After the Bruins’ best crew of all time received an opportunity to boost the banner on the 2 Stanley Cups received in 1970 and ’72, the present day B’s placed on a efficiency that would make a Black and Gold dreamer consider that perhaps, simply perhaps, they might elevate one in all their very own.
The B’s improved their league-best file to 13-1-2 with a 5-2 win over their historic rival Montreal Canadiens on an evening the membership celebrated the Big, Bad Bruins period. All agreed it was their most full win of the season, and so they saved it for the legends in the home.
“Whenever there’s a night like this and you bring a lot of people in town and there’s a big ceremony, you never know how the team’s going to come out. But I thought we had a great game,” mentioned captain Brad Marchand, who had two assists. “We kind of owed it to those guys. They’re the ones who built the foundation and the culture that we still try to uphold today. It’s great that we were able to put a game like that in front of them and show that what they built is still being carried.”
Per week in the past, the rebuilding Habs have been the higher crew on Bell Centre ice and took a 3-2 additional time win, however they have been no match for the B’s on Saturday. And in what’s anomaly for the 2023-24 Bruins so far, their goaltender for the night time, Jeremy Swayman on this case, didn’t need to be one in all their greatest for them to win. Trent Frederic led the best way offensively with a pair of objectives and David Pastrnak had three assists. The B’s outshot the Habs, 44-22, and it was indicative of how the sport regarded.
“This is a rivalry game with a really good atmosphere with all the legends in the building, the Big, Bad Bruins, and it was good to get that win,” mentioned Frederic.
After killing of the sport’s first penalty, the B’s took a 1-0 lead on a 5-on-3 after Jesse Ylonen held Pastrnak after which, 13 seconds later, Johnathan Kovacevic tripped Marchand. Then each forwards picked up helpers on Charlie McAvoy’s fairly objective, a superbly positioned slapper from the highest of the circles, over Jake Allen’s blocker and just below the bar at 7:11. It was McAvoy’s third objective of the season.
The B’s dominated from there on within the interval, however Allen saved the Habs inside a objective for some time, making a number of terrific stops in what was a taking pictures gallery.
After the B’s had amassed a 15-4 shot benefit, Allen sprung Brendan Gallagher for a breakaway with a protracted rebound. With Marchand in pursuit, Gallagher received off an excellent shot that Swayman was in a position to combat off.
It regarded just like the Habs would get out of the primary interval down only a objective, however with 39.6 seconds left, Frederic’s excessive tip of Brandon Carlo’s shot received previous Allen to make it, 2-0, for his fourth of the yr.
The B’s have been enjoying one in all their greatest video games of the yr and, early within the second, they earned some good luck. Hampus Lindholm dished a move out excessive to Pavel Zacha, who didn’t have a lot of a play however to fireplace it towards the online. It went off Canadien defenseman Jordan Harris’ stick and previous Allen, whose physique was going the opposite approach. It was Zacha’s sixth of the yr.
But the Habs received one again at 13:04. After an icing name, the fourth line received hemmed in their very own finish. Nick Suzuki made a feed to 2022 first total decide Juraj Slafkovsky, who snuck a wrister previous Swayman on the shortside type the left circle.
The B’s regained their thee-goal lead at 15:30.
After serving a high-sticking penalty, Frederic flew out of he field with all kinds of power. Charlie Coyle fed him on the left wing and he beat Montreal’s gassed energy play skaters up ice earlier than slipping a wrist shot below Allen’s pads.
“A little pit stop and I had the fresh wheels,” mentioned Frederic with a smile. “Every time you’re sitting in the box, you’re thinking you might get a breakaway. It’s never really happened, but you’re thinking what you’re going to do and that’s what I was thinking about. Just visualize it and it actually came true, so it was nice.”
James van Riemsdyk added a power-play objective, a backhander from his workplace on the crease for his fifth of the yr at 5:39 and the B’s have been on their approach.
Kovacevic received a objective again at 15:29, however the recreation was properly in hand by then
Source: www.bostonherald.com