If you waited until 2:30AM or like myself, woke up this morning and watched the game on DVR, you were treated to a pretty entertaining hockey game. With much of their projected NHL roster with them, the Bruins beat the Flames 4-3 in a shootout. The game was the first of two against the Flames in the 2018 O.R.G. NHL China Games.

The Bruins jumped out to a 3-0 first period lead with three goals in a 1:55 span. The Flames would score the next three, before the Bruins prevailed in the shootout, with Jake DeBrusk picking up the shootout winner.

Here are some initial thoughts from the Bruins preseason opener.

Jaroslav Halak, the biggest bright spot
The Bruins brought Halak in to not only provide some stability behind starting goalie Tuukka Rask, but to also push Rask competitively as the season rolls along. Halak was excellent in this one, making 34 saves to keep the Bruins in a game where they were not the better team.

Halak did leave the game briefly in the third period with some equipment issues, but quickly returned to the game after Rask made three saves in his absence.

There were some questions surrounding Halak and if there would be some rust after just one practice leading up to Saturday's game. The Bruins and Flames were scheduled to practice twice in China in the days leading up to their preseason opener, but some issues with their equipment getting caught up in customs cut the practice number down to one.

Halak's best stretch came late in the third period as the Flames held a two-man advantage. A flurry of saves kept the Bruins lead at one, before Mark Giordano's second goal of the game forced overtime. It was exactly the start Halak and the Bruins had hoped for with their new backup goalie.

Bruins youth shines again
The biggest story of the 2017-18 Bruins was the impact their younger players made, with most going through NHL campaigns for the first time. It appears the story of the 2018-19 Bruins may be heading in a similar direction.

Looking to secure the center spot on the Bruins third line, Trent Frederic got the competition off to a good start, kicking the scoring off with his first goal of the preseason after a sweet pass from Peter Cehlarik.

Speaking of Cehlarik, the 23-year old was arguably the Bruins best forward on Saturday. It's going to be a difficult path to the opening night roster for Cehlarik, but that won't slow him down from showing his talents. As nice as his assist was on Frederic's goal, his backhander to John Moore for the Bruins third goal was much more pretty.

John Moore just out here scoring a goal in his Bruins debut.#NJDevils pic.twitter.com/AjW8RDratT

— Devils Insiders (@DevilsInsiders) September 15, 2018

I'll be the first to admit that when the Bruins signed Ryan Donato to his entry level contract and called him up to the NHL, I wasn't completely sold on the former Harvard standout. But with each game of Donato I watch, the more of a believer I become. That was no different with this one. His shot-first mentality has always done him well and continues to do so as he adjusts to the game at the NHL level. Donato sandwiched his tally between Frederic and Moore, taking a feed from Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson and ripping a wrist shot past Flames goalie Jon Gillies.

For what it's worth, Donato played the second line right wing. Are we inching towards a DeBrusk-David Krejci-Donato second line?

Rough return for Brandon Carlo
It was great to see Brandon Carlo back on the ice after a fractured ankle ended his season a year ago. Carlo played on the Bruins third defensive pair, alongside Jakub Zboril. It was surely a night to forget for Carlo, however. From a handful of turnovers, to constantly chasing the play, to some lapses in coverage that led to scoring chances and even a Sean Monahan power play goal, Carlo looked like someone trying to find his way once again.

Rust is expected as Carlo moves along here in the preseason, but with consistent playing time up for grabs on the Bruins blue line, the young Carlo will need to be better than he was in this one.

Up next
The Bruins will kick off the domestic part of their schedule on Sunday when they host the Washington Capitals. The squad in China will wrap things up with the Flames on Wednesday with a 7:30AM start time here in Boston.

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