It wasn’t the 10-goal, fight-filled affair that their last meeting was, but the Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators squared off Saturday in a highly entertaining hockey game that required overtime to settle.
In the end, it was the Senators who earned the two points, with Mark Stone scoring late in the extra session to give Ottawa a 2-1 victory.
The Bruins took away a point from the loss, allowing the to remain ahead of the Senators in the Atlantic Division standings.
IT WAS OVER WHEN…
Loui Eriksson beat Senators goalie Craig Anderson but rang the post with less than 60 seconds remaining in the five-minute overtime period, and Stone fired his own rebound past Tuukka Rask at the other end to send the Canadian Tire Centre crowd home happy.
Both goaltenders were excellent in the game, with Anderson stopping 33 of the 34 shots he faced and Rask saving 38 in a losing effort.
RETURN OF THE MARCH
Bruins winger Brad Marchand rejoined the fray after serving a three-game suspension for his hit on Senators defenseman Mark Borowiecki early last week.
Marchand did not find his way onto the scoresheet and was not credited with a shot on goal, but he was highly active throughout the night, generating multiple scoring chances and helping set up linemate David Pastrnak’s second-period goal.
PASTA PARTY
Pastrnak, who returned to the lineup Friday after missing more than two months with a fractured foot, lit the lamp 41 seconds into the second for his first NHL goal since Oct. 23.
Zdeno Chara and Patrice Bergeron were credited with assists on the tally, which tied the score at one goal apiece.
Pastrnak recorded two shots on goal and two blocked shots, and the 19-year-old winger also dished out an uncharacteristically big hit in front of the Bruins’ net early in the game.
EK IS OK
Erik Karlsson is the Senators’ best player, and he looked like it against the Bruins. The two-time Norris Trophy winner logged a game-high 32:57 of ice time — no other player had more than 24 — and made Ottawa’s first goal happen with a blocked shot at one end and a nifty assist at the other.
The defenseman also assisted on Stone’s game-winner.
LINEUP NOTES
Fourth-line bruiser Tyler Randell returned to action for Boston after sitting out four of the previous five games, while Zac Rinaldo and Brett Connolly did not suit up.
Connolly had been a healthy scratch just once previously and had appeared in every game for the Bruins since Oct. 21. The 23-year-old winger has struggled to produce of late, however, managing just two assists and zero goals in his last 15 contests.
UP NEXT
The Bruins will have Sunday off before visiting Madison Square Garden on Monday night for a matchup with the New York Rangers.
Thumbnail photo via Marc DesRosiers/USA TODAY Sports Images
