Ducks Spank Bs 6-2 But Team In Decent Spot Heading Into All-Star Break
Things looked good for the Bruins a mere 40 seconds into last night’s game vs. Anaheim. Zach Trotman got his first on the year on his team’s first shot of the game to stake the Bs to a 1-0 lead. And then it all went downhill as the finally awakened Ducks outscored the home team 6-1 over the remaining 19:20 for its fifth win in six games. The Bs had a nice 5-1 stretch before the loss.
The loss wasn’t as bad as the score indicates as the Ducks got an ENG then another goal with :32 left and the game already over. Even so, it was a game the Bruins are just better of forgetting about before getting a week off for the All-Star Break. They enter the break third in the Atlantic Division and currently in the #5 seed in the Wales. And if you asked me on Halloween if I’d take that, I’d have asked you, “Where do I sign?”.
Still, as currently constituted, the Bruins are far from a perfect team and don’t have such a high-end roster that they can afford to cut corners like more talented teams can. They also don’t inspire much confidence in the fandom that they’ll go on a lengthy Cup run. D is still their Achilles Heel and until/unless the front office brings in a top four guy prior to the deadline, they’ll need to continue to rely on goaltending to bail them out which isn’t a recipe for success. But for today, the team is in a much better spot than many so-called pundits said they would be and can at least enjoy their week off to rest up for a busy stretch run.
A few more buds for your bowl…
*Torey Krug and Chris Stewart scrapped in the first and Mad Jack Edwards was not only wrong about the genesis of the fight, he took an unnecessary shot at Stewart’s intelligence.
*Which led to this retort…
*And also one of the rare times a locker room quote was useful…
*Useful because it explains to all the alarmists (“the Bruins lost their balls!”) out there that Torey Krug initiated the scrap and wasn’t being picked on by a bigger guy. So there was nothing for his team to ‘avenge’. He wanted the fight, he got it, he lost it, and he earned even more respect in the process. Everybody move along.
*Without Tuukka Rask, the Bruins would be fighting with Ottawa and Philly right now, hoping for playoff scraps. All due respect to the great Patrice Bergeron but Rask has been the team’s best player this year and is the main reason they’re in the thick of the playoff race. His awful start was a long time ago.
*Jonas Gustavsson got the start and gave up two goals in the first. When Rask started the second, it appeared as though Claude was going with his rare trigger finger and switching things up. But it turns out Gus had to go to the hospital for what was termed an “illness” after the game. Here’s hoping he’s OK. The back-up has been a very good signing for the team so far.
*Not sure what Claude is thinking have Joonas Kemppainen on a line with David Pastrnak and Ryan Spooner. Kemppainen hasn’t looked good lately in addition to not being an offensively-skilled player to being with. Not an ideal scenario for two of your better offensive players to be productive.
*Pasta has often looked like the young kid he is out there. But Claude seems to have him on a very short leash and has stapled him to the bench even when the team is in dire need of a goal later in the game. Getting bounced from line to line certainly won’t help him get any sort of consistency either. Hopefully he clicks soon with either David Krejci or Spooner because his play was a catalyst for the team down the stretch last season and a repeat this year would be a big plus for the team.
*Consistency has been an issue for Jimmy Hayes which is why he finds himself on the fourth line with Max Talbot and Landon Ferraro. Hayes got just 9:08 of ice time last night and didn’t get a shot on goal.
*Matt Beleskey has been a great signing thus far. The gritty winger battles every game and has 8-16–24 totals in 47 games. An easy guy to root for.
*Loui, Loui: Me Gotta Go Now? There’s been a lot of chatter regarding pending UFA Loui Eriksson, the incoming centerpiece of the disastrous, lop-sided, franchise-altering Tyler Seguin trade. The versatile 30-year-old is having his best season as a Bruin with 15-24–39 in 49 games (8 PPGs) and has been a durable and valuable player for Claude Julien. But GM Don Sweeney has to decide soon whether to extend the Swede or get something for him before the trade deadline. This is gonna be the player’s last great chance to make major dough—something his agent is very good at getting. It’s possible he’d take a very team-friendly deal to stay here but I wouldn’t count on it. And I’m fine with not giving a guy who turns 31 over the summer a 5 or 6 year deal for the money he’s looking for (supposedly north of $6M/year). I just hope Sweeney can turn him (and whatever else it takes) into a young potential stud D-man. Because I’d much rather spend some/most of that money on, say, Winnipeg’s Jacob Trouba should the pending RFA be made available by the small-market Jets.
*The Seguin trade wasn’t Sweeney’s mess so he shouldn’t have any sort of attachment to keeping Loui just to save franchise face (that ship sailed many moons ago anyways). And we know from the Dougie Hamilton trade that he’s not afraid to pull the trigger.
*Of course, trading a player of Eriksson’s skill will leave a void in the current line-up. Though he’s not eye-poppingly great at any one thing, Loui is pretty good at a bunch of different things that make him valuable in ways that don’t always show up on the scoresheet. So if the team does indeed trade him, they will lose quite a bit up front.
*Meanwhile, in Montreal…
*What a pack of fucking idiots.
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