Here are NESN.com’s three stars of the game:
3. Matt Moulson: The Isles forward had a goal and was all over the ice. He was a menace throughout the afternoon.
2. Patrice Bergeron: In his first game back, Bergeron was physical in the corners, and he had an assist on Marc Savard’s game-winner.
1. Tim Thomas: The goalie held strong with 37 saves, including 33 after the first period. Several of those saves were of the amazing variety.
Third period, 1:14, Bruins 3-2: Dwayne Roloson has hit the bench, and the Islanders are trying to tie the game with an extra attacker.
Third period, 5:05, Bruins 3-2: This game has turned into a track meet, and it took awhile for that last whistle to come. The Bruins are having a tough time trying to match the Islanders’ intensity, but Boston’s last two shifts have helped even the ice a bit. Tim Thomas was getting pelted with pucks in the few minutes after Matt Moulston’s goal.
Third period, 14:17, Bruins 3-2: Things just got tighter at Nassau Coliseum. Frans Nielsen dug the puck out of the corner and centered it to Matt Moulson, whose quick shot beat Tim Thomas’ blocker. By the way, the Islanders play an awesome song after their goals. It’s “Bro Hymn” by Pennywise if you’re looking.
Third period, 18:45, Bruins 3-1: That was a tremendous job by the Bruins to kill off Michael Ryder’s major penalty. It’s also worth noting Dennis Wideman has played a good game on the offensive side of the rink. Since it’s so easy to get on him for his incessant turnovers, it’s only fair to credit him for Saturday’s strong showing.
Third period, 19:58, Bruins 3-1: And they’re off. The Bruins and Islanders have 20 minutes to figure this thing out, and if it’s anything like the second period, this will be a fun finish.
End of second period, Bruins 3-1: Wow, that was a fun 3:54. The Islanders had a strong power play going, but Tim Thomas (21 second-period saves) and the Bruins’ penalty kill wouldn’t break. Thomas made a Jacoby Ellsbury-esque diving glove save to rob Josh Bailey of a goal in the final seconds of the period, and the B’s keep their two-goal edge heading into intermission. The Islanders have 1:06 remaining on their five-minute power play when the teams take the ice at the start of the third period.
Second period, 3:54, Bruins 3-1: Michael Ryder received a five-minute major and a game misconduct for checking from behind. He followed Blake Comeau into the boards, and the Isles forward remained on the ice for a few minutes after the check. Ryder definitely gave Comeau a hit, but it wasn’t dirty. Either way, in the spirit of protecting players in these situations, it’s a penalty that has to be called. This is obviously a huge five-minute stretch in this game, and the Islanders already have one power-play goal Saturday.
Second period, 6:47, Bruins 3-1: Two points to make here. First, Tim Thomas is back on his game, and he flat-out stole a goal from Blake Comeau, who thought he had himself an easy one after a fat rebound on a two-on-one break. Second, the Islanders have to hate playing against this Lucic-Begin-Thornton line. Those are three driven, pesky, hardnosed forwards who really make life miserable for players in opposing sweaters.
Second period, 10:40, Bruins 3-1: That’s a tough break for the Islanders, who just got robbed by their ancient home rink. With the B’s on the power play, Patrice Bergeron took a slapper from above the left point that rang high off the boards and took a really quirky bounce out below the left circle. Marc Savard appeared to be the only person on the ice who knew where the puck was, and he backhanded it into the net while Dwayne Roloson had his back turned. That’s a little bit of validation for Savard, who missed a wide open net in the third period Thursday night against Toronto.
Second period, 11:34, Bruins 2-1: Dylan Reese cheated, and he’ll get two minutes in the box for interference.
Second period, 14:56, Bruins 2-1: Boston used some beautiful puck movement to rebound from a poor five minutes and retake the lead. The Islanders were out-shooting the Bruins, 8-1, in the second period before the last rush. Mark Stuart had the puck above the left circle and sent a cross-ice pass to Miroslav Satan, who held the puck just long enough to draw the defense out of position before centering the puck to David Krejci. The talented center smoothly finished the play from the slot by sending the puck into an empty net.
Second period, 17:42, 1-1: The Islanders capitalized on their first power play to even the score early in the second period. Mark Streit’s shot from above the right circle deflected off of Tim Thomas and dangled in the crease, and Josh Bailey swooped in to push the puck across the goal line. The Isles have had a lot more energy in this period than the last, and it’s already showed on the scoreboard.
Second period, 19:10, Bruins 1-0: Patrice Bergeron had a little bit of a mental lapse and drew an interference penalty to give the Isles their first power play of the game. Bergeron, who has had a strong game to this point, was drifting through space and collided with a member of the Islanders to draw the penalty.
Second period, 19:59, Bruins 1-0: The Bruins have taken the ice for the start of the second period. Time will tell if the Islanders decide to join them.
End of first period, Bruins 1-0: The Bruins really owned that period, and Milan Lucic scored his sixth goal of the season at 18:26 to give them a lead at intermission. Boston outshot the Islanders, 16-4, in the opening frame.
First period, 1:34, Bruins 1-0: The Bruins finally capitalized on a long poessession in the New York zone. Dennis Wideman’s shot from above the right circle bounced around through traffic in the slot, and the puck eventually squirted free to Lucic, whose high wrister beat Dwayne Roloson. Lucic deserves credit for keeping the play alive below the net earlier in the possession, and he closed things out with a sharp goal.
First period, 7:30, 0-0: Dennis Seidenberg made a really nice play to handicap Matt Moulson in the low slot when the Isles forward was staring at an open net. Moulson then promptly skated into one of his teammates, and the Bruins easily cleared the zone.
First period, 9:30, 0-0: The B’s haven’t forced Isles goalie Dwayne Roloson to make any spectacular saves, but they’ve still owned the New York zone in the first half of the opening period. Great energy from the Bruins to this point.
First period, 16:20, 0-0: The Bruins didn’t score, but that was a really active power play. Had to love the way new defenseman Dennis Seidenberg was moving the puck at the right point.
First period, 18:33, 0-0: Jon Sim took a tripping penalty, and the Bruins have an early power play.
First period, 19:49, 0-0: Game on at Nassau Coliseum. This is a game the Bruins need to win, as they’ve got the Stanley Cup champs Sunday afternoon.
2:05 p.m.: The Islanders are a scrappy team and a tough group to dispel. Keep an eye on rookie forward John Tavares, who was the first overall pick in last year’s draft and has 17 goals and 18 assists this season.
1:37 p.m.: The NESN broadcast showed Patrice Bergeron taping up his stick outside of the locker room, so all signs point to his return to the lineup after missing two games this week with a groin injury.
1:31 p.m.: No surprises here. Tim Thomas gets the start in Long Island and has a great opportunity to establish some post-Olympic momentum after his brilliant, 24-save performance Thursday against Toronto.
9:21 a.m.: The Bruins ended their 10-game home losing streak Thursday night. Their reward? A season-long seven-game road trip that begins Saturday at 2 p.m. against the Islanders. The B’s have won their last four road games, but that all went down before the Olympic break.
The first team to score Saturday might just win this thing. Boston (2.32 goals per game) has the worst offense in the league, while the Islanders (2.50) are ranked 27th out of 30 teams.
