own when Niko Mikkola was sent to the box for holding with 4:37 left. The Panthers killed that off and Zadorov flipped the puck out of the arena with 1:55 left. The Bruins managed to kill off the penalty to end the period trailing 2-1.

                                                                  Panthers pour it on

The Panthers got the first big chance of the second period on a one timer by Aaron Ekblad but Swayman saved it. Just five minutes into the period Cole Koepke dumped it to Kastelic who threw it to the point for Carlo. Carlo's slapshot went through and the Bruins had tied the game. Things looked good when Greer was sent off for interference eight minutes into the period, but disaster struck on the Bruins power play. Pastrnak was robbed by Bobrovsky then Poitras was stripped of the puck by Reinhart. Reinhart skated in and his first shot dropped Swayman, scoring on the rebound for the shorthanded goal. Swayman claimed interference but the refs once again dismissed the claim. The Bruins failed to score on the power play and the Bruins then made a huge mistake. Both defenseman went for a line change with 7 minutes left in the period and Gustav Forsling passed it to a wide open Lundell. Lundell scored on the breakaway to put the Panthers up by 2. The Bruins refused to give up as with just under six minutes left in the period, John Beecher passed it to Kastelic. Kastelic dished back to the point to Lohrei. Lohrei shoots....HE SCORESSSS! Lohrei's first of the season pulled the Bruins within one. No further shenanigans occurred and the Bruins went into the break trailing 4-3.

                                                        Lohrei scores

The Bruins blew their best chance to tie the game 6:44 into the third period when Zacha was robbed point blank by Bobrosvky and Pastrnak failed to score on the rebound. Ekblad took a tripping penalty with 9:58 left in the game but Brazeau failed to put the puck in the net. The Panthers pretty much played keep away the rest of the game with the Bruins not getting many good chances. With the game all but lost, things went haywire with 50 seconds left in the game. Pastrnak got called for slashing as Marchand and Verhaeghe got matching double minor roughing penalties. That was it and the Panthers had won the game 4-3.

                                                            Panthers win

Reaction:

The Panthers have the Bruins number real bad. In today's era with the "Adams" division format, the Bruins might have to play the Panthers in the playoffs in the first round or second depending on how the Toronto Maple Leafs finish. The Panthers know how to push buttons and they have the talent to put out your lights. The fact they did this one without Aleksander Barkov and Matt Tkachuk is frightening as well. The Bruins had their chances in the third period to tie the game but they couldn't crack Bobrovsky. Its only four games into the season but they have no answers for Florida right now. They're going to need to do something at the deadline if they want to outmuscle or outshoot the Panthers because right now, they can do neither. Amazing with 100 years of Bruins history and they're the ones losing their composure these days. The Bruins need to put the loss behind them because up next, they have a date in Denver with the Colorado Avalanche this Wednesday Night. The game begins at 9:30 PM Eastern time at Ball Arena.

Bruins Dethrone Kings in Overtime (10/12/24)

He's baaacckkkkkkk. Jeremy Swayman missed most of training camp with the Boston Bruins and looked shaky in his season debut on Thursday. Today he was his old self against the Los Angeles Kings in a Saturday matinee. He faced 34 shots and managed to stop 33 of them, including the ones in overtime. The Bruins defense also looked a lot better as they held the Kings to just one goal in regulation as well. Trevor Moore scored the first goal of the game for the Kings five minutes into the second period but Elias Lindholm tied it with just over three minutes into the second period. The Bruins and Kings plunged into overtime after a scoreless third period and who else but David Pastrnak scored the game winning goal. The Bruins survived to win the struggle 2-1 over the Kings in overtime at TD Garden.

                                                            Pasta wins it in OT

The Bruins got the first power play just 3:31 into the game when Alex Laferriere got sent to the penalty box for hooking. Brad Marchand gave the puck away to Trevor Moore who damn near put it past Jeremy Swayman, luckily Sway saved it. Pavel Zacha dished it to Charlie McAvoy but his blast was saved by Kings goalie Darcy Kuemper. That was the Bruins only shot for the first 14 minutes despite them getting a power play after Brandt Clarke was whistled for high sticking 7 minutes into the period. The Bruins missed a golden chance when Matthew Poitras shot it on net and Kuemper had to dive to rob Trent Frederic of a rebound goal. David Pastrnak also couldn't get it past Darcy in that sequence. Mason Lohrei found Charlie Coyle wide open but Kuemper saved that too. With four minutes left in the period, Laferriere walked in alone but Swayman made the save. With 45 seconds left, Marchand dished it to Morgan Geekie but Kuemper saved Morgan's shot attempt. The period ended scoreless 0-0.

                                                              Tough game so far

Just one minute into the second period, Coyle found Nikita Zadorov open but his slap shot was saved by Kuemper. Nikita Zadorov then got bagged for boarding just 3:19 into the period and the Kings went on the power play. Swayman made a big stop on Kevin Fiala and another on Adrian Kempe before Laferriere was also denied. Just as the power play was expiring, Quinton Byfield passed to Phillip Danault. Danault fired and the rebound went right to Moore with a wide open net. Moore scored to put the Kings on top just like that. Less than two minutes later, McAvoy was then whisked off for tripping but the Bruins killed off the penalty. Jordan Spence got tagged for interference with 8:03 left in the second period but the Bruins failed to score on the power play. Clarke got called for holding with 3:52 left but just nine seconds later, Zacha was hauled off for interference to make it four on four. Then Mikey Anderson turned over the puck right to Marchand. Marchand skated in alone but Kuemper stopped the shot. The rebound went to Lindholm who fired it in for the goal to tie the game with 3:10 left in the period. The Bruins killed off the nine second power play and with ten seconds left in the period, Poitras passed to a wide open Lohrei who clanged a shot off the post to end the period. The Bruins and Kings went into intermission tied 1-1.

                                                         Lindholm ties it up

The Kings got the first power play of the third period when Brandon Carlo went off for tripping 3:52 into it. Laferriere hit the post with the shot but otherwise the Kings couldn't cash in. With 6:16 left in the period, Pastrnak went off for slashing to give the Kings another power play. Moore was robbed point blank by Swayman and the final power play went to the Bruins with 3:03 left in the period. Byfield went off for holding the stick but the Bruins failed to capitalize on the power play again. That was it for the period and we headed to overtime.

                                                     On to OT we go

Fiala got robbed by Swayman just nine seconds into OT but ninety seconds into it, McAvoy and Zacha had a two on one. McAvoy passed it to Zacha but Kuemper made the save. Down the other end, Swayman robbed Byfield point blank. Matthew Poitras passed the puck to Mason Lohrei with 2:16 left and he gave it to Pastrnak. David passed it back to Lohrei but Pasta got stripped. Lohrei beat the Kings to the puck and swiped it over to Poitras. Poitras passed to Pastrnak who gave it to Lohrei. Lohrei gave it back to Pastrnak who shoots....HE SCORESSSSSSSS! Bruins win 2-1 in overtime!

                                                            Pasta wins it in OT

Reaction:

That was a damn good win in a tough, gritty game where offense was hard to come by. Pastrnak is the Bruins best player and he stepped up when the Bruins needed it the most in OT. Lindholm got the only goal the Bruins scored in regulation and Swayman stopped 33 of 34 shots to give the Bruins a chance. This is the Bruins defense fans were banking on with Swayman getting back into shape. The Bruins need to cut down on the damn penalties but other than that, they played a near flawless game defensively. They're not going to be able to outslug teams every night but they sure as hell grinded out this one. One thing's for sure, for a team that lost Jake DeBrusk, James van Riemsdyk and Pat Maroon, they seem to be rolling right along with the return of Poitras, Mark Kastelic and Elias Lindholm....for three games anyway. Now let's see if the Bruins can go on a nice winning streak. Their next test is a rematch at home with the Florida Panthers this Monday night. The game begins at 7:00 PM at TD Garden.

Bruins Win Gunfight With Montreal (10/10/24)

Its only been two games in the 2024-25 regular season so far for the Boston Bruins but defense apparently is optional. After allowing six goals to the Florida Panthers in the season opener, they allowed four goals tonight to the Montreal Canadiens. The good news was the Boston Bruins offense showed up tonight to score six of their own. Brendan Gallagher opened the scoring for Montreal in the first period on the power play but Charlie McAvoy answered with a power play goal of his own. Cole Caufield scored to put Montreal ahead but goals from Mark Kastelic and Elias Lindholm put Boston on top. David Pastrnak and Cole Koepke scored in the second period but Montreal rallied in the third. Josh Anderson and Gallagher both scored to pull the Canadiens within one but Kastelic scored his second with four minutes left to effectively end the game. The Bruins survived a high octane game with the Canadiens 6-4 at TD Garden.

                                                          This is the Sway

The Bruins wasted no time drawing a penalty when Cayden Primeau, the Montreal goalie, got called for tripping just 24 seconds into the game. It looked like Hampus Lindholm fired one past Primeau for a power play goal but Montreal coach Martin St. Louis challenged that Primeau was interfered with. Sure enough, the refs bowed to Montreal and said no-goal. Then 6:26 into the period Nikita Zadorov got called for holding. Brad Marchand blasted Alex Newhook but Lane Hutson passed it to Joel Armia. Armia fired it on net and Brendan Gallagher tucked in the puck for a goal against Jeremy Swayman to put Montreal on top. With 9:02 left in the period, Armia went off for tripping to put Boston on the power play. With "Kingdom" by Downstraight playing, Charlie McAvoy was so inspired he shot the puck past Primeau for a power play goal right off the faceoff. Just over a minute later Hutson passed the puck to Kaiden Guhle who threw it to Cole Caufield. Caufield tucked the puck past Swayman to put Montreal back on top. With 6:36 to go, Cole Koepke drilled the puck in, Zadorov passed it to Mark Kastelic who shot the puck in to tie the game for his first goal as a Bruin. With 5:34 to go, Trent Frederic was kicked to the penalty box for hooking. The Bruins killed off the penalty and the Bruins got another chance with 1:37 remaining. David Pastrnak passed it to Zadorov who fired on net, tipped in by Elias Lindholm for his first goal as a Bruin. That ended the first period with the Bruins up 3-2.

                                                     Marchand sets the tone

Swayman and the defense kept the lead intact throughout the first half of the second period and the Bruins got a powerplay four minutes into the period. Hutson got called for holding but Boston did nothing on the power play. Charlie Coyle got nabbed for high sticking 9:38 into the period but the Canadiens failed to score. Mike Matheson got called for tripping with 8:53 left in the period to put the Bruins on another power play. Marchand set up Pastrnak but Primeau stopped the slap shot. With 4:04 left in the period, Elias Lindholm passed it behind the net to Pavel Zacha. Zacha threw it in front where Pastrnak sniped the puck past Primeau to put the Bruins up by two. Less than a minute later, Carlo passed it up to John Beecher. Beecher threw it on net and Koepke dunked it in for his first goal as a Bruin. Then with 1:59 left, McAvoy took a tripping penalty. The Bruins managed to kill it off and went into the break up 5-2.

                                                         Bruins go up by three

The Bruins opened the third period killing the last second off the McAvoy penalty then went on the power play 4 minutes into the period when Caufield got called for hooking. The Bruins couldn't score and two minutes later, McAvoy flipped the puck out of the zone for a delay of game penalty. Just after killing it off, Oliver Kapanen passed to Guhle who fired it on net. Josh Anderson tipped it in for a goal to put the Canadiens down by two. With 4:17 left in the game Armia passed it down low to Jake Evans. Evans threw it in front of the net and Gallagher pumped it in to put the Habs down by one. Just seventeen seconds later, Carlo passed it to Koepke along the boards. He threw it down ice where Kastelic picked it up. Kastelic saw Beecher in front of the net and threw it towards him....but it just happened to bounce off Primeau and in for a goal to essentially end the game. A minute later, Marchand took a delay of game penalty but the Bruins were able to kill it off. The Canadiens pulled Primeau but couldn't score. The Bruins had won the game 6-4.

                                                              Bruins win

Reaction:

Swayman looked rusty as hell but the offense peppered the Canadiens in this one. Swayman only faced 24 shots and 4 of them went in. Still, the positives were everywhere like Koepke getting his first goal and Kastelic getting two. Kastelic is going to be popular with Bruin fans, just wait. That was a team effort on offense down the line with assists to set up the goals. Its only been two games but they've scored 10 goals already, hopefully they can keep that up. The defense needs a little work but Zadorov is still adjusting to a new scheme and Swayman has to essentially play himself into shape after missing most of training camp. Still, a win is a win, doesn't matter who its against. The Bruins now prepare to go for two wins in a row when they're back in action this Saturday afternoon at home against the Los Angeles Kings. The game begins at 1:00 PM at TD Garden.

Panthers Outgun Bruins on Opening Night (10/8/24)

The 2024-25 NHL season started for the Boston Bruins the same way the 2023-24 season ended, with a loss to the Florida Panthers. For most of the game it was utter domination by the defending Stanley Cup champions as the Panthers scored four goals in the first period to put it away early. Not only that, new goalie Joonas Korpisalo got roughed up, allowing six goals on thirty-five shot attempts. To add insult to injury, one of them was a shorthanded goal by Sam Reinhart. Jonah Gadjovich scored to make it 5-1 in the second period but Charlie McAvoy kept the Bruins in it with a goal. Trailing 6-2, Trent Frederic scored with just over 3 minutes left and David Pastrnak scored on the powerplay to make it 6-4 with 1:45 left. That was it as the Panthers mauled the Bruins 6-4 at Amerant Bank Arena.

                                              Opening night belonged to the Panthers

The Panthers set the tone early that this was going to be their night when Carter Verhaeghe sniped one off of Joonas Korpisalo just 67 seconds into the game on a breakaway. Four minutes later, Korpisalo made another save off a Verhaeghe shot. Fireworks erupted just 5:55 into the game when new Bruin Mark Kastelic rumbled with ex-Bruin AJ Greer. Thirty seconds later Evan Rodrigues blasted a slapshot off of Korpisalo and Sam Bennett poked the puck in to put Florida on top 1-0. Just over a minute later Anton Lundell passed it to Sam Reinhart for a one timer. Korpisalo left a rebound and Eetu Luostarinen jammed it in for another goal to put the Panthers up 2-0. Things looked bleak when Trent Frederic took an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty 9:18 into the period but the Bruins were able to kill it off. With 6 minutes left in the period, Verhaeghe beat Korpisalo clean but it rang off the post and out. Then new Bruin Nikita Zadorov took a cross-checking penalty with 5:10 left to put the Panthers on the power play. Andrew Peeke grabbed the puck, passed it ahead to new Bruin Elias Lindholm who dished it to Pavel Zacha. Zacha fired it past Sergei Bobrovsky to cut the lead in half with a short handed goal. The Panthers then served the humiliation back when Greer was sent to the box for hooking with 2:38 left. Brad Marchand was robbed by Bobrovsky and Charlie McAvoy's pass was stripped by Alexsander Barkov. Sam Reinhart took the pass, shot it over the stick of McAvoy past Korpisalo to break the Bruins back. One minute later, Greer came out of the box and fired on the net. Korpisalo saved it but left the rebound, Bennett punching it in for the goal to make it 4-1 Panthers heading into the second period. Brutal!

                                                        All Panthers in this one

The Panthers suffocated the Bruins in the second period and making them lose their composure. New Bruin Cole Koepke got bagged for hooking 3:32 into the period but somehow the Bruins killed it off. Just over nine minutes into the period, Uvis Balinskis passed it to old pal Jesper Boqvist. Boqvist drew Korpisalo out of the net then passed it to Jonah Gadjovich who scored easily to put Florida up by four. The Bruins did fight back when Hampus Lindholm passed it to John Beecher. Beecher shot it on net but the puck was kicked out by Bobrosvky. McAvoy dumped in the rebound for the goal to inch the Bruins closer with 7:28 left in the period. The Bruins went shorthanded when new Bruin Max Jones got called for unsportsmanlike conduct with 3:44 left in the period. The Bruins killed it off and Lundell got sent to the box for high sticking with 1:20 left in the period. The Bruins did nothing on the power-play and went into intermission down 5-2.

                                                       McAvoy scores

The Bruins failed to score with the time remaining to begin the third and Florida essentially ended it with 13:34 left in the game. Aaron Ekblad passed it to Matt Tkachuk who sent it up the boards to Rodrigues. Rodrigues scored but Sam Bennett took Korpisalo out with an unintentional clothesline. A scrum ensued and both Trent Frederic and Tkachuk joined Bennett in the penalty box. The Bruins did nothing on the power play and Jones got sent off for roughing with 10:23 left in the game. The Bruins killed it off but Zadorov was whistled for slashing with 5:44 left. The Bruins killed that one off too and finally struck with 3:09 left. Justin Brazeau won a puck battle behind the net and sent it in front for Frederic who scored to cut the lead in half. Twelve seconds later, Balinskis was called for tripping to put the Bruins on the power play. With 1:45 left, McAvoy dished it to Pastrnak who threw it in front looking for Lindholm. Instead, the puck bounced off the skate of Dmitry Kulikov and in for a Pastrnak goal to suddenly pull the Bruins within two. The Bruins pulled Korpisalo but couldn't get any further as the Panthers won the game 6-4.

                                                     Panthers win

Reaction:

Meet the new Bruins, same as the old Bruins. With Jeremy Swayman missing the entire training camp, the Bruins essentially HAD to start Korpisalo in this one and he proved why he never deserved the gigantic contract he has. Not only that, the defense totally sucked out there. Brandon Carlo was a -2, Mason Lohrei was a -3 and both Peeke & Zadorov were -1. The defense letting Boqvist & Gadjovich just walk in was inexcusable. Still, no need to overreact after the first game of the season but the talent discrepency between the two teams is appalling. The Bruins are trotting out Max Jones, Cole Koepke and Justin Brazeau mostly because Jake DeBrusk, James Van Riemsdyk and Pat Maroon are gone. They shed talent for the second year in a row and they paid for it tonight. Hopefully its not a trend for the rest of the season because we got a long way to go. The Bruins look to bounce back on Thursday night in the home opener against their century old rivals the Montreal Canadiens. The game begins at 7:00 PM at TD Garden.