Final, Bruins 3-1: That’s it, and that’s all. The Bruins win 3-1, and they’re back on the winning track.
They’ll be back in action Monday afternoon at TD Garden against the Detroit Red Wings.
Third period, 19:28, Bruins 3-1: The Bruins have certainly gotten a little bit of puck luck so far in this one, and that’s what helps them put this game away.
Milan Lucic just won a race for the puck in the Columbus end with the net empty, and he chipped it in from the faceoff circle.
Third period, 18:10, Bruins 2-1: The Bruins came within inches of scoring the insurance goal just as the power play expired.
Reilly Smith found Loui Eriksson right in front, and Eriksson ended up hitting the post. The power play comes and goes without a tally for the B’s, but they’re within a few moments of picking up the win.
Third period, 15:32, Bruins 2-1: Now the Bruins will really have a chance to put this game away.
Ryan Johansen was just sent to the penalty box for a holding the stick penalty, and the B’s will have a man-advantage as they look to add an insurance goal.
Third period, 14:24, Bruins 2-1: Tuukka Rask hasn’t been tested a ton in this one, but when he has, he’s been up to the challenge.
He just stopped Cam Atkinson with one of his signature pad saves.
Third period, 10:24, Bruins 2-1: We’ve come a long way from the first period where watching paint dry would have been a more entertaining alternative to watching this game.
Columbus is starting to show some desperation and that’s leading to some increased time in the offensive end. They just put a flurry of shots at Tuukka Rask, a couple of which got through. One of them was stopped by a flailing Johnny Boychuk, who skated slowly to the bench.
When you play aggressive, though, sometimes you get burned going back the other way, which is almost what happened to the Blue Jackets. The Bruins’ first line shot out of the zone and had a 3-on-1 which led to what looked like a one-timer for Jarome Iginla at the top of the slot. However, Brandon Dubinsky got back just in time to stick-check Iginla just enough to break up the play.
Third period, 6:19, Bruins 2-1: It looks like Claude Julien has decided to shake up his lines some here in the third period.
Reilly Smith, who had previously been skating on the third line, is now skating with Patrice Bergeron and Loui Eriksson on the second line. In fact, Smith was given an assist on the Eriksson goal. With that move, Brad Marchand is now skating on the third line with Chris Kelly and Jordan Caron.
Smith continues to play well, and Marchand is having arguably his worst game of the season. He had a couple of brutal turnovers in the second period, including one that led directly to a Columbus scoring opportunity, but Marchand was bailed out by Tuukka Rask who made a sensational glove save.
Third period, 0:49, Bruins 2-1: Loui Eriksson has his first goal as a Bruin.
The new Bruins winger just got on the board with what looked to be another pretty soft goal against Sergei Bobrovsky.
Patrice Bergeron passed it across the slot to Eriksson who kind of one-timed the backhander. He didn’t get much on it at all, but it was enough to get it by Bobrovsky.
Third period, 0:31, 1-1: The Bruins came so close to scoring on the power play, but his shot from in front was blocked by a sprawling defenseman.
Third period, 0:01, 1-1: The third period is underway with the game tied 1-1 in Columbus.
End second period, 1-1: That’s the end of the second period. The Bruins will have abbreviated power-play time to begin the third period.
Second period, 18:35, 1-1: The Bruins will have a power play to end the second period.
Jordan Caron and James Wisniewski were tangled up following a whistle, and Wisniewski gave Caron an extra blow that earned him a roughing penalty. The Bruins will be looking for a better effort out of the power play here in the final moments of the second.
Second period, 16:18, 1-1: The Bruins have tied the game, thanks in large part to Jarome Iginla.
Chris Kelly was the one who scored the game-tying goal, but much of the credit should go to Iginla, who did a great job of killing the penalty. He then passed the puck up to Kelly who was coming out of the penalty box, and he beat Sergei Bobrovsky with a slap shot.
Second period, 14:06, Blue Jackets 1-0: Columbus is about to go back on the power play.
Chris Kelly was just called for holding, and CBJ gets its fourth power play.
Second period, 13:31, Blue Jackets 1-0: The Blue Jackets are starting to turn up the pressure on the Bruins right now.
Thanks to some shoddy passing in the Columbus zone, the Bruins turned the puck over, and Matt Bartkowski got caught up ice. Marian Gaborik took off the other way, and while he didn’t get a very clean look, he was able to get a shot on goal. Tuukka Rask made the save, but he had to freeze the puck.
On the ensuing faceoff — which was actually won by the Bruins — the Blue Jackets wrestled possession back, but Rask made two more saves to keep it a one-goal game.
Second period, 10:03, Blue Jackets 1-0: The 4-on-4 time went by without much incident, and the Bruins were able to hold the Blue Jackets scoreless on a very abbreviated power play.
We’re now halfway through regulation, and we’ve yet to see a Bruins goal. They haven’t scored since last Saturday against the Red Wings.
Second period, 6:37, Blue Jackets 1-0: So much for that.
The first portion of the Bruins’ power play was wasted by some ugly play, which didn’t produce much of anything. The second portion will be wiped out completely, thanks to a Dennis Seidenberg tripping penalty.
It was a questionable call to say the least, but a call nonetheless. We’ll have 4-on-4 for a bit, and then Columbus will get 13 seconds of power-play time.
Second period, 4:24, Blue Jackets 1-0: The Bruins have come out with a much better start to the second period here than they had in the first, and it pays off in the form of a power play.
Boone Jenner was just called for high-sticking, and it’s deemed a double-minor that sent Adam McQuaid to the dressing room. Four minutes for the Boston power play.
Second period, 0:01, Blue Jackets 1-0: The second period is underway.
First period reaction: There’s not a ton to like if you’re a Bruins fan after that first period. While the Bruins did enjoy a 7-4 advantage in shots on goal, it wasn’t really a dominant period by any stretch of the imagination. While the Blue Jackets doesn’t really deserve to have the lead after one, either, that’s what the Bruins get for not playing a better period.
This was somewhat to be expected. It’s always a little difficult to get going during day games, and the Bruins are certainly proof of that right now. They looked a little sluggish, a little lethargic, and as a result, they didn’t do much to generate a ton of opportunities there in the first. They’re going to have to get their feet going more in the second if they want to even the score.
One of the few bright spots of the first period was the play of Loui Eriksson. He was the one who found Torey Krug for the Bruins’ best scoring chance of the first period, and Eriksson had a team-high four shots on goal in the first. He was practically nonexistent Thursday against Colorado, so it’s an encouraging sign to see him improving his play.
End first period, Blue Jackets 1-0: The first period comes to a close with Columbus out in front 1-0.
First period, 18:52, Blue Jackets 1-0: The Blue Jackets have been outplayed for much of the period, but they have the game’s first goal.
Jack Johnson just blasted a one-timer from the right point, and he was able to beat Tuukka Rask for the power-play goal that gives Columbus the lead late in the first period.
First period, 18:18, 0-0: The Blue Jackets are about to get their second power play of the afternoon.
This time, it’s Patrice Bergeron who was called for the holding penalty, and the Jackets have another man-advantage. They had plenty of possession on their first one, but they were not able to produce a shot on goal.
First period, 14:45, 0-0: It looks like the Bruins have gotten the most out of the wake-up call that was that Thornton-Boll fight.
The B’s just got the best scoring chance of the game, and it was off the stick of Torey Krug. The young defenseman was given a free lane from the point down the left wing right to the net. He tried some fancy stickhandling but might have done a little bit too much as he kind of skated himself out of any angle. He tried to bank the puck off of Sergei Bobrovsky, and the puck was loose underneath the goalie for a bit, but he eventually closed the pads before the puck trickled over the line.
First period, 12;23, 0-0: It was only a matter of time.
Shawn Thornton and Jared Boll just tried to get things picked up here in the first period with some fisticuffs. To be honest, there wasn’t much to see as the noted pugilists tied each other up and not many punches were thrown let alone landed.
First period, 9:30, 0-0: The Columbus power play is over, and it produced a grand total of zero shots on goal, thanks in large part to some blocked shots from the Bruins.
Chris Kelly was responsible for one of those blocks, but it may have come at a price. He went back to the dressing room after blocking a shot that appeared to hit him up around the chest area.
First period, 7:02, 0-0: Well, if you missed the seven minutes of this hockey game, you didn’t miss much at all.
Both teams look to be feeling each other out or are in some sort of malaise or a combination of both. Either way, we’ve seen just one shot apiece from each team.
The Blue Jackets will get the first power play of the game, however. Jarome Iginla has been sent off for interference after a faceoff of in the Columbus zone.
First period, 0:01, 0-0: And we’re off. The game is underway in Columbus.
1:45 p.m.: Well, that’s what you get for assuming.
Matt Bartkowski appears to be making his first appearance of the season. He took all of the pregame line rushes alongside Dennis Seidenberg. It looks like Dougie Hamilton will be the odd man out.
1:30 p.m.: We’re about a half-hour from game time in Columbus, where Tuukka Rask will get his fourth start in as many games for the Bruins. There was some speculation that maybe this would be the day Chad Johnson might get a start, but he’ll have to wait at least one more game.
On the other side of the ice, Sergei Bobrovsky will make the start in net for the Blue Jackets. He’s the reigning Vezina Trophy winner and a big reason Columbus almost made the playoffs last season.
Also in lineup news, Boston coach Claude Julien said he’ll make a decision on the defense pairs after the pregame skate. So far, Matt Bartkowski has been the odd man out through three games sitting all three contests.
Here are the projected lines (assuming Bartkowski sits again) for the Saturday matinee.
Boston
Milan Lucic — David Krejci — Jarome Iginla
Brad Marchand — Patrice Bergeron — Loui Eriksson
Jordan Caron — Chris Kelly — Reilly Smith
Daniel Paille — Gregory Campbell — Shawn Thornton
Zdeno Chara — Johnny Boychuk
Dougie Hamilton — Dennis Seidenberg
Torey Krug — Adam McQuaid
Columbus
Cam Atkinson — Brandon Dubinsky — Marian Gaborik
Nick Foligno — Ryan Johansen — R.J. Umberger
Boone Jenner — Artem Aniismov — Blake Comeau
Derek McKenzie — Mark Letestu — Jared Boll
Jack Johnson — Fedor Tyutin
Ryan Murray — James Wisniewski
Daulton Prout — David Savard
8 a.m.: The Bruins are among just a handful of teams who have only played three games in this young NHL season, but their slate is about to pick up in the coming days, and that starts with matinee action Saturday in Ohio.
The B’s are on the road for the first time all season Saturday when they take on the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena. It will mark the Bruins’ fourth game of the season, and their second against a new conference mate. Like Detroit, the Blue Jackets are also new to the Eastern Conference this season, although CBJ is a member of the Metropolitan Division. After losing their season opener to Calgary, the Blue Jackets have bounced back to win their last two games.
The Bruins, meanwhile, are coming off their first loss of the season. The upstart Colorado Avalanche came into Boston on Thursday night and shut out the Bruins 2-0 behind a vintage performance from Jean-Sebastien Giguere. It was an obvious step back offensively for the Bruins who struggled to capitalize on their chances. Saturday would be a nice day for either one of the Bruins’ top lines to really break out. It’s been a work in progress as the top six continue to get accustomed to playing together.
That process is ongoing in part because Nathan Horton signed with the Blue Jackets this summer. He’s yet to make his Columbus debut this season, however, as he’s still recovering from offseason shoulder surgery.
Puck drop from Columbus is slated for 2 p.m.
