After opening the season with a 3-0 win over the New York Rangers last Tuesday night at TD Garden, the Boston Bruins hit the road for an early-season two-game road trip against the Winnipeg Jets and Minnesota Wild on back-to-back nights.
The Bruins ended up splitting the two games, completing a comeback against the Jets for a 4-3 overtime win for Marco Sturm's crew, but they dropped the back end of it, 4-1, to the Minnesota Wild. Here are three winners and two losers from the short two-game trip to the Central Time Zone.
Winner: James Hagens
Scoring your first NHL goal can be a weight off a young player's shoulders and in just the second game of the season and the fourth regular-season game of his career, James Hagens has his first career NHL strike.
It came in the first period of Friday night's win over the Jets when he banged home a loose puck at the side of the net to give the Black and Gold a 2-1 lead. It was a better trip for Hagnes are a tough opener at times.
Loser: Bruins power play
It's just three games, but the Bruins' power play has yet to find the back of the net. It can be something that can be overlooked in wins, but in a loss, it is magnified even more. They went scoreless on their two chances against the Jets, and then they went scoreless on three chances against the Wild. It's compounded even more when your opponent gets two goals on the power play, including the game-winner.
Winner: JJ Peterka
I know, it's early in the season, but what an addition JJ Peterka has been for the Bruins. Acquired from the Utah Mammoth, he already has two goals, and both of them have been huge. His first one against the Rangers was a thing of beauty, and his second was just as impressive.
Late in overtime in Winnipeg, he broke in a 2-on-1 with David Pastrnak, took a pass, and buried the game-winner for a big early-season come-from-behind win for the Black and Gold. He had a glorious scoring chance against the Wild in the second period, but the puck jumped off his stick. Rehardless, a good start for Peterka in Boston.
Loser: Bruins march to the penalty box
Stop me if you've heard this before. The Boston Bruins had a parade to the penalty box and gave up multiple power-play goals. I know, it's hard to believe, but it happened. They allowed a power-play goal to the Jets, but in the second period, leading Minnesota 1-0, they were down two players for 1:52. Shocking, I know.
The Wild scored two man-advantage goals in the second period to fall behind 2-1. Again, too many penalties will be an undoing for this team. If they didn't learn last year, they never will.
Winner: Michael DiPietro
Bruins fans knew how good Michael DiPietro was in the Amercian Hockey League (AHL) with the Providence Bruins, but he was very good in the preseason. He got his first start against Minnesota on Saturday night and despite suffering the loss, he played outstanding, giving his team a chance going into the third period.
DiPietro robbed Matt Boldy twice in the game and finished with 26 saves. He is more than capable of making 25 or so starts this season to give Jeremy Swayman a break.
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