B’s scoring woes continue
Strong penalty kill not enough
Brad Marchand hit iron on the opening shift. David Krejci clanged the crossbar shortly after that. Krejci was stoned by Semyon Varlamov off the rush in the second. Same thing for Craig Smith in the third. Patrice Bergeron had a great power-play opportunity in the first but his shot from the bumper hit Varlamov’s pads.
There were enough chances for the Bruins to come away with a win.
But as much as the B’s played better than they did in their lackluster performance in New Jersey on Saturday — and they were the better team on Monday at Nassau Coliseum — their scoring difficulties are reaching Homeric proportions as they head home from the tri-state area with a 1-1-1 record following their 1-0 loss to the New York Islanders.
Jean-Gabriel Pageau broke a scoreless tie with 4:09 left in regulation and it held up as the game-winner. Bergeron was in the right spot to deflect an Adam Pelech point shot, but it popped in the air and Pageau was able to bat it past Tuukka Rask for the 1-0 lead. And that was that.
The B’s pulled Rask for the extra skater and got some pressure on Varlamov but, right now, the net appears to have a four-by-six sheet of Plexiglass in front of it for them.
Rask, who was victimized on a similarly freakish goal in the season-opening shootout win in New Jersey, is focusing on the positives.
“It’s early in the season and we’re playing real good and if we play that team defense throughout the year, we’re going to win a lot of games. I know the offense will come,” said Rask. We’ve just got to stick with it and not hang our heads. I think today we could have scored one or two goals and won the game but tough bounce again and that’s how it goes sometimes.”
The B’s have played nine periods, plus nearly two full overtime periods, and they have yet to score a 5-on-5 goal. They also went 0-for-3 on the power play on Monday.
They knew they would miss their top goal-scorer David Pastrnak as he convalesces from offseason hip surgery, but not this much.
At this point, frustration will be difficult to keep at bay, especially when they lose on the type of ugly goal that the coaching staff has been focusing on creating.
“I suspect there’ll be a bit of that, and rightfully so. As long as it doesn’t carry over into what we’re trying to do,” said coach Bruce Cassidy. “I think it does gradually and it did a little bit early on. You try to make a perfect play instead of, for example, their goal. A lot of offense comes from the point. We’re trying to build that in, where it’s just a hard shot in the vicinity. We’ve seen it go against us three games in a row now. I think it’s been from the left point every time and it’s gotten to the net where they tap it in or it pinballs around. At some point, if we continue to shoot the puck …
“That’s been a bit of a challenge for our Ds, getting shots through on a consistent basis and being there to get the tips and screens and those ugly goals. That’s the challenge in front of us, and we’ll keep harping on it, but yes, I think there will be some frustration. But it didn’t affect how we played. We didn’t cheat all over the ice. We tried to win the right way. We’ve just got break through here.”
As they did in the opener in Jersey, the B’s came out strong in the first, outshooting the Islanders 11-3, but this time they sustained their effort pretty well throughout the game. The Isles did have their moments of pushback, but the B’s wound up outshooting them 27-17. And there were quality chances in those 27, but nothing to show for it.
“We’re obviously focused on it. It’s what everyone’s talking about, 5-on-5,” said the scoreless Jake DeBrusk, who played fairly well in first-line duty. “It’s one of those things we’re very aware of it, but we have confidence in our group. I think we’re stacked up front. … We know what we need to do, it’s just a matter of executing. Sounds easier than what it is, but we have faith in this room. It just obviously stings when you lose 1-0 on the first trip of the year.”