Leading 1-0 nearly midway through the second period, Viktor Arvidsson was slashed as he had a breakaway on Buffalo Sabres goalie Alex Lyon. Instead of a power play, the Boston Bruins were awarded a penalty shot for Arvidsson.
A goal there, the Bruins go up 2-0, and they have the Sabres on the ropes in Game 3. Instead, Arvidsson got cute and took away any advantage he had and shot the puck off Lyon and over the net. A huge swing in momentum, no doubt. However, there was a lot of hockey left.
Unfortunately, Buffalo tied the game a few minutes later when Bowen Byram's shot deflected off of James Hagens and past Swayman. The Sabres would go on to score two third-period goals for a 3-1 victory and a 2-1 series lead. After the game, Boston's first-year head coach, Marco Sturm, had a quote that is rather concerning for his team in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Bruins coach Marco Sturm had a concerning take after Game 3 loss to Sabres
After the loss, Sturm explained how the missed penalty shot was a big swing in the game and how it cost his team a few minutes. However, the bigger issue is that a missed penalty shot should not deflate a team in the postseason.
“Yes, it was a big swing, absolutely,'' said Sturm. "Now looking back, it cost us a few big minutes there, especially before the period end. We were just, the bench was not the same, let's put it that way. But we felt good. It's a tight game. I know there's a lot of up and downs in these playoffs in this hockey game, so we just got to make sure we handle it the right way.”
If that is the case, well then, maybe, just maybe, you're not tough enough mentally as a team to be in the playoffs. Good teams bounce back from that and answer the bell. The Bruins? It certainly seems like Sturm is using it as an excuse for his team as to why they lost the game. They lost the game because they were outworked and their best players didn't show up. Again. If that is the mentality they are going to have going forward, this could be a short series that ends next Tuesday in Western New York.
There are going to be momentum swings in the playoffs, and good teams answer them. The Bruins didn't.
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