The Boston Bruins were unable to close out their Western Conference road trip with a win Friday night against the Winnipeg Jets.
Boston’s 2-1 loss evened the season series between the teams and gave the Original Six club three of a possible six points from the road trip. The Bruins will return home for a Sunday night matchup with the Buffalo Sabres, who’ve won seven of their last 10 games.
Here are the “3 Stars” from Bruins-Jets:
No. 3 Star: Torey Krug, Defenseman, Bruins
Krug tied the score at 1 in the second period with his sixth goal of the season. He jumped into the play and pounced on a rebound after Chris Kelly was unable to finish a scoring chance on a 2-on-1 with Carl Soderberg.
Krug led the Bruins with a plus-8 Corsi at even strength and did a nice job of starting the team’s transition game with quick, accurate passes out of the defensive zone.
The 23-year-old defenseman has two goals and an assist in his last five games. He’s also being aggressive in the attacking zone with 16 shots on goal in that span.
No. 2 Star: Dustin Byfuglien, Defenseman, Jets
Byfuglien picked up a primary assist on Winnipeg’s second goal with 23 seconds remaining in the second period. His shot from the point found the back of the net with heavy traffic in front of Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask. Mathieu Perreault was credited with the goal.
Byfuglien now has six goals and nine assists in 17 career games against the Bruins.
Byfuglien also played an important role on special teams for the Jets. He played 4:44 on the power play and 4:00 on a Winnipeg penalty kill that went 3-for-3. The veteran defenseman led all players with 27:04 of ice time.
No. 1 Star: Michael Hutchinson, Goaltender, Jets
Hutchinson made 30 saves on 31 shots against for a .968 save percentage. Winnipeg’s backup netminder stood tall in the third period when Boston had a 16-4 shots on goal edge as it searched for the tying goal. He also made four saves on the Jets’ penalty kill.
Hutchinson, whom the Bruins drafted in 2008, now is 1-0-1 with a .962 save percentage and three goals against in two games versus his former team this season.
GIFs via Twitter/@PeteBlackburn
Thumbnail photo via Rick Osentoski/USA TODAY Sports Images
