This Boston Bruins Team Is Really Good at Hockey
After last night’s 3-2 overtime victory over the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden, the Boston Bruins sit alone atop the East Division standings with 20 points. They have the second-most points in the NHL, trailing only the Toronto Maple Leafs (23) with two games in hand.
Heading into the season, many Bruins fans, including myself, were unsure of how the team would perform after losing their captain of the last 14 years in Zdeno Chara as well as their top power play quarterback in Torey Krug. So far, the team hasn’t missed a beat.
The Bruins are winners of four straight, have gone 8-1-1 in their last 10 games and are a perfect 4-0-0 on home ice. They have the second-best penalty kill in the league, the sixth-best power play and have given up the fewest goals among teams that have played at least 12 games (26).
Strong goaltending and a stout defense have played a major role in the team’s success thus far.
In goal, Tuukka Rask and Jaroslav Halak have given the Bruins a chance to win every night which is all you can ask from a goaltender. Rask has saved all six shots he has faced in shootouts this year while making some other remarkable saves along the way.
Rask is apparently so confident in the defensive unit that he doesn’t feel it necessary to stay in net during a 2-2 game in the third period:
Halak on the other hand ranks fifth in the league in goals against average at 1.72.
On the backend, there has been no drop-off in play from last year. The Bruins have surrendered 24.4 shots per game, good for first in the NHL. Jeremy Lauzon has been a solid presence on Charlie McAvoy’s left side while the strong skating of Matt Grzelcyk and elite defending of Brandon Carlo have held down the second pair.
Kevan Miller has been a force on the third defensive unit after a lengthy recovery from a broken kneecap. His partner, Jakub Zboril, has struggled at times but that is expected of a guy who had played in only two NHL games prior to this season.
Inspired by the entire defensive unit, the black and gold offense has come alive after a slow start to the season. With the return of David Pastrnak, the top line has returned to form which is a scary sight for the rest of the East Division. The trio has already combined for 40 points in just 12 contests.
Even more, the Bruins have received production from all four lines as of late including goals from Chris Wagner, Sean Kuraly and Anders Bjork in their last two games.
Jake DeBrusk played his best game of the season Wednesday night in his return from injury, firing seven shots on net in addition to one that came within inches of crossing the goal line. Oh, and Nick Ritchie has the fourth-most points on the roster with nine. Just as everyone expected.
Though there will almost certainly be struggles at some point down the road this season, it’s encouraging to see the Bruins excel right out of the gate, especially after what many people viewed as an underwhelming offseason. But in the end, despite all the positive trends we’ve noticed so far, the only thing that matters is the Cup.
