Boston Bruins: Friday on the farm with the Providence Bruins
The Providence Bruins embark on week three of their regular season with a pair of games this weekend. Providence looks to bounce back after two losses in a row.
Providence plays Laval on Friday night for the second matchup of the season. Then, Providence faces Belleville Saturday on the second night of a back-to-back.
The Baby B’s faced Laval on Wednesday of this week in a thrilling contest that went all the way to a shootout.
Crazy comeback ends in a shootout loss to Laval
Providence traveled to Laval on Wednesday in a rare midweek AHL game. It’s safe to say the game didn’t start out as intended.
Laval jumped out to a big lead with four goals in the first period. Providence looked out of sorts, and the game appeared to be over by the first intermission.
Providence, however, slowly chipped away to get back in the game. Peter Cehlarik got his team on the board in the second period, a welcome sign for a player who battled an injury earlier this season.
Then, Providence exploded for three goals in the third period. Paul Carey scored early in the period, and Cehlarik followed with his second of the night.
Brendan Guance, who we mentioned in our last Friday on the farm, put home the game-tying goal with only 18 seconds left in the game. Anders Bjork picked up his third assist of the season.
Providence eventually came up short in the shootout, as all six shooters failed to score. Nonetheless, Providence still showed a lot to come back from a four-goal deficit.
We’ll see if Providence can get some revenge on Laval on Friday night.
Kyle Keyser called up after injury to Vladar
Kyle Keyser, the best goalie prospect in the Bruins organization, started this season in the ECHL with the Atlanta Gladiators. The goal was for Keyser to get as much action as he can this year to further his develop.
Keyser, however, got the call up to Providence on Thursday after Daniel Vladar went down with an injury.
Vladar picked up the injury in Wednesday’s game against Laval. According to Mark Divver, it’s a leg injury that is considered week-to-week.
Vladar’s injury likely means Maxime Legace will get most of the playing time for Providence. More importantly, the injury gives Keyser a chance to showcase his talents against better competition.
Keyser’s still young, so he’s still some time away from making an impact in Boston. But, his call up to Providence gives us a closer look at the potential goalie of the future.
At this point in his career, any playing time Keyser sees with Providence will be important for his development. He’ll face strong competition and get a feel for the Bruins system.
Look for Keyser to start one of the two upcoming games for Providence.
Three-game point streak for Bjork
Anders Bjork has been one of Providence’s best forwards so far this season. Most think it’s almost a matter of time before Boston calls him up.
Bjork had an assist on the game-tying goal against Laval, and this extended his points streak to three games. In those three games, Bjork had two goals and two assists.
Bjork now has six points in five games this season for Providence. He’ll look to continue his hot start this weekend.
One reason for Bjork’s play this year is his role on the left wing. In his two stints in Boston, Bjork played primarily on the right side. Mark Divver notes that this switch looks like it made a big difference.
The Bruins look set on the left wing, but right wing remains an issue. Bjork seems like the easy fix.
That said, Divver alludes to how it won’t be the smartest move for Boston to call up Bjork and move him back to the right wing. Instead, since he looks comfortable in that role, Bjork needs to stay on the left side.
Related Story. Where can Bjork play in Boston?. light
Bjork is one of Boston’s best forward prospects, and he remains a big part of the future and soon the present. That is, as long as Boston continues to put him in the best position to succeed.