So maybe yesterday's game against Carolina wasn't as beautiful as Monday's was. But the Bruins played well and came out of it with two points and an improved record of 15-6-2 (which, to anyone who doesn't know, puts us first in the Atlantic Division by three points).
This game gave us a little bit more trouble than it probably should have, but not for lack of effort on the Bruins part. The Bruins absolutely dominated puck possession and time in the offensive zone. But we had trouble finding a way to get the puck past Ward. It came down to our ability to lift the puck and find proper shot placement and for a while we just couldn't do either.
But you do have to give Ward credit. The guy was basically standing on his head for that team and he saved them from another washout. I mean, he faced 38 shots when he's been used to no more than 26 in his last four starts. The fact that he only let in three with the amount of offensive pressure the Bruins had on him is pretty good for a goalie who's been nothing but mediocre all season.
This game gave us a little bit more trouble than it probably should have, but not for lack of effort on the Bruins part. The Bruins absolutely dominated puck possession and time in the offensive zone. But we had trouble finding a way to get the puck past Ward. It came down to our ability to lift the puck and find proper shot placement and for a while we just couldn't do either.
But you do have to give Ward credit. The guy was basically standing on his head for that team and he saved them from another washout. I mean, he faced 38 shots when he's been used to no more than 26 in his last four starts. The fact that he only let in three with the amount of offensive pressure the Bruins had on him is pretty good for a goalie who's been nothing but mediocre all season.
And then there's Chad Johnson. At the beginning of the season I was a little bit iffy about the Bruins choice to put him as our back up goalie. I wasn't a fan of how he played in the pre-season but he has come back and proven me so very wrong. With last night's win, Johnson is 3-1 with a .917 SV%, which is impressive in and of itself. Watching him last night only proved he was the right choice. He was making smart, timely saves all game and displayed that good hockey sense we like to see in goalies.
Now, he may have let up two goals last night, but they weren't entirely his fault. Both of the goal scored were on power plays. The first goal, scored by Andrej Sekera from the blue line, was scored on the PP after Soderberg took a hooking penalty. A useless penalty led to a goal (who would of thought that could happen?) Despite how good our penalty kill has been recently, it kind of dropped the puck on this one by leaving the shooting lane open and letting that pass get through. But it also wasn't necessarily a difficult goal to stop. Johnson just misread the shot. The second goal, scored by Patrick Dwyer in the third after Dougie Hamilton took an interference penalty, presented the same issues for the PK unit and Johnson. And we can't forget the well deserved penalty shot that would have been Zdeno Chara's fault after he decided to break a Hurricane's stick as he went to shoot. He got lucky the refs didn't call that because that could have been a game changer. So the moral of the story here? Bruins need to cut it out with the useless penalties and be more self aware.
Now, he may have let up two goals last night, but they weren't entirely his fault. Both of the goal scored were on power plays. The first goal, scored by Andrej Sekera from the blue line, was scored on the PP after Soderberg took a hooking penalty. A useless penalty led to a goal (who would of thought that could happen?) Despite how good our penalty kill has been recently, it kind of dropped the puck on this one by leaving the shooting lane open and letting that pass get through. But it also wasn't necessarily a difficult goal to stop. Johnson just misread the shot. The second goal, scored by Patrick Dwyer in the third after Dougie Hamilton took an interference penalty, presented the same issues for the PK unit and Johnson. And we can't forget the well deserved penalty shot that would have been Zdeno Chara's fault after he decided to break a Hurricane's stick as he went to shoot. He got lucky the refs didn't call that because that could have been a game changer. So the moral of the story here? Bruins need to cut it out with the useless penalties and be more self aware.
Luckily for us, our offense came up big when it counted and offset those goals for the win:
1. Zdeno Chara on the power play: who would have thought the Bruins were capable of scoring on the power play? Our power play is 18th in the league at 18.2% and whenever we go on the power play, fans get up for a bathroom break. But the Chara Krug Lucic combination proved very effective in the first Bruins power play after Krug passed to Lucic, who shot the puck, creating the rebound that Chara was perfectly placed to bury. It was a beautifully organized play and the goal counted for Chara's 4th of the season.
2. Reilly Smith's backhand: I told you Reilly Smith was going to come up big this game. With a lot of traffic in front of the net and a great pass from Carl Soderberg, Smith was able to bury the puck right under Ward's gloved side for his fourth goal of the season. This goal gives Smith 15 points this season and puts him in third behind David Krejci and Milan Lucic on the Bruins. The kid's phenomenal, end of story.
3. David Krejci in overtime: Let me just say: Oh my god French Fries that goal was perfection. After a turn over in the defensive zone and a pass from Boychuk, Iginla drives down the middle, draws the two defenseman to him before passing to Krejci, who dangles until Ward is down and fires one in for the GWG. It was a beautiful, well executed play that led to a fantastic goal that counted as Krejci's 4th of the season (four seems to be the golden number this season).
1. Zdeno Chara on the power play: who would have thought the Bruins were capable of scoring on the power play? Our power play is 18th in the league at 18.2% and whenever we go on the power play, fans get up for a bathroom break. But the Chara Krug Lucic combination proved very effective in the first Bruins power play after Krug passed to Lucic, who shot the puck, creating the rebound that Chara was perfectly placed to bury. It was a beautifully organized play and the goal counted for Chara's 4th of the season.
2. Reilly Smith's backhand: I told you Reilly Smith was going to come up big this game. With a lot of traffic in front of the net and a great pass from Carl Soderberg, Smith was able to bury the puck right under Ward's gloved side for his fourth goal of the season. This goal gives Smith 15 points this season and puts him in third behind David Krejci and Milan Lucic on the Bruins. The kid's phenomenal, end of story.
3. David Krejci in overtime: Let me just say: Oh my god French Fries that goal was perfection. After a turn over in the defensive zone and a pass from Boychuk, Iginla drives down the middle, draws the two defenseman to him before passing to Krejci, who dangles until Ward is down and fires one in for the GWG. It was a beautiful, well executed play that led to a fantastic goal that counted as Krejci's 4th of the season (four seems to be the golden number this season).
With the Penguins coming up tomorrow, the Bruins are going to have to really watch those penalties and find ways to bury the puck, something we had some problems with yesterday. But in either case, tomorrow's game is going to be intense.
So until then,
Keep Calm and Bergeron!
So until then,
Keep Calm and Bergeron!