Bruins lost momentum, game in third period on the road at Pittsburg
Final Score: Boston Bruins 2, Pittsburg Penguins 3
The Bruins (17-4-3) scored two quick goals in the first period, then lost that momentum. They sat on their lead for much of the game, and threw just 16 shots at Penguins (19-8-0) goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury. The Penguins had 34 shots on Anton Khudobin, scoring three with less than seven minutes to go in the third period. In that period, Bruins had just four shots.
Highlights:
- The Bruins came into the game with a 3-game winning streak. During that streak, they won in overtime against Washington, outscored Toronto in regulation, and shut out Philadelphia.
- The Penguins was on a 5-game winning streak, and their second game without NHL MVP Evgeni Malkin. They still have the league’s most dangerous 1-2 punch in Sidney Crosby and Chris Kunitz, who have a combined 82 points on 30 goals and 52 assists. The Penguins are statistically the most dangerous offense in the NHL.
- Crosby, who had an unprecedented 20 points in the last 8 games, was kept in check. Zdeno Chara kept Crosby off his rhythm, and denied him opportunities.
Players of the Game:
- Brandon Sutter was the obvious game MVP. At the 14:33 mark, Sutter tied the game at 2-2. Then with a little over 2 minutes in the period, Sutter intercepted a long pass from Dennis Seidenberg, then beat Khudobin for the second time at nearly the same spot.
- Chris Kunitz took back the momentum for the Penguins. With 6:28 to go in the third period, Sutter got past Khudobin, who had been solid all night, to make it a 2-1 game.
- Zdeno Chara gave the Bruins a power play goal with just 4:45 into the first period. Defensively, he was phenomenal on Sidney Crosby, who couldn’t get it going throughout the game.
Quote of the Game:
“They were able to build the game and score three goals in the last seven minutes,” Milan Lucic said. “It [stinks]. We’ve got to learn from it again. It’s happened to us too many times where we’ve blown leads going into the third period.”
Looking Ahead:
The Bruins have some films to look at, and some adjustments to be made at all levels. They host the Florida Panthers on Thursday. The Panthers are on a 4-game losing streak, three at home and one on the road. The last time the two teams played on Feb. 24, the Bruins won 4-1 in Panthers territory.
