Boston Bruins: Who’s hot and who’s not in the first week?
By jc
Which Bruins players made a big impact in the first week? And which ones need to step it up?
The Boston Bruins began last season with a 7-0 loss in Washington. It’s safe to say the team wanted a different start this year.
So far, so good for the Bruins. Boston opened with a 2-1 win in Dallas. Brett Ritchie and Danton Heinen had the goals. Jaroslav Halak pitched a shutout in game two, so all Boston needed was Brad Marchand goal to win 1-0.
Even with four out of four points, Boston showed a few areas for improvement. The Bruins struggled to generate a ton of offense after the first period against Dallas. Tuukka Rask bailed them out a couple times to preserve the win.
Halak offered a full bailout in the game against Arizona. The Coyotes carried play for most of the game, but Halak was up to the task all night.
Rask and Halak were two bright spots in Boston’s first week of the season.
Hot: Rask and Halak
Nothing can impact a game like goaltending. Fortunately, Boston has two goalies who single-handedly can steal games.
Tuukka Rask was great in the opener against the Stars. Dallas had 29 shots on goal, and Rask saved 28 of them. The only one that got by was off a breakaway from a bad change.
Rask was especially impressive in the third period. With Boston ahead by only one goal, Rask saved 16 Dallas shots. He also was Boston’s best penalty killer.
As good as Rask was in Dallas, Jaroslav Halak was even better in Arizona. The Coyotes were the better team all night, but they couldn’t beat Halak. He made 35 saves for his first shutout of the season.
Halak made a number of highlight-reel saves on Arizona’s best forwards. He stoned Clayton Keller on an odd-man rush, and he robbed Phil Kessel a couple times in the third period.
Rask and Halak had impressive starts to the season, and this bodes well for Boston. The play of the goaltenders will again dictate how far the Bruins go this year.