The driving force behind the Providence Bruins' red-hot start

The Providence Bruins are one point behind the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Colorado Eagles for the AHL lead. It's an impressive start for the team, considering they have three games in hand on the Penguins and Eagles. As we near the quarter-mark of the season, Providence is also the second-best team in the AHL in terms of points percentage, with the Grand Rapids Griffins being the only team better in only 10 games played.

The scoring depth for the Bruins has been a big reason why the team has been performing well. They have 47 goals in the first 13 games, averaging 3.6 per game. However, the main reason has been one that has been overlooked, as fans focus on the scoring forwards who could receive a call-up to the NHL.

Providence's goaltending tandem of Mikey Dipietro and Simon Zajicek has been lights out so far this season. Zajicek was the goalie who took the loss, but his numbers have actually been better than those of his tandemmate. Through the team's 13 games, the goaltending duo is starting to become more of a 1A/1B situation, as Dipietro started seven and Zajicek started six.

Mark Allred's props to the duo are slightly outdated, as Zajicek put forth another stellar effort on Saturday night to stretch his record to 5-1-0. He was the game's third star, stopping 34 of 36 shots as Providence outlasted the Utica Comets for a 3-2 overtime victory. The Bruins will finish out their weekend on Sunday afternoon, facing the Laval Rocket after their NHL groups faced off Saturday night. Dipietro will get the opportunity to extend his season-opening win streak.

Dipietro, Zajicek are the driving force behind the Providence Bruins' red-hot start

Providence has won four-straight one-goal games to keep its hot streak going. While the defense also has been stingy to get those games over the finish line, it takes some reliable goaltending to consistently get into those tight games and escape with victories. Providence's success begins and ends with Zajicek and Dipietro.

The success of Providence's goaltending tandem and the NHL club leads to some interesting questions. Boston could use some help amongst their skaters, and trading Joonas Korpisalo in an NHL deal could be a way to get some immediate help in their forward group, especially with the injuries that are starting to pile up.

Dipietro has proven that he should get an opportunity at the NHL level, and Zajicek has also proven that he can shoulder the responsibility of the AHL. The only problem would be what an added workload would do to Zajicek, and how much the quality would drop with Luke Cavallin as his tandemmate. Considering Cavallin has a .933 save percentage and a 1.85 goals-against average in the ECHL this season, he'd probably be alright.

Nevertheless, whatever happens for the rest of this season with the Bruins' goaltending depth, the AHL team will be in good hands whether Dipietro or Zajicek are leading the team between the pipes.