BOSTON — Tuukka Rask was the best goaltender in the NHL last season, and it was a major reason why the Bruins finished the regular season with the league’s best record.
After an inconsistent start to begin the 2014-15 campaign — aided by injuries to important defensemen such as Zdeno Chara and more defensive zone breakdowns than normal — Rask has rediscovered his Vezina Trophy form.
He stopped all 30 shots he faced, including nine on the penalty kill, to propel the Bruins to a 3-0 victory over the New York Rangers on Thursday night at TD Garden. It was Rask’s second shutout of the season and 25th of his career.
“He was really good for us tonight,” Bruins head coach Claude Julien said. “This team has a lot of speed, the Rangers, and we acknowledged that before the game. They certainly displayed it at times, and when there was the odd breakdown and they had opportunities to score, Tuukka was up to the task there and made some big saves for us. No doubt, in my mind, he was our best player tonight.”
The Rangers tested Rask early and often. He was forced to make clutch saves on two partial breakaways in the first period, as well as a Rick Nash breakaway in the second period.
“I thought Tuukka played unbelievable tonight,” Bruins forward Chris Kelly said. “Not only in the first period, but that breakaway by Nash in the second. It’s a different game if he doesn’t make a big save there. He was our best player tonight, and he’s been our best player for a while, so it’s good to see.”
Rask hasn’t lost in regulation since Dec. 19 in Winnipeg. He’s made 10 starts in that span with a 7-0-3 record. His January record is 4-0-2 with a .942 save percentage and just 10 goals against.
When a goaltender is playing well and bailing out his teammates after defensive mistakes, it elevates the confidence of the entire team. During Rask’s stretch of positive results — which includes Boston’s season-high five-game win streak — the team looks a lot more comfortable in the defensive zone, and the costly breakdowns, specifically the ones in front of the net, have decreased.
“I have played good, but then again, when the team plays good in front of you it makes it that much easier,” Rask said. “Having the scoring chances down a bit — you know earlier in the year it used to be 15-20 scoring chances — the odds are you are going to give up two or three goals. Now when it’s close to 10, or if it’s 9 or 11, it helps a lot.
“I have felt pretty much the same all year, but now I’m not getting stupid bounces, and we are playing a really good team defense, so that results in goals against going down.”
The Bruins have three more games until the All-Star break. Plenty of challenges remain, but the B’s are starting to look like the dominant team they’ve been in years past, one that’s built on great goaltending, solid team defense and timely scoring. Getting key players back from injury and having a healthy roster also makes a huge impact.
“We’ve just showed that when we’re playing well, and with the group that we have here, I think we’re as good as any team in this league,” Julien said. “That’s never been a doubt. I think the biggest thing, the biggest challenge, was to find our game. It took us a while, and now we’re starting to find it, so now it’s important for us to keep it and understand the importance of this second half here.
“It hasn’t been an easy first half, so it’s not going to be an easy second half either. We’ve got a lot of ground to make up for, and I think playing like we did (Thursday) certainly helps.”
Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images
