Boston Bruins: 3 Studs Against the Flyers
Once again with their backs against the wall, the Boston Bruins were able to pull off a third-period rally to force overtime and beat the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Wednesday night.
The Bruins had no shortage of studs to help them rally and stun the Flyers. Here are three players that stood out from the rest.
1. David Pastrnak
Where else do you start? In just his third game back from hip surgery, Pasta has looked like he hasn’t missed a beat. He opened the scoring 12 seconds into the game and then single-handily rallied the Bruins in the third period with a pair of power play goals.
His first goal with under eight minutes left brought the Bruins within a goal at 3-2 and then he tied the game 15 seconds in regulation when he swatted a bouncing puck at the side of the net home to tie the game. Oh, and for good measure, he assisted on Patrice Bergeron‘s game-winning power play tally 31 seconds into overtime to vault the Black and Gold into a first-place tie in the East Division standings with the Flyers.
Pastrnak has returned to his 2019-20 form when he shared the Maurice Rocket Richard Award with Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals. He has returned with a bang with six goals and two assists in three games.
Wednesday night, he had seven shots on Philadelphia goalie Carter Hart, which brings his three-game total of shots on net to 19, after he fired 12 combined in his first two games against the Capitals. If this is the Pastrnak that the East Division is going to get, watch out.
2. Patrice Bergeron
Sometimes the forgotten member of the first line with Pastrnak and Brad Marchand getting all the offensive headlines, the captain had a hand in all four Bruins goals.
He picked up his first of three assists on Pasta’s goal 12 seconds into the contest, before assisting on both of Pastrnak’s third-period power play goals. As veterans sometimes do, he saved his best for last.
With the Bruins gifted a 4-on-3 power play in overtime following a Flyers penalty with seven seconds left in regulation, Bergy needed just a half-minute into the extra session to secure Boston the extra point.
The Bruins’ net-front presence on the man advantage, he redirected a pass from Pastrnak on net that Hart stopped, but before anyone from Philadelphia could control the rebound or Bergy, the 35-year-old veteran was able to stuff home the puck and win the game.
3. Tuukka Rask
Yes, Rask allowed three goals. Yes, he should have had the first one by Kevin Hayes in the second period as it was in and out of glove before going into the net, but the other two goals, he had no chance on.
Jakub Voracek was gifted a goal early in the third period when he was left alone at the side of the net for basically an empty-net goal and Joel Farabee ripped home a slap shot on a 2-on-1 break that Rask had no chance at saving when he was sliding side-to-side.
Rask was able to stop the other 22 Philadelphia shots, including 10 in the second period when the Flyers put together their best 20 minutes of the night. He did what goalies are supposed to do when the offense is struggling, he gave his team an opportunity to come back, which they did.
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Overall, the Bruins were lucky to come back and even get one point, nevermind two, but once again, it was their veterans leading the way.