The Minnesota Wild came into Tuesday night’s game against the Bruins struggling on their road trip, having lost their last two before coming into Boston. They left with a much better mindset and a 5-0 victory to finish out the trip on Thursday in Buffalo. The Boston Bruins are also heading out on a road trip, taking on the New York Rangers in the first of their 14 back-to-back game nights this season.
The Bruins have yet to score first this season—in which they have now played six games. Generally they have found themselves down at least one goal before they even get on the board. While on the road, this hasn’t seemed to be the emotional problem it is at home. Their last two games at TD Garden though have seen them fall apart in the second period, and as their opponent’s goals mount, their play becomes worse.
Tuesday night saw them not only perhaps fighting this mentality, but also plagued with injuries. Their AHL affiliated goalie tandem of Malcolm Subban and Zane McIntyre, from the Providence Bruins, were between the pipes as Tuukka Rask continues to be listed as day-to-day and Tuesday morning it was announced that back-up Anton Khudobin will miss approximately three weeks with an upper body injury. Add to that the later announcement that forward David Backes would also be out and listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury and lines were adjusted.
It was expected that the Bruins would not only step up their defensive game in front of Subban, but that the forwards would be hungry to get on the board first. Neither was the case. Subban would get pulled after letting in the third goal, and McIntyre would let in two more before the final buzzer.
Like their last two home games, the first period really had nothing to show for it—not really even any solid plays or passes that could be appreciated. However, as the teams headed down the tunnels with no score it felt eerily like the Bruins game against the Canadiens on Saturday. Unfortunately it turned out to actually be worse.
Charlie Coyle
The Wild came out and scored their first just seven seconds past the five-minute mark of the middle frame. At least that one was scored East Weymouth, Massachusetts native, and Boston University alumni, Charlie Coyle. However, it was the second goal, scored just 12 seconds later by Chris Stewart that seemed to ensure that the wheels fell off the Black and Gold’s wagon.
“Our second periods have been really bad. First period was okay. Second period, we come out and don’t respect the system, and that’s what happens,” a dejected David Krejci said after the game. “It feels like we’re losing puck battles. We’re not staying in the battles, we’re not stopping, we’re just kind of swinging away and they’re getting odd man rushes.”
The Bruins have very little time to adjust anything, because they hopped a plane shortly after the game and will have one practice at Madison Square Garden before taking on the New York Rangers, who are 4-2-0 in their first six games. So how do they fix it?
“We’ve got to do our jobs, simple as that,” head coach Claude Julien said. “That’s what I’m going to tell the players, same thing I’m telling you right now. Do your job and those things won’t happen. They know what they have to do; they’ve just got to do it.”
CHICAGO — Dubuque Fighting Saints goaltender Jaxon Castor was named the CCM/USHL Goaltender of the Week for his exploits over the weekend in Youngstown. His strong play led to a shutout of the Phantoms on Friday night, 3-0, and he followed up the effort with an efficient 22-save effort in a 4-1 win on Saturday night at the Covelli Centre.
Jaxon Castor
In total, he denied 40 of 41 opportunities that headed his way.
“This is part of what you play for,” said Castor, upon learning of the award. “I’m honored to have been recognized, and I’m going to keep playing good hockey the rest of the way.”
Castor, an Arizona State University commit, reversed his personal fortunes after losing four consecutive decisions by winning these last two at Youngstown in decisive fashion. His goals-against average dropped to 2.13, and his save percentage rose a full 20 percentage points to .912 after his award-winning weekend. Over his last three starts, he has stopped 63 of the last 66 shots fired his way (.954 save percentage), going 2-1-0 in that span.
Only four other goaltenders in the USHL have played as many, or more, games than Castor has started (8). Of those qualified, he has the second-lowest goals-against average, and the third-highest save percentage.
Catch Castor and the Fighting Saints this weekend in a back-to-back with the Waterloo Black Hawks starting on Friday, October 28 at Young Arena, and then at Our House on Saturday, October 29 for our Pet Supply Drive, sponsored by That’s My Dog! Bring pet supplies and other practical cleaning supplies to the door to benefit the Dubuque and Jackson County Humane Societies. For tickets, go to DubuqueFightingSaints.com.
###
About the Dubuque Fighting Saints
The Fighting Saints returned to USHL play in the brand new Mystique Community Ice Center during the 2010-11 season, winning the Clark Cup in their first year back in the USHL. The Fighting Saints continued their success with a historic season in 201213, finishing with a franchise best 4511‐8 record. The team claimed the Anderson Cup as the USHL’s regular season champions for the first time in 30 years, and also earned the Clark Cup for second time in three seasons. In August 2013, the team took the Bronze Medal while representing the United States at the Junior Club World Cup in Omsk, Russia. The Fighting Saints have reached the Clark Cup Final three times in the past six seasons. The club has produced a number of players that moved on to NCAA Division I hockey and have been drafted by NHL teams, including Zemgus Girgensons, Johnny Gaudreau and Mike Matheson. The original Fighting Saints competed in the USHL for 21 seasons (1980–2001). The club won the Clark Cup as playoff champions on three occasions (1981, 1983, 1985) under head coach Jack Barzee. One of the most well-known alumni of the original Fighting Saints was Gary Suter, a 17‐year NHL veteran, two-time Olympian, Stanley Cup champion, and member of the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame.
About Northern Lights Hockey, LLC
Northern Lights Hockey, LLC is the company that owns and operates the USHL franchise in Dubuque, Iowa. The owners of Northern Lights Hockey, LLC collectively provide an extensive background in both business and hockey, and represent interests on a national and local level. Philip Falcone, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of HC2 Holdings, Inc. and former part owner of the NHL’s Minnesota Wild, is the company’s principal owner. The ownership group also includes Peter Chiarelli, Edmonton Oilers President of Hockey Operations and General Manager, Mark Falcone, and Brad Kwong, Managing Partner of Northern Lights Hockey, LLC. Philip Falcone, Chiarelli and Kwong all played hockey together at Harvard University in the mid-1980s. The group also includes local Iowan partners Mark Falb and David S. Field, M.D. Falb currently serves as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Westmark Enterprises, Inc. and Kendall / Hunt Publishing Company. Dr. Field has practiced orthopedic surgery for 30 years and has been the driving force behind hockey in Dubuque. Dr. Field also owned the Dubuque Thunderbirds, the USA Hockey Tier III team that competed in the Central States Hockey League through the 2009–10 Season.
BOSTON – Boston Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney announced today, October 25, that goaltender Anton Khudobin has suffered an upper body injury and is expected to miss approximately three weeks.
Sweeney also announced that AHL Providence Bruins goalie Malcolm Subban has been recalled on a day-to-day basis and will start tonight against the Minnesota Wild.
With Tuukka Rask listed day to day for an undisclosed injury and Khubodin’s extended leave, the Bruins turned to Providence, recalling Subban and sending defenseman Rob O’Gara to Providence.
Subban, 22, hasn’t been hot in the AHL so far with a 0-3-1 record, a 4.50 goals-against-average, and a .846 save percentage.
“I can’t control any of that stuff,” coach Claude Julien told NHL.com after morning skate at Warrior Ice Arena. “I just want him to go in tonight, play a real solid game because we know he can. He’s a good goaltender. Just because he had a bit of a rough outing doesn’t mean he has to have one tonight. This is an opportunity for him to play well and to demonstrate that he’s ready to play in the NHL and that’s all he’s got to do.”
In 99 games over four seasons with the Providence Bruins, Subban has proven he has the chops with a 45-31-15 record. Last season, he finished with a .911 save percentage in 27 games.
The Toronto, Ontario native younger brother to P.K. Subban was the 24th overall pick by Boston in the 2012 entry draft, is going into his second NHL game with confidence.
“I think just not overthinking it,” (Malcolm) Subban said. “I think just play my game, be relaxed in net is the biggest thing for me. If I can do that, I’ll have a really good game.”
The team recalled goaltender Zane McIntyre from the Providence Bruins on an emergency basis Saturday and assigned him back to the AHL Sunday.
Khudobin has started two games with Boston this season and in his 8-year NHL career, the 5-foot-11, 203-pound netminder has recorded a 44-41-8 record with a 2.45 goals against average and .917 save percentage.
The UST-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan native was originally selected by Minnesota in the seventh round (206 overall) of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. He signed with Boston as a free agent on July 1, 2016.
McIntyre joined the team for Tuesday’s morning skate at Warrior Ice Arena and be available for their game vs. Minnesota at TD Garden at 7 p.m. This is the second NHL recall of his career after being recalled on an emergency basis on Saturday, October 22, when he dressed as a backup for the team’s game vs. Montreal.
McIntyre, 24, has appeared in three games for Providence in 2016-17, compiling a 1-0-0 record and currently leads the AHL in goals against average (0.44) and save percentage (.977). The 6-foot-2, 206-pound netminder played his first professional season with Providence in 2015-16, recording a 14-8-7 record with a 2.68 goals against average and .898 save percentage in 31 games. He had a six-game point streak (4-0-2) and allowed two goals or fewer in 13 of his 28 complete games.
The Thief River Falls, Minnesota native was originally selected by Boston in the sixth round (165 overall) of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.
O’Gara is in the midst of his first full professional season with the Bruins organization in 2016-17. He has appeared in three games with Boston, recording a plus-one rating. The 6-foot-4, 205-pound defenseman also skated in five games with Providence in 2015-16, posting one goal and four penalty minutes with a plus-two rating.
The Massapequa, New York native was originally selected by Boston in the fifth round (151 overall) of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.
TRANSACTION: Bruins issue update on goaltender Anton Khudobin; recall goaltender Malcolm Subban from Providence on emergency basis; assign defenseman Rob O’Gara to Providence.
Tonight the Sabres, fresh off a four-day break, will be waiting for the Flyers to arrive home from playing the Habs last night. The Flyers need to get off to better starts to games and maybe even score a first period goal since they have only done that once this year. If they can shut down the first two lines of the Sabres then they will have a good chance at winning the game. Philadelphia needs to get pucks towards the net because this will be Anders Nilsson’s first start of the season since Robin Lehner is out with an illness. The Orange and Black will also need to keep an eye on defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, who will jump into the play offensively.
Buffalo needs to come out with energy in the first period and maybe play physical since the Flyers are coming off a loss the night before. The Sabres will need to keep an eye on Philadelphia’s second line of Travis Konecny,Sean Couturier, and Jake Voracek, which has been the best line so far for the Flyers. Philadelphia doesn’t have the best penalty kill so the Sabres should take advantage of power plays. The biggest question for Buffalo is: will the change from wing to center get Sam Reinhart and his line going offensively?
The Minnesota Wild come to town on Thursday night to face the Sabres. The Wild will need to keep an eye on Ristolainen and be aware of where he is while on the ice. Minnesota needs to get the first goal to take the home crowd out of the game early and then build on the lead from there. The Wild need to take advantage of chances and also be better in the defensive zone to avoid giving up as many goals as they have so far this season.
The Sabres will again be facing a pretty balanced lineup so if they can keep Ryan Suter and Zach Parise to minimal production then they have a shot at winning the game. They’ll need to get shots to the net and use their speed to create, and have guys jump into, plays. Buffalo needs to take chances and be aggressive in the offensive zone since they are basically a two-line team with one defenseman pitching in on the scoring too.
On Saturday night, the Florida Panthers will visit Buffalo in an Atlantic Division showdown. The Panthers need to get their power play going as they have struggled early on in the season. They’ll need to get pucks to the net and get a forechecking game established to force turnovers and create scoring chances.
Buffalo will need to win the battle at even strength since the Panthers haven’t been giving much up while down a man. The Panthers have a pretty balanced scoring attack so the Sabres need to be smart with and without the puck. Buffalo will also need to keep the damage done by the top line of Florida to a minimum if they want a shot at winning the game. The Sabres will also need to be patient with the puck to create some chances.
The Lightning will need to watch out for the speed of the Leafs’ rookies and try to keep them in check point-wise since they’ve been producing early this season. The Bolts will need to get pucks to the net especially if Frederik Andersen is in goal; he has given up a few “soft” goals this year. Tampa Bay will need to establish a forecheck to force the Leafs players into turning the puck over to get more scoring chances while in the offensive zone. If the Bolts can keep the duo of Auston Matthews and William Nylander off the board, as well as watch out for the defense since they like to jump into the play offensively, then they have a good shot at winning the game on Tuesday night.
Toronto will play host to the Lightning so they need to get the first goal to keep the home crowd in the game early on. If they get that lead then they will need to be careful with the puck and limit mistakes since the Leafs have already blown a few leads. The Tampa Bay defensemen like to jump in on the play so the Leafs will have to keep an eye out for that when defending their own zone. If Toronto can play a complete game for 60 minutes like in their home opener then they have a decent shot to win this game.
On Thursday night, the Panthers will visit Toronto for the first time this year. The Panthers need to keep the penalties to a minimum since the Maple Leafs have a decent power play. Florida will also need to get their own power play going since it’s been a struggle for them to score goals with the man advantage. The Panthers will need to be the better team at even strength if they can’t manage anything while on the power play. They will have to keep the kids off the board and make the veteran players take the lead.
The Leafs will need to get the first goal since the Panthers are a good team when playing with the lead. Toronto should utilize their speed to draw penalties since the power play has been good for them. The Maple Leafs need to keep an eye on Jonathan Marchessault whenever he is on the ice since he is the leading scorer for the Panthers, and is off to a hot start. The veteran players need to step up their game and help out the kids especially on the defensive side of the puck if the Leafs want to win this game.
The Habs have gotten off to another hot start this year, and they aren’t afraid to throw their weight around. The Canadiens also have some speed but they’ll need to be patient with the puck since Toronto likes to block shots. Montreal needs to get in on the forecheck and create turnovers to get some scoring chances, and ultimately goals. If the Habs can win the special teams battle then they should win the game.
The Maple Leafs will need to keep the puck away from Shea Weber especially while the Habs are on the power play since he has a heck of a shot from the point. Toronto will need to play physical and try to force turnovers to play in the Canadiens end of the ice. The Leafs have a ton of speed but they’ll need their big players like James Van Riemsdyk to get in front of the net to screen Carey Price to get some goals. If Carey Price can see it then he will most likely make the save and cover up the puck.
This past week, the Predators lost 2-1 to the Dallas Stars and 5-3 to the Red Wings. On Saturday it was explained that most of the team seemed to have some type of food poisoning while in Detroit. And always good for an amazing quote, Coach Peter Laviolette had this to say:
Peter Laviolette this AM after answering food poisoning questions: "Nobody wants to talk hockey? Just want to talk throw-up and diarrhea?"
Eight players including new captain Mike Fisher, forwards Colton Sissons, and Craig Smith, and goalies Pekka Rinne and Marek Mazanec were sick. Because of that, the Preds recalled 5 players on an emergency basis from Milwaukee; goaltender Juuse Saros, forwards Frederick Gaudreau, Trevor Smith, Austin Watson, and Harry Zolnierczyk. In addition, the team placed forward Cody Bass on injured reserve with an upper-body injury.
Pekka Rinne says he started feeling sick in 2nd period on Friday in Detroit, tried not to think about it. Finished with 38 saves. #Preds
The newly-formed team made up of mostly Admirals players ended up beating the Stanley Cup winning Penguins 5-1 on Saturday night in Nashville. Kevin Fiala, the Preds’ #11 overall 2014 NHL Entry Draft pick, scored his first two goals of the season (his first NHL goal was during the 2015-2016 season) and Viktor Arvidsson also scored twice (Calle Jarnkrok had the other goal). This game was Finnish rookie Juuse Saros’ first NHL win:
“He just looked really poised, looked really comfortable,” Rinne said of Saros. “[Pittsburgh scored early], but the rest of the night, I felt that he just looked super comfortable. he’s obviously he’s agile, he’s fast and he played to his strengths, but at the same time he’s really patient and looked really calm in net. I was really happy to see that. It’s always a big deal when you get your first career NHL win, so it was nice to get that for Juuse.”
Juuse Saros' first NHL win was made more special because it came against Marc-Andre Fleury, an idol of his.
P.K. Subban is doing some awesome stuff. ESPN did a story on him and how he’s handling his new digs in Nashville (spoiler: he loves it and knows way too many Johnny Cash songs). The Tennessee Titans (NFL) have a thing called “The Titans’ 12th man” which is pretty much the person who pumps up the crowd and P.K. wrote about his experience this Sunday.
The Predators now have 3 Swiss players on their team. Last season there were 14 Swiss players who appeared in NHL games, the most in the country’s history. Mark Streit, the former Islanders captain (currently a Flyer), was the first Swiss NHL player and that was only in 2005.
Matt Carle gets the only assist on the Fiala goal, his first point as a member of the #Preds.
The biggest story for the Dallas Stars early in the season has been all the injuries that the players have suffered. This week they’ll face off against the Winnipeg Jets and the Minnesota Wild.
On Tuesday night, the Stars will take on the Jets at home. Winnipeg is allowing too many goals and not scoring enough, which is part of the reason that they have struggled in the early part of the season. The Jets will need to capitalize on their power play opportunities since the Stars have already allowed five power play goals against. Winnipeg should try to get after the defense of Dallas, and force turnovers. The Jets also need to get pucks to the net since the goaltending duo of Kari Lehtonen and Antti Niemi haven’t been exactly stellar and will allow some goals.
Dallas needs to stop Mark Scheifele since he is the best player on the Jets. The Stars should get some power play chances that the team will need to cash in on since Winnipeg has struggled on special teams. Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn will need to carry the team since they’ve suffered a lot of injuries to forwards. A key for Dallas is to get through the game without any more injuries to the top forwards on the team. The Stars also need their goalies to stop some pucks before they get into the back of the net.
These two same teams will face off again on Thursday night, but this time in Winnipeg. The Jets should try to get the first goal of the game to keep the Winnipeg crowd in it. Scheifele and the Jets top line will need to produce if they want to beat the Stars. Winnipeg will need to keep the duo of Seguin and Benn off the board or at least keep their point production low. Dallas still has a decent power play so it’ll be in Winnipeg’s best interest to stay out of the penalty box.
If Dallas can grab the lead then the team will want to be smart with the puck because the Jets have shown that they have the ability to come back in a game where they are down. The Stars will need to tighten up defensively and avoid turnovers, especially by the blue line. Lehtonen or Niemi, whoever is in goal, needs to make the routine saves to keep his team in the game, and maybe even get some highlight reels saves at crucial times during the game.
On Saturday night, the Stars will take on the Wild in Minnesota. The Wild should try and contain the duo of Benn-Seguin because if they do that then they have a decent shot at pulling off the win. Minnesota needs to get shots to the net and take advantage of the turnovers and scoring chances throughout the game. The Wild need to use their speed and play a physical game to try and wear the Stars down. If the Wild should have any chances with the man advantage then they need to capitalize since the Stars have struggled early on the penalty kill.
The Stars need to come out strong and score goals since the Wild have had trouble scoring goals in the first period. Dallas will need to keep pushing if the team can manage to get a lead since Minnesota has come back to win a few games when down. The Stars need to get the puck to the net because they’ll have a better chance to score some goals, all while remaining patient since the Wild like to block shots. They will need to win the battles and create chances since the Wild won’t just let the Stars walk all over them.
On Tuesday night, the Lightning take on the Maple Leafs for the first time this season. The Leafs have had some problems holding leads in games. Toronto lost a back-and-forth game to the Ottawa Senators in overtime. The Winnipeg Jets came back to win in overtime, after being down 4-1 after two periods. The Chicago Blackhawks came back after being down 4-2 in the third period to win in a shootout. The starting goalie for Toronto needs to make the routine saves, and keep pucks out of the net. The Leafs are going to have to protect the puck better since the Lightning will cash in on mistakes.
If Tampa Bay should get down a few goals then they don’t need to change the game plan or panic because they’ve come back in games already this season. The Lightning will need to keep the kids in check since they are producing a decent amount of offense in the early going. Also, they need to watch out for the speed of the Leafs and the breakout plays. Tampa Bay needs to be patient with the puck and not force something that isn’t there.
On Thursday night, the Lightning will visit the Bell Centre and the Montreal Canadiens, who happen to be off to a hot start. The Habs haven’t been giving up much defensively, and have been able to put pucks in the opposing team’s net. If Montreal continues doing those two things then they have a decent shot at beating with the Lightning. The Habs will need to keep an eye on Tampa Bay’s defense since they like to jump into the play offensively.
The Bolts will have to try and stop the balanced Habs offense. The Lightning need to get pucks to the net with bodies in front looking for either a rebound chance or a deflection. If either Habs goalie, Carey Price or Al Montoya, can see the puck then they’ll most likely make the save. The Bolts need to take advantage of the Habs miscues since they don’t give up many shots against or chances. The biggest thing for Tampa Bay is to get the first goal and take the crowd out of the game.
The Bolts will finish off the week with a visit to New Jersey to face the Devils for the second time this year. In their first meeting, the Lightning won 3-2 in overtime. New Jersey need to keep an eye out for the use of the stretch pass by the Tampa Bay defense. The Devils need to establish a forecheck and get pucks to the net since the Lightning have allowed some goals this year. New Jersey will need to play a smart defensive game since the Bolts have a balanced lineup.
The Lightning got off to a sloppy start the last time these two teams met, and need to build on the complete game they played last time they were on the ice. Tampa Bay needs to capitalize on its chances because the Devils don’t give up a lot of chances. The Lightning will need to keep an eye on Taylor Hall, who had three goals in the early going to lead the Devils.
The Philadelphia Flyers will be a busy group this week with having to play four games in six days. They’ll face one back-to-back situation and will play three out of four games at home. Philadelphia will end their week facing in-state rival, the Pittsburgh Penguins.
On Monday, the Flyers will face the Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Centre. The Canadiens are off to a 4-0-1 start to the season and have been scoring goals while not allowing too many. It helps to have Carey Price in net, but he missed a few games due to the flu. The Habs need to try and get the first goal because the Flyers have one first period goal in fives games played. Montreal needs to take advantage of being up a man since the Philadelphia penalty kill hasn’t exactly been great this season. The Flyers defense will chip in on the offensive side of the puck so the Habs will need to keep an eye on them throughout the game.
The Orange and Black will need to get off to a good start and maybe even get the first goal to take the crowd out of the game early. The Flyers need to move the puck quickly and try to utilize the stretch pass since the Habs haven’t been giving up much in the way of goals to the opposition. If Price starts then Philadelphia will need to find a way to beat him, most likely by getting traffic in front of him and going for the deflections. If he can’t see the puck then he’ll have a harder time making the save. The Flyers will also have to keep an eye on the Canadiens defense since they can produce and put up some points. The biggest key to winning is stopping the top line of Max Pacioretty,Brendan Gallagher, and Alex Galchenyuk, who have 15 points in the early going.
There won’t be much time for rest as the Flyers are right back at it on Tuesday night at home against the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres will need to come out with energy and establish the play in the offensive zone early since Philadelphia played the previous night. Buffalo will need to keep an eye on the trio of Travis Konecny, Sean Couturier, and Jake Voracek, who have been the Flyers best scoring line this year. Buffalo needs to take advantage of power plays because the Flyers will give up some chances.
Philadelphia will need to find a way to get off to a decent start since they are the team that played the night before. If the Flyers can shut down one of the two lines that are point producers for the Sabres then they should have a shot at winning the game. The Orange and Black will need to keep an eye on defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, who can contribute on the offensive side of the puck. He leads the Sabres with five assists and is tied for the lead in points with Ryan O’Reilly at 5. If Philadelphia can get pucks towards the goalie and test him early then maybe they can finally get some first period goals.
On Thursday night the Arizona Coyotes come to the Wells Fargo Center. The Coyotes have struggled in the early season but did beat the Flyers in overtime on October 15 in Arizona. The Coyotes will have to stay out of the box against Philadelphia because they do have a decent power play. The Flyers have three lines that can beat you so the Coyotes will have their hands full.
The Flyers need to get the first goal and build on the lead from there since the Coyotes struggle when the opponent has a lead heading into the final period. Philadelphia needs to avoid looking past the Coyotes, play with energy, and get a good forecheck established early. They will also need to use their speed to get to loose pucks and force turnovers. The Orange and Black need to keep the trio of Jordan Martinook, Brad Richardson, and Shane Doan off the board, and make the other lines beat them.
On Saturday night, it’s the first meeting of the season between the Pennsylvania state rivals. The Penguins have been without Sidney Crosby due to a concussion that he suffered while practicing. Pittsburgh won’t be able to just focus on one line for the Flyers since the Flyers have actually gotten some balanced scoring so far. Philadelphia isn’t as big this year as they have been in the past so Pittsburgh should try to play a physical game. The Pens needs to get in on the forecheck and force turnovers, which will lead to scoring chances.
The Flyers have to have a good start to the game especially since the crowd will be into the game right from the drop of the puck. The Flyers need to be smart with the puck and try to slow down the Penguins especially in transition. Even though the Penguins haven’t had Crosby to start the season, Philadelphia still needs to stay out of the penalty box because the Pens’ power play is still dangerous. The most likely situation has Couturier going up against Evgeni Malkin so the Flyers will need to find another line to stop the line of Scott Wilson, Matt Cullen, and Patric Hornqvist.
The Flyers won’t have much time to rest since they’ll be right back at it on Sunday to face the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Boston Bruins played their fifth game of the season, though it was only their second game at home. Unfortunately for them, they played host to the Montreal Canadiens, a team that has had a winning streak on TD Garden ice since 2012. These two Original Six franchises, playing in their first of four games this season, met for an NHL record 735th time.
In addition, it was announced on Friday that Tuukka Rask was off for a maintenance day, but then was listed as day-to-day with “general soreness.” When the organization announced the call up from the Providence Bruins of Zane McIntyre as emergency backup, it was clear that Anton Khudobin would be starting for the Bruins.
Given the number of shots that the Canadiens put on net, Khudobin did a solid job of keeping his team in it for the first 31:40 of the game. But even the greatest of goaltenders needs some help from the five other guys out on the ice with him in the matching jerseys, and such was not the case for Khudobin. A complete breakdown of coverage allowed Canadiens Brendan Gallagher to get Montreal on the board first.
“Listen, Anton gave us a chance to win for the longest time,” Bruins head coach Claude Julien said postgame. “I don’t think we helped him at the other end of it, but he had made the saves that he had to make, and some of the mistakes, breakaways and that kind of stuff, we know better than to give those.”
Many of the Bruins interviewed after the game agreed that the first period was certainly their best of the night. Though outshot 13 to 6 in shots on goal the squad attempted a total of 22 shots in that first frame—eight of them were blocked and eight missed the target altogether. And most of those same players agreed that the second period was where things began to unravel.
“We need to get more shots through. We were recorded for six shots on net, yet I think we had over 20-some attempts,” Julien said. “The second period came back to haunt us. We were flat coming out. We didn’t make good outlet passes, and we spent way too much time in our own end.”
Even in those instances where the Bruins were able to get into the offensive zone, they continued to struggle with getting the shots on goal. By the end of the game, they would be credited with 21 shots on net, but in fact they attempted 55—17 a piece being blocked or missing the target. This as opposed to the Canadiens who had a total of 50 shots: 29 on net, 6 blocked and 15 that missed completely.
It wasn’t just the shots that weren’t hitting the target though. Boston struggled in other areas. Even Patrice Bergeron—an above 50% winner on the draw—had a below average night. As the puck continued to elude the target the team also began to overthink their game.
Brandon Carlo
“We didn’t make the easy plays too may times and when you do that, it creates turnovers and you spend more time in your zone than you’d like to,” Bergeron explained. “It’s not just the faceoff; I think there’s a lot of areas we lost too many battles.”
Looking at the statistics after the game offered one silver lining—the defense pairing of Zdeno Chara (with 24:35 TOI) and Brandon Carlo (with 22:16, just 13 seconds less than Torey Krug who was second in TOI of d-men) were not on the ice for any of the Montreal goals. Carlo had one of the blocked shots against the Canadiens and five hits, while Chara had three shots on goal and two hits. It will be interesting to see how this pairing continues, as right now the veteran and the rookie seem to be working well together.
Boston take Sunday off, but will be back at practice on Monday morning at their new practice facility in Brighton—Warrior Ice Arena—in preparation for hosting the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday before heading back out on the road. Tuesday’s game is also the one in which the Bruins host Hockey Fights Cancer. If you are going, add a little lavender—the color that represents cancer awareness—to your black and gold. The B’s will be doing their part in many ways, including using lavender stick tape that night.
Prev
