The Boston Bruins had plenty of opportunities to beat the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday night, but they couldn’t capitalize on several quality scoring chances in overtime and lost in a 12-round shootout.
It was Edmonton’s first win against Boston since Oct. 17, 2000. Bruins rookie forward David Pastrnak was just 4 years old at that time.
The B’s have now lost five straight games (0-4-1), six straight shootouts (2-6 on the season overall) and are still searching for their first win on this five-game road trip. Boston continues its road trip Friday night against the St. Louis Blues.
Here are four takeaways from Bruins-Oilers:
1. Tuukka Rask Starts In Net
When the Bruins recalled top goaltender prospect Malcolm Subban from Providence earlier in the week, many expected he would start against the Oilers to give No. 1 goalie Tuukka Rask a much-needed rest. It also made sense for Subban to make his NHL debut against a struggling Oilers team that sits at the bottom of the Western Conference standings.
But with his team desperate for two points, Bruins head coach Claude Julien decided to start Rask, who’s appeared in 15 straight games and 24 of the last 25. Rask played well and made 27 saves on 30 shots against. He was fantastic in the shootout with 11 saves and didn’t give up a goal until the 12th round.
2. Nail Yakupov Extends Point Streak
The Oilers probably didn’t expect Derek Roy to help revive Yakupov’s career when they acquired him via trade earlier in the season, but he’s formed great chemistry with the young winger in their brief time together. Roy assisted on Yakupov’s first-period goal, which extended the Russian forward’s point streak to a season-high six games. Yakupov has tallied 7 points (four goals, three assists) during the streak.
He hasn’t yet lived up to expectations (just 37 goals in 170 career games) after being selected No. 1 overall in the 2012 draft, but his improvement over the last month is very encouraging for Edmonton.
3. Bruins’ Penalty Kill Struggles
Boston’s penalty kill was fantastic in January with a 95.3 percent success rate and started 12-for-13 in the first five games in February. The unit has struggled in the last two games, though. The Bruins gave up a power-play goal that tied the score 3-3 in the third period of Monday night’s loss to the Calgary Flames and allowed two power-play goals to the Oilers on Wednesday night. Offensive-zone penalties led to both of Edmonton’s power-play goals.
4. David Pastrnak Excels At Both End of the Ice
Pastrnak scored his sixth goal of the season with a perfect deflection of a Zdeno Chara shot from the point in the second period. The goal tied the score 3-3 after Boston began the period trailing 3-1.
Pastrnak now has four points (two goals, two assists) in his last five games and his six goals since Jan. 9, a span of 15 games, leads the Bruins. In addition to his goal scoring, the rookie right winger also is consistently backchecking, generating scoring chances with creative passes and using his speed to put opposing defensemen on their heels.
Thumbnail photo via Perry Nelson/USA TODAY Sports Images
