Beating the same team twice in two days is hard enough, now consider what happens when your squad is decimated by injuries. I'm not making excuses for the Bruins after they fell 4-3 to the Senators at Canadian Tire Centre but I think we can cut them some slack considering their insane amount of injuries. This afternoon, it was announced that Dennis Seidenberg will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL/MCL. Then tonight came word that Zdeno Chara was out and day-to-day with an undisclosed injury. Ahhhhhh!
Ottawa (16-18-7) never trailed as they jumped ahead 1-0 and 2-1 on Boston (26-11-2) in the first period and 3-2 in the second period before Bobby Ryan scored the game-winner late in the third. Patrick Wiercioch had some puck luck (as they say) when Torey Krug blocked a shot but it caromed to Ottawa's defenseman who deposited it past Tuukka Rask at 7:04. Daniel Paille answered by undressing former Norris Trophy (what a joke) Erik Karlsson and squeezing it by Craig Anderson (29 saves) at 12:06. His fourth goal of the season was unassisted, showing how Paille truly did all the work and then some.
Cory Conacher scored on a street hockey (thanks Jack and Brick!) style tip in at 14:28. After Zach Smith finished a shorthanded 2-on-1 with Erik Condra 29 seconds into the second, that was it for Rask. Good old Chad Johnson came in and actually played well (for him). Jarome Iginla continued his hot streak with a goal from Milan Lucic and David Krejci at 13:51. Iginla's 12th goal of the season came via a tape-to-tape pass by Looch.
For me, the best highlight of the loss for the Bruins was David Warsofsky's first career NHL goal at 6:36 of the third period. It was a snipe, from Johnny Boychuk and Patrice Bergeron with plenty of meaning in terms of the game situation.
Krug's miserable performance (game low -3) was topped off by the biggest mistake of all: he slipped in Ottawa's zone which led to Ryan's breakaway. He beat Johnson with a backhander at 15:25.
The B's get a few days to heal, Carl Soderberg was also out with a concussion, before they host the woeful Islanders (11-21-7, 8th in Metropolitan Division) at TD Garden on New Year's Eve (7, NESN). Forget the biggest amateur night of the year, it is supposed to be freezing as well so stay inside, drink yourself into a near-coma and enjoy B's-Isles.
UPDATE 12/29: Nick Johnson, Zach Trotman and Warsofsky were all sent back to Providence. Haha they're actually playing for the Providence Bruins today, no rest for them.
UPDATE 12/30: The Bruins recalled defenseman Kevan Miller on an emergency basis.
UPDATE 12/31: Johnson was recalled on an emergency basis.
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