The Boston Bruins took on the New York Rangers in the annual day-after-Thanksgiving matinee. For much of the game, the outcome of the Black Friday game fittingly looked dark for the Bruins.
Then, the Bruins restored hope when Sean Kuraly got a late second-period goal to cut a 2-0 lead to 2-1. David Pastrnak scored yet again to even things up for Boston, and after a strong penalty kill, David Krejci ultimately won the game in overtime.
The come-from-behind win for Boston was spectacular, but it was nothing new for this Bruins team. The Bruins have been incredibly resilient all season long.
Bruins only have one loss when the opponent scores first
The Bruins have 18 wins in their 26 games, but these wins don’t always come easy. Boston often makes things difficult with slow starts.
When the Rangers scored first on Friday, it was the ninth time this season that the Bruins gave up the first goal. After the overtime victory, Boston’s record when the opponent scores first is 6-1-2.
That the Bruins only have one regulation loss in these nine games is remarkable. As the only saying goes, catchup hockey is losing hockey, but the Bruins seem to buck that trend.
Obviously, no team wants to give up the first goal. But, the Bruins can be confident that even when they start slow, they still have a great chance to win.
Boston’s goal differential increases by period
Goal differential is one of the few stats that can itself encompass a team’s success. The Bruins, as you can imagine, have a positive differential. Right now, it stands at +36.
What’s noteworthy about Boston’s goal differential is how it increases by period. The Bruins’ first period goal differential is +9. This jumps to +12 in the second and +14 in the third period.
This means that the Bruins tend to play better later in games. The team that finishes the game looks stronger than the team that starts.
Boston scored 34 goals in third periods and only 29 in first periods. Also, the third period is the only period in which the Bruins have a positive shot differential.
Teams never want to start games slow, and that remains the case with the Bruins. Boston is 12-2-3 when they score first. In fact, Boston earned at least a point in every home game in which they scored the first goal.
However, the Bruins clearly play a style that’s built to finish games, not start them. Maybe the Bruins ease up in the first period so they have enough left in the tank to win. Maybe they simply can’t get motivated until crunch time.
Whatever it is, the Bruins are a significantly better team in the third period. That usually bodes well late in the season once the games become tighter.