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In their regular season finale at TD Garden, the Boston Bruins showed glimpses of everything that’s made them one frustrating bunch for the 17,000 plus in the Garden’s black and gold seats. But, as has often been the case this season, it was Mr. Reliable,
Patrice Bergeron, with goals in regulation and the shootout that made sure the Bruins’ season-high 50-shot night didn’t go to waste against
James Reimer and the Toronto Maple Leafs in a 2-1 Boston victory.
“I thought we had some really good chances, good looks, made some really good saves,” Bergeron said after the win. “We were definitely having a lot of zone-time. And you know when we have 50 shots, we definitely have to score more than one goal, but we found a way and got the win.”
Looking to avoid their first season-series loss to Toronto since 2011, the Bruins opened this game up with an absurd 19-shot first period, and though Reimer stood tall, it was Bergeron that opened up the game’s scoring just 19 seconds into the middle frame by way of his 22nd goal of the year. Bergeron’s strike developed off a smart dump-in from No. 37, and continued by way of some smart ‘triangle’ offense from
David Krejci and
Brad Marchand to bring the puck back to Bergeron.
The goal, as routine as it may have looked, gave another glimpse into the chemistry developing between the Bergeron-Marchand combo’s newest addition, center-turned-right-winger David Krejci.
“I thought they played what they call that triangle well. Bergy gets his first shot, but he stays on it and he manages to get that second one off,” Julien said. “But, again, it’s a line that’s a possibility for us right now. Again, nothing’s carved in stone right now, so it gives you guys [the media] a lot of opportunities to make the lines for us and I can read those and decide which one makes the most sense [laughs].”
Toronto matched Boston’s tally at the 14:31 mark of the period, as
James van Riemsdyk got credit for a rolling puck that
Adam McQuaid tried his best to keep out of the back of the net before it hit
Tuukka Rask and popped into the Boston cage. Good for van Riemsdyk’s 26th of the year, the goal put the B’s and Leafs at a 1-1 draw through 40 with points a must for the B’s.
And a 16-shot third period without a goal wasn’t the only scare the Garden crowd had.
In an undeniably terrifying brush with what would have been the official ‘doomsday’ situation midway through the third period,
Zdeno Chara blocked a shot on a shorthanded rush from Toronto, and struggled to get to his feet and off the ice. The puck looked to hit the 38-year-old captain in either the foot or ankle, and while Chara hobbled off, the 6-foot-9 captain was back out there for the B’s ensuing penalty kill and finished the period for the Black and Gold.
A five-minute overtime that saw the B’s and Leafs each put three shots on net failed to settle anything, and it was a second-round shootout goal from Bergeron, and three saves from
Tuukka Rask that did the trick, putting the finishing touches on the Bruins’ 24th win at home this season.
Although the emphasis on another ugly two points will focus in on the B’s lack of finish around the net, it was the play of Rask that really gave the Bruins a chance on a ridiculous 49-save night from Reimer.
“When [Rask] is our best player then you know we have a good chance at winning a hockey game,” Boston defender
Torey Krug said. “He’s seeing the puck right now and it’s good. Guys are also committed to defense as well. It’s a combination of those two things and we’re not going to give up many goals and that’s what it takes to win hockey games right now.
“That’s how the Boston Bruins win hockey games, by not giving up more than a couple of goals.”
The win allowed the Bruins to keep pace in the absolutely bonkers Eastern Conference right now, as both the Red Wings and Senators won, keeping the B’s three-point lead for the second wild card spot intact. Also, with their loss to Columbus today, the Penguins remain in the wild card spot in the East, and are now tied with the Bruins with 95 points. Pittsburgh remains in the first wild card, however, by virtue of having played one fewer game than the Black and Gold of Boston to date.
Random thoughts and notes
- As is always the case with the final home game of the regular season, the B’s handed out some hardware in the Eddie Shore Award as voted by the old Boston Garden’s legendary “Gallery Gods” for hustle and determination, the Elizabeth Dufresne Trophy for the team’s top performer on home ice as voted by the Boston Chapter of the Pro Hockey Writers Association, the John P. Bucyk Award for charitable work in the Boston area, and the 98.5 The Sports Hub Three Stars Award.
This year, it was
Milan Lucic that skated away with the Shore Award. A bruising top-liner, Lucic has continued to be a battering ram for the B’s, coming into this game with 247 hits, the eighth-most in the NHL, along with 18 goals (fourth on the team) and 44 points (third on the team).
On the Dufresne front, it was goaltender Tuukka Rask that took home the honor. Rask was downright filthy at home this year, winning 22 of 36 at the Garden and posting a .930 save percentage. For what it’s worth (and that is, quite literally, a single vote), Rask earned my first-place vote for this award.
Defenseman
Dougie Hamilton took home the honors for the Bucyk Award. Hamilton’s biggest in-season charitable contribution with his decision to dress as Princess Elsa from the Disney movie “Frozen” during the B’s Halloween visit to Boston Children’s Hospital.
And Bergeron, Marchand, and Rask were named the recipients of the Three Stars Award.
- For the first time in his B’s career,
Gregory Campbell, a staple on Boston’s formerly invincible fourth line and noted ‘character guy’, sat this one out as a healthy scratch.
Benching the 31-year-old has always seemed like a tough move for
Claude Julien to commit himself to given his desire to consistently roll three penalty-killing forward combos and have depth at center. But this seemed overdue. Objectively speaking, this has been Campbell’s worst year as a Bruin.
Too many times has the Bruins’ fourth line been incapable of moving the puck out of their own end, or made some downright dumb decisions with the puck. And Julien, who has already scratched Danny Paille and Max Talbot at different points this season, has tried just about everything to make it work.
“Listen, I think Soupy’s one of our great faceoff guys and he’s a good penalty killer. At the same time, I feel we’ve got a lot of players that can go in and out right now,” Julien said after the win. “That’s one of the reasons, but at the same time I’m trying to create a little bit of competition here; I don’t want anybody comfortable, knowing that they’re automatics game in and game out.”
Although you can talk about ‘rotation’, this was a test run for the postseason, really. This was about the Bruins seeing how much talent they could spread across a four-line run, and did it ever work.
The new-look fourth line -- which started out with a strong trio of Talbot,
Chris Kelly, and
Brett Connolly -- had a clear match-up advantage all game long. And while it’s obvious that the fourth line is at its best with Kelly at center, I’d honestly be shocked if Campbell rides the pine through the postseason. As much as he’s struggled, he’s a player that Julien loves and relies on for a number of different situations, especially in penalty kill and situations with the oppositions’ net empty.
But in a year where the Boston coaching staff has had to abandon many of their old philosophies, that could obviously change if the ‘new’ fourth line has nights like they had tonight.
- It’s funny how much the tone around
Phil Kessel has changed in Boston. Years ago, from about 2009 to 2012 I’d say, Kessel would touch the puck and the Garden would boo at a deafening rate. Now? It’s almost like the fans here feel bad for the guy. The dude looks straight-up weathered.
Up next
The Black and Gold are off until Wednesday, when they’ll travel to Verizon Center for a head-to-head with the Washington Capitals in D.C.. The Bruins have been shutout in both of their prior matchups with
Braden Holtby and the Caps.
Ty Anderson has been covering the Boston Bruins for HockeyBuzz.com since 2010, is a member of the Pro Hockey Writers Association's Boston Chapter, and can be contacted on Twitter, or emailed at Ty.AndersonHB[at]gmail.com
Boston Bruins Blogger •Bruins Feature Columnist • 
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