Final score: Bruins 3, Columbus 2 (SHO)
Seguin/By S. Bradley
In an act of coaching foresight that might land Claude Julien a post-career job as a fortune teller, the Bruins’ bench boss dressed rookie Tyler Seguin tonight in Columbus after consecutive healthy scratches.
The addition of the speedster to the lineup paid off after the Bruins and Blue Jackets couldn’t decide the game after 65 minutes of play.
Seguin, who entered the game with a team-best 3-for-6 record in shootouts this season, scored as Boston’s lead-off shooter and Tuukka Rask kept Columbus’ three shooters from finding the back of the net to lift the Bruins to a 3-2 win on the road and snap their four-game winless stretch (0-2-2).
The Bruins won the shootout 1-0 and improved their shootout record to just 2-5.
Replacing Michael Ryder in the lineup, Seguin skated just 11 shifts for 9:57 of ice time on a line with Chris Kelly and Mark Recchi. But after Rask stopped Rick Nash to start the shootout, Seguin beat Steve Mason with a forehand inside the right post.
Here’s a look at the rest of the box score:
•Rask shook off a slow start and a bad first goal by Columbus to make several spectacular stops among his 34 to earn the win and bounce back after he was blown away in Montreal a week ago.
•Rich Peverley scored the game-tying goal shorthanded with just 5:36 left in regulation. It was the Bruins’ first shorthanded goal since Brad Marchand scored against Colorado Jan. 22. It was Peverley’s second shorthanded goal of the season and highlighted a 6-for-6 night by the penalty kill.
•It was great to see two Bruins that had every reason to tone down their physical games throw their weight around tonight. Zdeno Chara, who maybe lost some of his edge since the hit on Max Pacioretty last week, got into a shoving match with Derek Dorsett before a faceoff and was active around the Bruins’ net.
Marchand, who was benched last game for some bad penalties, was also pesky again, as he had a hit on R.J. Umberger in the neutral zone and then set off a little net-front scrum seconds later.
Our powerplay is not going to get any better if we aren’t getting powerplay time. So I don’t really care about Kaberle’s point production because he is playing extremely well for us, I feel. Most important, he is taking the ice time load off of everyone, making everyone better and more energetic. When Ference returns, we will have no excuses for players being tired in the playoffs, and if we do, sit the tired guy and put the scratch back in. Speaking of scrathes, who would it be? Kampfer, Boychuk or McQuaid? Persoanlly, I don’t play Ryder or Ference until we see someone become a liability. I think it will be Kampfer if anyone. Boychuk has picked it up.
Seguin seems to play well against Western teams. It may be too early to really make a claim like that, but I say keep him in for Nashville. Not just as a reward but just to keep his motivation up and keep him engaged. Ryder is good enough that he won’t be hurt by sitting. When we want him back, he will be ready. No rush.
What is all this talk about Tuukka finding his game? Excluding the Montreal game, he has been very strong for us recently. He played a larger part in that recent winning streak than most people realize. In fact, I can be bold enough in saying that every game Rask has lost has been the skaters fault, and those games that were not blow outs were due to Rask’s unwavering play regardless of what it says on the scoresheet.
Yes David I agree with crunching and mixing it up. i was at the stars game feb 3 and lets see first period 4 goals and four fights. The Stars players wanted to get out of town. the following game same thing with the Canadiens. I personally do not care how many goals other teams score as long as we have more. Fans will always remeber and get excited for an energetic game vs the typical 2-1 clutching and board grinding game. The refs are all over our case so I see two ways out. don’t hit anyone and play boring hockey squeeking out games like last night or second go nuts. HBO has a sprcial on the Broad street Bullies of the 70′s and it worked for them. I realize this is not the 70′s but tough teams scare there opponets, fans, refs, and the league. look at the islanders record since there shennangins with pittsburg case in point and they are having fun fines and suspensions happen always have, and always will. After the Stars, and Canadien wins we faced Detroit for a home and home. Detroit destroyed us because we tried a different skate with them approach no hitting game and we looked awful. NHL refs respect hard nosed hockey and if you bring it night in night out they will allow you to play your game. The only way to get over the Chara incident is to go nuts deal with the fall out if any and get back on the track being politically correct is over used and not effective anymore.
Thank you, Rask.
Anybody else sick of seeing Horton mishandle the puck during a great scoring chance? I know he has been turning it around of late, but all season long I’ve seen the puck bounce off his stick after a great pass and it’s aggravating to watch. A top line winger should bury that more often than not and it looks like its the opposite for him. Hopefully, he buries chances like that in the playoffs.
I agree with a lot of your points Terry, but I think it really starts when they start crunching bodies. They looked like a steaming pile of crap the 1st and 3rd period (except for Rask and Darth Quaider, and Kaberle and some sweet peverly action) and when they played well in the second, they were checking all over the place, making little and big bumps happen and there were a lot of scrums for those last 10 minutes of the second where they played well. After the end of Paccioretty’s season, the refs have been calling the Bruins a lot tighter than their opponents, which by its nature disrupts the bruins Physical style. That said, I would say the refs had 1 bad call tonight and the others were legitimate. The problem was when the other team did the same thing or worse, they let it go. It’s fine if the refs want to call a tight game, just call both sides the same way.
How do you define this team????? You have no idea what or who shows up. As a fan they send you on an emotional rollercoaster. the main thing I see ice wise is that we struggle every game to get a decent break out from our defensive zone. we are always passing backward like a rugby game where the other teams including Columbus last night always seem to hit at least one guy in full stride heading up the ice. our guys chip it along the boards or make blind drop passes in the defensive zone. I say try and stand up the players on the blueline or let em rip of a 40 ft shot are goalies are good enough to stop them. We get in trouble because we don’t stand up at the blue line and back all the way into the goalies creating the perfect screen and confusion for the other team. Best line last night was Thornton, paille, Cambell they understand if you at least try and shoot it on the goalie there is a chance of the red light going on!
Thank you Tuukka.
Glad to see the PK have some luck and great netminding to go 6-for-6.
As I’ve commented in the previous post, I agree 100% with GR90. Horton, what gives man?!? Who would’ve thought, that Milan Lucic would be the trigger man on that line?
Earlier in the season the Springfield Falcons were auctioning off some game worn throwback sweaters and I saw Grant Clitsome’s on the list. Not knowing much about the guy I almost bid just because of the name. I mean, that’s a classic for sure ;-D But, I have to say, that after seeing him play last night I wish I went through with it. The kid’s got some chops.
He is nasty but not worth Lucic, Lucic is scoring just as many goals as him this year doing the tough things Rick Nash will never do. But it still would be awesome to get him somehow
What does it take to get Nash? Toronto’s 1 & Lucic?
That kid is awesome!
Painful game to watch… Reffing was poor and aside from Tyler, Tuukka and Peverley, the B”s didn’t play well. Nice to see Michael Ryding the pine and Seguin shine in the SO. Hopefully this is a building block for the boys. BTW – did anyone hear Boudreau’s comments? “No one would be protesting if it were Hall Gill hitting David Krejci”. Classic! Gotta love Bruce for speaking the truth.
That was Tuukka Time at its best. Glad the kid found his groove, he won that game for the B’s hands-down.
The B’s stole this one, for sure. Horton’s ineptitude when it comes to contemplating an easy one-timer on the doorstep baffles me… but I digress. Hopefully this win gets the team skating with some swagger again.
vintage rask giving up the first goal but not the game.
segzy doesn’t get the shoot out chance without johnny knoxville peverley’s shortie rush.
refs still punishing b’s for chara’s hit.