Boston Bruins and goalie Dan Vladar beat the Pittsburgh Penguins

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One night after suffering a 4-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first game of their four-game road trip, the Boston Bruins got goals from David Pastrnak and Trent Frederic to get a 2-1 victory Tuesday night. Dan Vladar was solid in net in his first career start, while coach Bruce Cassidy inserted rookie right winger Oskar Steen into the lineup to make his NHL debut.

Here is a look back at the win with some Bruins takeaways and notes on their 15th win of the season.

Takeaways

Vladar made his first NHL start in the net and it was one he won’t forget get for a long time. He stopped 34 of the 35 shots the Penguins had, including a beautiful stick in the first period on a shot from Colton Sceviour who had a wide-open net to tie the game. He made 15 saves in the opening period and then another 11 in the final period.

The Bruins had a five-minute power play in the second period when Jarred Tinordi was hit into the boards in front of the Boston bench by Pittsburgh’s Brandon Tanev. The referee’s made the call, then confirmed it on video review. Was it a major penalty or just a hard, clean check? The debate could be had for a long time. Regardless, the Bruins failed to score on the major, despite spending the first 2:15 of advantage in the Pens end.
You know it’s not a good power play when the team killing the penalty has better scoring chances than the team with the advantage. That was the case on the major as the best scoring chance came at the end of the five minutes when the Penguins Mark Jankowski had a breakaway, but his shot hit the post. Imagine the momentum swing there if that shot goes in?
The Bruins had to sweat out the final minute a little more than they should have. Pastrnak and Brad Marchand, the top two goal scorers, both missed an open net when the Pens pulled goalie Casey DeSmith, but fortunately, they survived the final minute.

Mar 16, 2021; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy (73) skates with the puck against Pittsburgh Penguins center Colton Sceviour (7) during the second period at PPG Paints Arena. Boston won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

Notes

Charlie McAvoy had an ice-time of 30:16, which but simple Math standards means he played more than half the game. His partner, Matt Grzelcyk was second in time one-ice at 23:42.
The Bruins went 1-for-4 on the power play, while they killed all four chances Pittsburgh had.
The two goals allowed by Pens goalie Casey DeSmith were the most he’s allowed in the last two games.
Pastrnak has quietly taken over the team lead in goals with his 13th in the game. Remember, he missed the first seven games recovering from hip surgery in the offseason.
Once again, the Bruins dominated in the faceoff circle, winning 32 of the 55 draws. Bergeron was 14-for-21 and David Krejci was 9-for-12. Sean Kuraly was 5-for-8.
Every Bruin had at least one shot on the net, except for McAvoy and Karson Kuhlman. Nick Ritchie had a team-high five and Pastrnak had four. Grezelcyk and Marchand each had three. Boston finished with 33 shots on DeSmith.

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All in all, the Bruins split the two-game set and are right back where they started before Monday night’s game, three points behind the Penguins for third place and three ahead of the Philadelphia Flyers for the final playoff spot in the East Division. After a day off, they begin a two-game set in Buffalo against the struggling Sabres.

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