Not To Alarm You But The Bruins Are In Big Trouble As They Now Trail The Islanders 3-2

 

    Don't look now but the Bruins are one loss away from another second-round exit in the playoffs for consecutive years. In the pivotal Game 5 tonight at the TD Garden, Boston outshot New York 44-19 and yet they still found a way to lose 5-4. How is that even possible? Well, the Islanders were 3-for-4 on the power play, they chased B's goaltender Tuukka Rask (12 saves, 4 goals allowed) after two frustrating periods and they held on as the Bruins tried to rally in the third period from a three-goal deficit (5-2). New York leads this series 3-2 and has won the last two games because they aren't making nearly as many mental and physical mistakes as Boston. It's almost like a rope-a-dope strategy as the Isles wait for the Bruins to shoot themselves in the foot and then they take advantage of it and unlike they B's, they don't waste nearly all of the great chances that fall into their laps. 

      Rookie goaltender Jeremy Swayman (2 saves, 1 goal allowed) did not get to do much in his NHL playoff debut. I'm assuming that Rask will start in Game 6 on Wednesday (7:30) as the B's try to save their season and force a Game 7 on Friday back in Boston. After their worst game of the postseason in Saturday's 4-1 no-show on Long Island, the black and gold responded by coming out flying as right wing David Pastrnak blasted in a one-timer (his 6th goal of the season) from BU's Charlie McAvoy and left wing Brad Marchand at 1:25. I'm convinced that you can't rattle New York as they scored five of the next six goals to take a commanding 5-2 lead. After a terrible slashing penalty on Bruins center Sean Kuraly, the Islanders made them pay right away as center Mathew Barazal scored for the third game in a row. Remember when he was ice cold at the start of this series? That was fun. Defenseman Noah Dobson and right wing Jordan Eberle notched the helpers on the suddenly red hot Barzal's third goal of the postseason. 

    It was 1-1 heading into the second period and that's when the visitors took control with three goals in the frame including two more on the power play. B's killer and right wing Kyle Palmieri made it 2-1 in favor of New York at 4:49 of the second period and on the power play. Right wing Josh Bailey and defenseman Nick Leddy picked up the assists on Palmieri's team-high sixth goal of the season. Marchand tied it at one with a beautiful power move that showed off most of his immense skills. Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov (40 saves) didn't stand a chance as he stayed anchored in his crease while Marchand went by him and ended with a forehand shot for his sixth game of the season. Pasta and McAoy were credited with the assists on Marchand's sixth goal of the playoffs. This is when the roof started to collapse on the Bruins. A pretty little passing sequence around Rask worked wonders as the Isles took their first lead (3-2) on Bailey's momentum-stopping tally. Center Jean-Gabriel Pageau and left wing Anthony Beauvillier had the helpers on Bailey's fifth goal of the postseason at 14:30. New York's last power play goal came from a snipe by Eberle that went over Rask's shoulder. Barzal and Dobson had the assists on Eberle's third goal of the playoffs at 16:38. 

    What's worse than a 4-2 deficit in Game 5 on your home ice? How about going down by three goals early in the third period of said game? The Bruins faced that nightmare scenario as center Brock Nelson fired in a pass from Beauvillier at 1:59. The whole play started when defenseman Adam Pelech jumped up in the air to grab the puck and keep it in the offensive zone. In the regular season, Boston had a bunch of fake comebacks where they would be down by a couple goals and they would begin to rally but fall just short. That's basically what happened for the rest of the third period as Pastrnak scored on another one-timer, this one was from McAvoy and captain Patrice Bergeron. Pasta's one-timer came at 3:48 to cut it to 5-3 New York. It felt like the Bruins had a chance to rally when Varlamov couldn't handle a simple flip shot by center David Krejci (his 2nd goal of the playoffs). Right wing Craig Smith and defenseman Mike Reilly rounded out the scoring with the assists on Boston's final tally at 14:43. 

    As Bruins fans, where do we go from here? The Bruins typically respond well to adversity, therefore I truly believe that they will throw everything they have left into Game 6. Fourth-line center Curtis Lazar left with a lower-body injury and never returned after a nasty collision near center ice. I assume that if he's out, Jake DeBrusk would be back in the lineup after he was a healthy scratch this evening. I want to believe that there's an outside chance that defensemen Kevan Miller and/or Brandon Carlo could also return to action but let's be real, that probably won't happen and for good reason (they both have serious injuries that have already caused them to miss multiple contests). You know that all the Strong Island bros will be out in full force on Wednesday shouting their silly chants so the B's have to be ready to go from the start once again. The Islanders are good but they should not be able to eliminate the Bruins in six games, that would be unacceptable from my perspective.

David Pastrnak Scored His Second Career Playoff Hat Trick As Bruins Beat Islanders 5-2 In Game 1

 

    After nearly a week off after dispatching of the Capitals in five tidy games, the Bruins opened up their second round playoff series with the Islanders tonight at a sold-out TD Garden (!!!). Boston did not look too rusty though in front of their biggest crowd in over a year as they used a strong third period to propel them to a 5-2 victory behind star David Pastrnak's second career playoff hat trick. The B's nearly doubled the Isles in shots on goal (40-22) and that constant pressure finally got to New York's rookie goaltender Ilya Sorokin (35 saves). The black and gold won their fifth straight game overall as they dropped Game 1 to Washington but so far, that's been their only loss in this postseason. 

    The regular season has little to do with this but we have to note that the Islanders won the first five meetings with the Bruins in 2021 before Boston took the final three. This made it four victories in a row for the B's against a very worthy second-round opponent who beat the Penguins in six games in their first-round series. The East Division foes traded leads as New York scored first in the first period before Boston answered; the Bruins took a 2-1 lead in the second period and then the Islanders responded. The third period is what separated them as the home team scored twice and then added an empty-net goal for good measure. 

    Both tallies in the first period came on the power play as Isles left wing Anthony Beauvillier tipped in a shot from the point by defenseman Noah Dobson at 11:48. Right wing Jordan Eberle had the other assist on Beauvillier's team-leading fourth goal of the playoffs. Pastrnak tied it late in the frame as Sorokin kicked a big rebound right to him and he waited for a second before snapping it in. Centers David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron had the assists on Pasta's third goal of the postseason (3-game goal streak) at 19:36. Boston took its first lead midway through the second period as once again Pastrnak was able to corral a rebound and fire it in past a diving Sorokin. Bergeron and left wing Brad Marchand notched the assists at 11:08. It was not 2-1 Bruins for long though as Islanders defenseman Adam Pelech unleashed a bomb from the point that went top shelf past a stunned Tuukka Rask (20 saves) at 12:34. Eberle and left wing Leo Komarov picked up the assists on Pelech's first goal of the postseason.

    Ironically, even though it was Pastrnak's night, Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy scored the game-winning goal at 6:20 of the third period. His low but hard shot from distance found its way through traffic for his first goal of the playoffs, assisted by Krejci. You had a feeling that Pasta was going to get a hat trick and he finished the job with a pretty move using Taylor Hall as a screen to fire in a wrist shot at 15:50 for the 4-2 Bruins lead. Speaking of Hall, he had the last goal-of the empty-net variety-at 18:35. Krejci and defenseman Mike Reilly notched the helpers on Hall's third goal of the playoffs.

    Game 2 is on Monday night (7:30, NBCSN) and I think it is almost a given that the Isles will play better. They were very lucky to be tied this evening headed into the third period since the Bruins had outshot them by a wide margin (30-12). The major questions will be if their offense can match Boston's and perhaps most importantly, Sorokin has to be better with his rebound control. Rask was not great but he did not have to be. Late in Game 1, New York clearly tried to target Pastrnak physically to send a message moving forward that it won't be that easy anymore. He has seven points (5 goals, 2 assists) in his last three games going back to Games 4 and 5 vs. Washington so he's on fire right now with multiple points in each of those tilts. Can the Islanders contain the Bruins' top line? We shall see but Game 2 is an important one since being up 2-0 in a series is a much different story than being tied 1-1. The one injury from Game 1 was to Bruins right wing Craig Smith who left in the second period (lower-body) after an awkward collision with Islanders goon Cal Clutterbuck and never returned. If he can't suit up on Monday, Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy will need to find a replacement for his second line.

Tied Going Into The 3rd Period, The Bruins Epically Collapse Vs. Isles & Fall To 0-3 Against NY In 2021

 

    What is it about the Islanders (10-6-3) that has caused so many problems for the Bruins (11-4-2) early this season? For the third time in 2021, Boston visited Nassau Coliseum and they left with an ugly 7-2 loss that dropped them to 0-3 against New York during this campaign. Things looked promising as Boston scored first and then tied it at two in the second period before falling apart in Celtics-like fashion in a trainwreck of a final frame. The B's have only lost four times in regulation so far this season and three of those have come against the Isles. Boston will get five more chances (including four at TD Garden) to beat New York but regardless of how those turn out, this is not a club that they want to see in the playoffs. 

    Left wing Nick Ritchie staked Boston to a 1-0 lead just 1:02 into regulation. Like most of his goals, this one came by sitting next to the net and simply re-directing a pass. Defenseman Jakub Zboril and center Charlie Coyle had the assists on Ritchie's seventh goal of the season. 1-0 was the only lead of the night for the Bruins and it fittingly didn't last long as New York defenseman Adam Pelech put in a rebound at 3:16 to tie it (his 1st goal of the season was unassisted) and center Mathew Barzal sniped a shot past Bruins goaltender Jaroslav Halak (30 saves, 4-2-1) at 12:39. Defenseman Nick Leddy and goaltender Semyon Varlamov (34 saves, 9-4-2) had the assists on Barzal's seventh goal of the season. 

    Boston had the lone goal in the second period as right wing Craig Smith worked his way into New York's defensive zone and tried to feed it in front to rookie center Jack Studnicka but the puck instead deflected off an Islanders defenseman's stick and past Varlamov. Smith's fourth goal of the season came at 11:36 and it was assisted by right wing Jake DeBrusk and rookie Urho Vaakanainen. The Isles aren't known for an explosive offense but you could have fooled me with their absurd third period barrage of five unanswered goals. It all started when left wing Anthony Beauvillier stole the puck from rookie left wing Trent Frederic close to Halak and used a backhander to put in the go-ahead goal at 5:41. Another odd-man rush led to an insurance tally for the home team as right wing Jordan Eberle beat Halak up high at 10:45. His eighth goal of the season was assisted by Barzal and left wing Anders Lee. The wheels officially fell off for the Black and Gold at 12:24 as center Jean-Gabriel Pageau got a shorthanded breakaway and put the puck through Halak's five-hole. His eighth goal of the season was assisted by Pelech and it gave the Isles a 5-2 lead as Halak understandably smashed his stick (and broke the blade off) against one of the helpless goal posts. 

    Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy had no choice but to leave Halak out to dry since Boston has a game tomorrow (7, NESN) against the Rangers (6-8-3) at Madison Square Garden and he already confirmed before tonight's game that Tuukka Rask would start in NYC. Lee and BC's Oliver Wahlstrom-the rare Maine native in the NHL-rounded out the scoring for the Isles. The Bruins have dropped three of their last four games overall so the Rangers feel like the perfect antidote to help them get back untracked. The B's also take on the Rangers in a rare Sunday afternoon matinee (12, NBC) so hopefully they can win both installments just like they did two weeks ago in the Big Apple. The Rangers are 3-5-2 at home while the Bruins are 6-3-2 on the road after tonight's defeat in Long Island.

For Some Reason, The Islanders Have Been Kryptonite For The B's In Their Two Games In '21

 

    Sports are weird in the sense that every season there are certain opposing players and teams that always give you fits, even if they're not that good (like the Pistons with the Celtics). The Islanders (6-4-3) have proven to be a major thorn in the Bruins' (10-2-2) side thus far in 2021. Tonight at Nassau Coliseum, New York beat Boston 4-2 which prevented the Bruins from sweeping their three games in New York this week (after winning twice in NYC vs. the Rangers). The loss snapped the Bruins' five-game win streak and also handed them just their second regulation loss of the season. Ironically enough, the Isles were the team to beat Boston that other time too. This looked like the last game of a road trip for the B's since they were outshot 42-30, they allowed a power play goal and a shorthanded goal plus goaltender Tuukka Rask (38 saves, 6-2-1) gave up a weak goal that shouldn't have gone in.

    The good news for the Black and Gold is that they will have six more cracks at the Isles, including four matchups at TD Garden before the playoffs start this spring. This evening began on a high note for the Bruins as left wing Brad Marchand fired a shot past Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov (28 saves, 6-2-2) at 8:41 of the first period. Center Patrice Bergeron found him with a sweet backhand pass while right wing David Pastrnak had the second assist on Marchand's team-high ninth goal of the season. New York only trailed for less than three minutes as center Jean-Gabriel Pageau went to the net and was able to put in a rebound at 11:36. Defenseman Ryan Pulock and right wing Leo Komarov (fresh off not being clamed on waivers) provided the assists on JGP's third goal of the season. The Islanders took a 2-1 lead at 15:16 as right wing Jordan Eberle's shot from distance leaked through Rask's five-hole. Eberle's sixth goal of the season was assisted by center Brock Nelson and defenseman Scott Mayfield but he really should have been thanking Boston's goalie for letting that innocent shot go in. 

    The first line for the Bruins provided all of their offense (which is hardly ever a good thing against a decent opponent) because Bergeron tied it up with assists from Marchand and Pastrnak at 16:51 of the second period. Bergy's goal-scoring tends to come and go at times which is why it's nice to see him get off to such a good start this season in that department. Boston played the last two periods with five defensemen after Jakub Zboril left in the first period with an upper-body injury and he never returned to action. Not to throw out all the possible excuses at once but keep in mind that the B's were also playing in the second game of a back-to-back after a rare Friday contest last night at MSG. The Isles sure looked like the more rested club in what crazy NESN Bruins announcer Jack Edwards likes to call "winning time." Center Mathew Barzal absolutely destroyed a one-timer from the slot at 5:30 of the third period for what turned out to be the game-winning goal-his sixth tally of the season. Left wing Anders Lee and Eberle notched the assists on Barzal's cannon that went top shelf giving Rask no chance to stop it. Pageau clinched it with a shorthanded goal at 14:32 after Boston fumbled with the puck trying to get their power play set up. New York briefly had a 2-on-1 and Komarov led JGP with a sweet saucer pass that he was able to corral and put in the net. 

    Thanks to another team's Covid-19 outbreak, the Bruins will hopefully reap the reward of a mini-break since they were scheduled to meet New Jersey (4-3-2) on Monday at the Garden but the Devils haven't played since January 31. They are hoping to get back to work on Thursday (7, NESN) against the B's in Boston, fingers crossed that it happens. The B's get tomorrow (Valentine's Day) off and then they will practice on Monday at Warrior Ice Arena in preparation for NJ. Head coach Bruce Cassidy and his coaching staff used their unexpected time off last week (when Buffalo couldn't play) wisely since the Bruins won the next two games against the Rangers.

Karma Has Caught Up to the Bruins Over the Last Few Weeks As They Drop Another Winnable Game

When the Bruins (21-7-8) got off to such an unexpectedly great start to this season, one of the main reasons was that they kept finding ways to pull out wins and points from games that they probably should have lost. The exact opposite has happened lately as they have lost seven of their last eight games, including a 3-2 setback to the Islanders (23-8-2) in a shootout tonight at TD Garden. By the way, can the B's just refuse to play in overtime (where they are 2-3 this season) or especially in shootouts (where they fell to an unfathomable 0-5 in 2019-20)? Anything past regulation for them seems like a waste of their time.

Like their 4-3 overtime loss to the Kings (15-18-4) on Tuesday that kicked off this four-game homestand before Christmas, the Bruins dominated the Islanders in terms of shot attempts (62-45) but putting them on net was another story as they had 19 blocked and 14 missed the net so they only registered eight more shots on goal (29-21) than New York. Furthermore, Boston scored first as Anders Bjork had a wrist shot that went top shelf on Semyon Varlamov (27 saves, 12-3-2) at 1:58 of the first period. Charlie Coyle (his first point in 8 games) had the lone assist on Bjork's fifth goal of the season. The B's nearly doubled their lead as Danton Heinen's redirect on a power play went off the post. The teams combined for a sleepy seven shots on goal (4-3 Isles) in the first 20 minutes, yawn.

The low-scoring, tight-checking style favored the Islanders and they grabbed a lead with a pair of goals in the second period. Old friend Johnny Boychuk tied it with a blast from the point (I'm assuming that NESN's maniac announcer Jack Edwards called it a Johnny Rocket for old time's sake) that beat former teammate Tuukka Rask (19 saves, 13-4-5) at 3:26. Jordan Eberle and Anders Lee had the assists on Boychuk's second goal of the season. Varlamov made two huge stops in that frame, including a spectacular diving glove save on Bjork's one-timer followed by a save on Jake DeBrusk's breakaway. As those things seem to often go in hockey, New York took advantage on the other end as Mathew Barzal ripped in a sweet cross-ice feed from Boychuk (his first multi-point game of the season, because of course) at 18:26. It was Barzal's team-leading 14th goal of the season.

Boston has been a great third period team so far this season and this evening was no exception. Boston's power play had been 0-for-3 but when they got a two-man advantage, they came through with a pretty goal by Torey Krug. David Krejci and David Pastrnak (3 goals, 4 assists in his last 6 games) provided the helpers on his fifth goal of the season. There was a scary moment for everybody involved when Patrice Bergeron's errant skate (he was falling to the ice) appeared to graze Cal Clutterbuck's wrist. The rugged Islanders fourth line winger quickly skated off the ice and went down the tunnel to their dressing room. After the game, New York's excellent head coach Barry Trotz reported that Clutterbuck went to the hospital "to get stitched up."

For all the excitement that was mostly lacking in the first 60 minutes, overtime made up for it despite not featuring a game-winning goal for either club. Brad Marchand wheeled around New York's net but his shot was stopped by Varlamov and he later had a backhander skid wide. Pastrnak also crushed a patented one-timer from the slot that Varlamov had to look behind himself to find but he had stopped it. On the other end, Lee was stopped by Rask after a nifty feed from Barzal. Quinnipiac's Devon Toews had a breakaway in the closing seconds but the puck rolled off the defenseman's stick.

The Isles might not score a ton of goals but they have plenty of skilled guys who obviously thrive in the overtime (6-2) and shootout (3-0) formats unlike the Bruins. Eberle and Barzal both scored on New York's first two attempts before Rask stopped Josh Bailey's possible game-winner. For Boston, Coyle hit a post, Pastrnak scored but then Marchand was stuffed to end it. I'm sure that some frustration is naturally creeping into the heads of many Bruins. They have been playing in all these close games lately but coming up on the wrong end of most of them. Surprisingly, it isn't hurting them in the Atlantic Division standings where they still sit 11 points ahead of second-place Buffalo (16-13-7) and 12 points ahead of third-place Tampa Bay (17-12-4) who has three games in hand.

At the moment, the Predators (16-12-6) are two points behind Calgary (18-14-4) for the second Wild Card in the Western Conference. They are also six points behind Dallas (20-12-4) in the loaded Central Division so the Wild Card is probably their best bet into the playoffs this season. Saturday's meeting with Boston is the finale of Nashville's four-game road trip before they head home to host Arizona (20-12-4) on Monday. The Bruins have their own first-place team looming on Monday-the Capitals (24-6-5)-so that contest should be quite meaningful to both teams. Nashville lost 5-4 in overtime in Ottawa (15-18-3) earlier tonight so they were no doubt disappointed in that result and will want a better performance vs. Boston. And yes, Patriots-Bills starts at 4:30 on Saturday afternoon meaning that you'll need to get B's-Preds up on your computer unless you are a master of the remote control.

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The B's Cap Off Another Memorable Day In Boston Sports History With A 3-1 Win Vs. Islanders

Today was one of those special days in life when basically everything was perfect: global warming blessed Boston with temperatures in the low 60s as the city celebrated the sixth Super Bowl title for the Patriots with another Duck Boat parade. That would be more than enough for most places but in addition to that, the Bruins (29-17-7) put a bow on top of this unforgettable Tuesday with a 3-1 victory against the Islanders (30-16-6)-the leader of the Metropolitan Division who entered as the hottest team in the NHL. Oh and B's legend Patrice Bergeron celebrated his 1000th game by scoring two goals, fittingly the first and last one of the contest.

Coming off of Sunday's 1-0 shutout in Washington (29-18-6) which snapped a soul-crushing 14-game losing streak to the Capitals, Boston was able to prove that was far from a fluke. Tuukka Rask (28 saves, 16-8-4) extended his point-streak to 10 games (8-0-2) with another excellent effort against a high quality opponent that is sure to make the playoffs this spring. After an awesome pregame ceremony with a ton of Patriots (including owner Robert Kraft and Super Bowl 53 MVP Julian Edelman who spiked the ceremonial faceoff), the B's sputtered in the first period as they went 0-for-3 on the power play.

Islanders goaltender Robin Lehner (24 saves, 16-8-4) is having a career season and he kept it scoreless with some unbelievable saves. Boston made it 1-0 early in the second period as Bergeron was able to poke in a rebound after Lehner stuffed David Pastrnak (5-game point streak). Brad Marchand had the second assist on Bergeron's 17th goal of the season at 2:32. New York started to dominate possession and create a ton of scoring chances later in the frame but Rask was able to hold them off until Jordan Eberle flipped in a power-play tying goal at 16:40. Mathew Barzal and Brock Nelson had the assists on Eberle's 12th goal of the season.

The Islanders appeared to go ahead early in the third period as Cal Clutterbuck of all people finished a beautiful passing sequence with a snipe past Rask. Luckily for the B's, they challenged it for being offside and that proved to be the right call so it remained 1-1. Goals have been an issue lately for the Black and Gold along with secondary scoring which is why it was great to see rookie Peter Cehlarik tally the game-winning goal at 6:34 of the third. He whiffed on the initial chance and still didn't get a ton of mustard on the second shot but Lehner couldn't keep it out of the net as the puck trickled over the line. Kevan Miller snapped a 13-game scoreless stretch with the lone assist on Cehlarik's third goal of the season.

Matt Grzelcyk got called for two separate penalties on the same play (tripping and slashing) meaning that Boston had to kill off what added up to a double-minor (4 minutes) on him. They did not get burned by New York's mediocre (ranked No. 26 in the league) power play again. Once Lehner left for an extra skater in the final minutes, you knew how this would end: with a Bergeron empty-netter. The way that actually transpired was a pretty cool moment as Pastrnak could have scored on the empty net himself but instead he left a drop pass for the trailing Bergeron-a beautiful sign of respect for one another. Marchand of course started the play and recorded the other assist on Bergeron's 18th goal of the season at 19:05, 3-1 Bruins.

After this tilt, Boston headed for New York to face the Rangers (22-22-8) tomorrow night (8, NBC Sports) at Madison Square Garden. Jaroslav Halak (13-8-2) has lost in his last three appearances and he's 4-4-0 in his last eight decisions so he could really use a win. Remember, New York won 3-2 here on January 19 aka the game when Rask suffered a concussion. New York is not a good team at this juncture but they always seem to give the Bruins a tough game regardless of their record. If you give any credence to stats, the B's have some favorable ones heading into this matchup: they are 7-1-1 this season in Game 2s of back-to-back sets and 6-3-1 in Game 3s when they have three games in four nights. Boston returns home on Saturday afternoon (1, NESN) to face the worst team in the Western Conference-the Kings (22-27-4). As always, Beat LA!

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Bruins Rally From 2-0 Deficit But Eventually Fall 3-2 in Overtime to Red-Hot Oilers

Most people outside of Edmonton probably aren't aware of this but believe it or not, the Oilers (14-15-2) are the hottest team in the NHL. They picked up their sixth straight win tonight, a 3-2 overtime victory at TD Garden against the Bruins (16-9-4). Edmonton jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period then Boston eventually tied it with a goal in the second and a goal in the third before defenseman Andrej Sekera won it 41 seconds into overtime. This was a bitter loss for the Bruins since they fired a season-high 49 shots on Cam Talbot (47 saves).

This was the third straight time that Boston and Edmonton have gone to overtime and the Oilers improved to 2-0 against the Bruins this season after winning in a shootout at home a few weeks back. The B's fell to 1-3 in overtime this season and 1-1 in shootouts. Jordan Eberle (1 goal, 2 assists) and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (1 goal, 1 assist) showed off some of their immense talents in the win. Eberle scored at 8:29 of the first period after the puck bounced off the back boards to him and he was able to beat Jonas Gustavsson (21 saves) from a tight angle. Eberle's seventh goal of the season was assisted by BU's Eric Gryba and Brandon Davidson.

After Zdeno Chara fell, Eberle fed Nugent-Hopkins for an easy goal at 13:58 of the first. Nikita Nikitin had the other assist on Nugent-Hopkins' eighth goal of the season. Some puck luck finally went Boston's way at 13:29 of the second period as Matt Beleskey's stuff shot went in off Talbot after the goaltender kicked it back with his leg pad. Beleskey has been snake-bitten most of the way in his first season with the Black and Gold so he probably deserved this after playing well for weeks. David Krejci and Chara assisted on Beleskey's fourth goal of the season.

Brad Marchand is starting to put together an All-Star type resume in 2015-16 so predictably he was the Bruin that tied it up with 4:38 left in regulation. The play actually looked offside and was reviewed but stood up for his team-leading 15th goal of the season. Landon Ferraro and Patrice Bergeron assisted on Marchand's shot that went up under the bar over Talbot's blocker (with a defenseman possibly screening him as well).

As noted in the records, overtime still doesn't seem to agree with Boston. In fact, after losing the opening faceoff in the extra session, the Oilers had the puck in the Bruins' end the entire time. Sekera's initial shot went off of Torey Krug (who was tied up in front) then with all the extra space he was able to collect the rebound and put it in for his third goal of the season. Eberle and Nugent-Hopkins assisted on the overtime game-winner that had to make former Bruins GM/current Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli smile.

Up next, the Bruins have a home-and-home with the Penguins (15-11-3) who lost head coach Mike Sullivan's debut 4-1 tonight against Washington. Pittsburgh is in ninth place in the Eastern Conference and 3-4-3 in their last 10 games. Wednesday (8, NBCSN) at the Garden will be the first matchup of the season.

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