The Boston Bruins defeated its rival, the Florida Panthers, 3-2 in overtime on Monday night at TD Garden, displaying a great deal of courage and resiliency in the face of a difficult first period and a 2-0 deficit.
They finished with an 8-0-1 record as a consequence, which is the longest point streak the team has ever had to begin a season.
It was also, in some ways, their most spectacular victory of the year.The beginning of the game resembled a lot of the Bruins-Panthers games from the dismal first-round playoff series of the previous year. The Bruins were greatly hindered by the Panthers’ strong forecheck and careless errors, as Florida led 2-0 at the half. However, the Bruins rallied, leveling the score in the third period with a Charlie McAvoy goal and scoring a goal through Brad Marchand in the second.
Two defensemen were also lost by Boston in the third period. After Matt Grzelcyk left the game due to an upper body injury, McAvoy was sent off for illegally striking Panthers defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson in the head.
To the pleasure of the Garden crowd, McAvoy’s match penalty gave the Panthers a five-minute power play that the Bruins’ top-ranked penalty kill handled. The Bruins’ three-game home losing streak against the Panthers, which started in Round 1 of the previous season, was ended by Pavel Zacha’s goal on a 2-on-1 rush in overtime.
After the game, Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery told reporters, “It was a big character win.” “Halfway through the first, we lose Grizzy. There are now just five D. Now that you’re down to four D, you have five minutes to finish off your major. Simply said, our team’s ability to overcome a 2-0 deficit against a very excellent team and come back to win is admirable, as were the four defenseman who gave it their all.
Boston paid a heavy price for the victory.
Montgomery disclosed that Grzelcyk will be absent for a few weeks. McAvoy might also be absent for a while. The puck was not in the path of the brutal high hit that he delivered to Ekman-Larsson.
The B’s star may be subject to a hearing before the NHL’s Department of Player Safety, which could lead to a ban. In his whole career, McAvoy has only had one suspension. It was for a head injury sustained during the 2019 playoffs’ second round.
Losing two key defensemen is never a good thing, particularly when one of them (McAvoy) is among the best in the league. But with the Bruins playing a challenging schedule over the next two weeks, it’s an especially tough stretch to be without these players.
On Thursday night, the Bruins play home to the formidable Toronto Maple Leafs and their all-star forward corps, which includes John Tavares, Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews, and William Nylander. On Saturday, Boston takes on the Detroit Red Wings, who lead the league in goals scored at five-on-five (25). The Bruins then travel to play the Dallas Stars, one of the greatest teams in the Western Conference, before hosting the formidable New York Islanders, who have world-class goaltending, back at the Garden.
The Grzelcyk-McAvoy combination is essentially the best defensive partnership for the Bruins. This duo has also started the season off strong. When this duo is on the ice at 5-on-5 this season, the Bruins have a plus-14 advantage in shot attempts, a plus-12 advantage in scoring chances, and a 3-1 goal differential, according to Natural Stat Trick.
Specifically, McAvoy has had a great start to the campaign. With eight points (six goals, six assists) in the first nine games of the season, he’s on track to set a new career record for scoring in a single season. Additionally, he leads the Bruins in ice time per game at 23:54.
For a while, the Bruins will probably need to call up one or more defensemen. The two best candidates for a promotion from Providence seem to be Ian Mitchell and highly touted prospect Mason Lohrei.
If the Bruins were to win games without McAvoy and Grzelcyk, it wouldn’t be remarkable. The primary cause for this is goaltending. Boston’s net tandem of Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark has been exceptional, with a league-best save percentage of.947.
“We’re 8-0-1 because of our goaltending,” Montgomery remarked.
The fact that the B’s have scored at least three goals in each of their first nine games suggests that their scoring depth has also been greater than anticipated.
But losing two excellent defenseman is a serious blow, and if the team wants to keep winning into November, other players will have to step up to take on bigger roles.
