The Bruins recorded their first shutout of the season Sunday against the Pittsburgh Penguins. It was a 1-0 win for Boston, marking their second win of the back-to-back games. The lone goal came from Viktor Arvidsson's goal in the first period.
First Shutout of the Season?
Yes, you read that right. January 11 was the first time the Bruins had recorded a shutout this season. It's actually wild that it took until over half the season to actually secure a shutout.
Wondering who was in the net? Joonas Korpisalo got the start in net after Swayman got the start in Saturday's rout of the New York Rangers. The shutout yesterday improved Korpisalo's record to 8-8 in his 16 starts. You would think that with the play of Jeremy Swayman this season, he would have one or two shutouts already, but when Swayman is in the net, it seems the Bruins decide that they are covering an empty net.
Korpisalo blocked 27 shots on net during the game, which also saw the Bruins on the penalty kill only twice, a huge improvement from what seems like the normal four penalties the Bruins face in a game. It was good to see the Bruins have a good defensive game.
In all but 5 games, including Sunday's game, the Bruins have scored more than 2 goals in the game. On top of the penalties, the defense has been nonexistent in some games, where the team looks like a junior varsity hockey team compared to an NHL team.
The Bruins only had 3 shutouts all of last year. It will be interesting, especially with the Olympics looming, to see if the Bruins decide they want to continue being the team they were this weekend. The homestand continues on Tuesday night against the Detroit Red Wings.