B’S UNABLE TO KEEP PACE WITH LEAFS IN KEY DIVISION CLASH
B’s rally for naught
The Bruins have all of a sudden become a very entertaining hockey team. But in today’s NHL, entertainment without the basics — or goaltending — will get you an early tee time come April.
In a huge Atlantic Division game against Toronto last night at the Garden, the B’s completed a spirited comeback from a three-goal deficit, then fought back from a late one-goal deficit, only to give up the soft winning goal with a 1:36 remaining to lift the Maple Leafs to a 6-5 victory.
The win allowed the Leafs to inch within a point of the B’s with five games in hand. And with so much at stake, it was hard to take much solace from the comeback, however emotional it was.
“We fought back, so you like those kinds of things, but at the end of the night it’s about winning hockey games,” said coach Claude Julien. “I have to say tonight, we found a way to lose.”
On the winner, James van Riemsdyk circled behind the net and beat Zane McIntyre with a long wrist shot from the top of the right circle. McIntyre, who had replaced Tuukka Rask after the Leafs took a 4-1 lead in the second period, took a peak on the wrong side of a Mitch Marner screen and left the shortside open for JVR to deliver the dagger.
“I made the shot harder than it needed to be,” said McIntyre, who allowed two goals on 12 shots. “It was a pretty routine shot that I just didn’t make the save on it. It was a tough one, obviously. I take accountability on that. I need to be better.”
David Pastrnak put the B’s up 1-0 early in the first period, but the Leafs tied it before the period was out with the first of William Nylander’s three goals, this one off a David Backes turnover at the blue line.
Midway through the second period, the B’s took direct aim at their own feet and fired away with some more bad puck management, giving up three goals in 1:46. First, the B’s failed to get the puck out twice and the second time, an Adam McQuaid indirect pass to Brad Marchand was turned back to a wide open van Riemsdyk in front for his first.
Then, Kevan Miller fell down at the left point and Nylander took off on a 2-on- 1. He elected to keep it himself and beat Rask over the glove. Finally, at 10:17 with McQuaid in the box, two Bruins penalty killers were caught out high near the boards and failed to clear the puck. Toronto quickly turned it into an odd-man situation, with Nylander finishing off the hat trick.
They were all high quality chances, but Rask at his best would most likely keep one of those off the board.
That was enough for Julien, who was not at 100 percent himself thanks to a stomach bug that caused him to cut his morning press briefing short. He called timeout, barked at his players, yanked Rask and sent in McIntyre. The comeback soon materialized.
First, Pastrnak scored his second of the night off a rebound, and McQuaid got the crowd rocking with a lengthy bout against fellow heavyweight Matt Martin that ended with a McQuaid knockdown of Martin with a straight right to the jaw. Torey Krug got the B’s back to within one with a powerplay tally before the second period was out.
In the third period, Ryan Spooner, moved out of his third line center position, tied the game at 10:06 and the place was rocking, but the B’s just could not help themselves.
Connor Brown gave the Leafs a 5-4 lead with 4:45 left when he was left alone on a rush, but the B’s weren’t dead. Leo Komarov was sent off for interference and, with 2:54 left, Patrice Bergeron backhanded the puck over goalie Frederik Andersen to make it 5-5.
If the B’s could have hung on even for just one point it would felt like a win, but van Riemsdyk found his spot under the bar and hit it.
Lamented Pastrnak: “We paid for every mistake we made today.”
Despite the gutsy comeback, they made enough of those mistakes to deserve to lose.