Boston Bruins: Brad Marchand leads B’s to 3-2 OT win.
Oct 30, 2014; Buffalo, NY, USA; Boston Bruins left wing Brad Marchand (63) heads into the zone as Buffalo Sabres defenseman Tyler Myers (57) defends during the first period at First Niagara Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports
The Boston Bruins hobbled into Buffalo with just three healthy NHL defensemen ( Matt Bartkowski is off the list for now). This was a team that needed a confidence booster and two very needed points. It certainly helped that the Bruins(5-6-0) were going up against the Sabres (2-8-0), one of the worst teams in the league.
It certainly wasn’t going to be a lock for the B’s. The casualty list was climbing for the Black and Gold, and the overall experience level of the blueliners was minimal. (The Bruins bottom three D-men had a total of ten NHL game experience between them.) First Kevan Miller, then Zdeno Chara, and now Torey Krug with his broken finger. Brad Marchand was a game time decision due to a ‘tweak’ that had occurred during practice.
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It was a good thing that Coach Claude Julien decided to let Marchand play tonight. Boston’s ‘Little Ball of Hate’ was a factor in all three goals for Boston tonight. He earned a goal and an assist during regulation, and drilled home the overtime winner for Boston. Once again, this puts the Boston Bruins at .500 for the season. Those three points doubles Marchand season total to six, and his performance earned him First Star of the Night honors.
“Brad has been having a slow start to the season and, again, in the third period he just showed his true colors and what he can do when he decides to play the way he can,” Claude Julien said of Marchand postgame.”
“He’s got good speed and he can be pretty slippery, but he’s been playing a lot on the outside with the puck and without it and it doesn’t bode well for him. So it’s nice to see him get rewarded with the things that he needs to do, so hopefully that encourages him to do a little bit more.”
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Marchand’s first goal of the night was put under review due to odd bounce it took off Brad Marchand before it bounced past Jhonas Enroth and went into the crease.
“I wasn’t sure. I don’t really know the rule on that,” offered Marchand when he was asked about the goal. “I know it did hit my arm there, so I was definitely nervous. I was hoping no one would see it on the replay, but it got in and luckily they called it a goal.”
It was good to see Marchand playing at the level we’re used to see him play at. He was the biggest contributing factor to the B’s tonight.