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Boston Bruins: B’s Get Drilled By The Oilers

By Andrew Thompson

Mar 16, 2017; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Boston Bruins interim head coach Bruce Cassidy (C) talks to players on the bench against the Edmonton Oilers during the first period at Rogers Place. Oilers won the game 7-4. Mandatory Credit: Walter Tychnowicz-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 16, 2017; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Boston Bruins interim head coach Bruce Cassidy (C) talks to players on the bench against the Edmonton Oilers during the first period at Rogers Place. Oilers won the game 7-4. Mandatory Credit: Walter Tychnowicz-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Boston Bruins played their worst game in the Bruce Cassidy era on Thursday, losing to the Edmonton Oilers 7-4.

Well, it was going to happen sooner or later. The Boston Bruins would run into a perfect storm of problems under interim head coach Bruce Cassidy. They’d be on the bottom half of a back-to-back set of nights. The B’s defense would be spotty, and the B’s goaltenders wouldn’t be able to stand on their heads.

That happened at Rogers Arena on Thursday. The Oilers got four first-period goals on Tuukka Rask who received absolutely no help from anyone in front of him. While the B’s tightened up some once Anton Khudobin replaced Rask (who gave up five goals on just 17 shots), it was just a case of too little, too late for Boston.  The Bruins were scored on seven times, marking it one of their uglier performances of the year.

Before we all start to panic, we know that every once in a while, every team has a terrible game in them. This was the Bruins version of the 10-0 shellacking the Blue Jackets gave the Habs. The only bright spots were that the Oilers didn’t hit double digits, and the B’s got on the board a few times.

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It was the first time that the Edmonton Oilers scored back to back seven game goals on their opponents since 1988.

Sure the loss was disappointing. It wasn’t crippling though. Ottawa also lost so the Bruins didn’t lose any ground.

There were a few good things that came out of the loss.

Brad Marchand is still proving to be one of the hottest players in the NHL. Even in the loss, Boston’s Little Ball of Hate had a three point game for the Bruins. He had a goal and two assists tonight, and led all Bruins with 22:25 of ice time.

That three point performance puts Marchand in a tie with the Oilers’ Connor McDavid (who had three assists tonight) for the NHL’s scoring lead. They both have 79 points.

David Pastrnak kept his point scoring streak alive as well. The streak is up to 11 games, one of the longest currently going in the National Hockey League.  His Czech counterpart also added a positive footnote to the game. David Krejci put up his 20th goal of the year tonight.  It’s the third 20-goal season of his career. He’s also on track for another 50+point season (as is Patrice Bergeron).

Finally, Torey Krug matched his assist total of last season, earning his 40th of the season on Krejci’s goal.

The Bruins will quickly put this game in the rear view mirror and get prepared to play one of their more important games on Monday. They’ll be taking on the Toronto Maple Leafs and this game will have major playoff implications for both teams.

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