The Bruins continued their winning ways when they made it eight straight with a 4-3 overtime victory over the Calgary Flames.
Boston swept its West Coast road trip and will return home for a four-game homestand.
It wasn’t easy for the Bruins, who looked lost in the second period, but they found a way to get it done once again to move to 47-8-5 on the season.
Here are three takeaways from Tuesday’s win.
Dmitry Orlov impresses teammates
The newest defenseman had a three-point night, which included two goals. Orlov also helped set up Pavel Zacha on the game-tying goal and now has five points in his first three games with the Bruins. He’s making an immediate impact on the blue line and Orlov’s teammates are taking notice.
“Man, he’s been playing great,” Charlie McAvoy, who scored the game-winning goal in overtime, told reporters after the game. “Obviously we’ve been shuffling on the backend but whoever he’s playing with he’s been playing really well, making great first passes and then (Tuesday), hot stick. Exceptional vision there on the third goal. All night, he was part of it. I don’t know what to say. What a pickup. What a pickup. He really shores us up on the back end. We deserve to have confidence in this locker room with the guys we have.”
Orlov’s impressive game against the Flames followed his strong night against Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers, forcing turnovers from the Hart Trophy favorite and keeping that top line from doing more damage than it could have.
The 31-year-old also has showcased his versatility by playing on all three pairs since coming to the Bruins from the Washington Capitals last week. Orlov also has played on both sides and has been a seamless fit.
Depth may need to be tested
Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery told reporters Taylor Hall, who flew back to Boston ahead of Monday’s game in Edmonton with a lower-body injury, won’t play Thursday against the Buffalo Sabres. Montgomery doesn’t believe Hall’s injury to be serious, but it’s not ideal for him to miss his third straight game.
The injuries piled up Tuesday when Nick Foligno left late in the second period after a collision caused him to hunch over as he slowly made his way off the ice and down the tunnel. The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa reported Foligno left Scotiabank Saddledome limping and “favoring his right leg.”
Montgomery noted Foligno was doubtful for Thursday, which leaves the Bruins’ bottom six down two forwards. As of Wednesday morning, Boston wasn’t carrying any extra forwards ahead of Thursday’s game. It’s unclear if they will make a move (or two), but Jakub Lauko could be an option to be recalled after he impressed during his latest stint with the Bruins before being sent back down to Providence.
Linus Ullmark stood on his head
What more can be said about Ullmark? As if scoring the first goalie goal in Bruins franchise history wasn’t enough, Ullmark also set a new team regular season record with 54 saves. The Vezina Trophy favorite was busy all night, and the Bruins were lucky to have him keep them in it.
“It was a lot of fun. You never really want to get up to almost 60 shots in the game, but I’ll take it,” Ullmark told NESN’s Sophia Jurksztowicz. “We got two points and we’ll go home with a four-game road trip win streak. Love it.”
The Bruins have arguably the best goalie tandem in the NHL, and they showed why Tuesday night.
