Brad Marchand took the ice Sunday amid some unfamiliar surroundings.
Usually a fixture on Patrice Bergeron’s line, the Boston Bruins winger instead skated with third-liners Ryan Spooner and Jimmy Hayes in the Bruins’ 2-1 win over the New York Islanders at Barclays Center.
Head coach Claude Julien explained his rationale behind the change in a postgame interview with NESN’s Jack Edwards and Andy Brickley.
“I think in that case, it was just a change for the sake of making a change there,” Julien said. “Refresh things a little bit. And that gives (Marchand), too, an opportunity. He wants to be a leader? Well, then he’s got a young guy in Spooner and another in Hayes who’s just showing up. He can lead that line.”
He did just that.
After failing to record a point in three consecutive Bruins losses, Marchand was on the ice for both Boston goals Sunday, assisting on one. He also tested Islanders goalie Jaroslav Halak with four shots on goal.
“Any time they switch it up, I think just a couple of things go into it,” Marchand told reporters after the game. “We hadn’t been producing the same way the last few games, and I think they wanted to spark it a bit. And at the same time, my game hasn’t been great the last couple of games, so I think they were trying to prove something. I understand that, and it’s part of the game.”
The win over the Islanders was a critical one for the Bruins, who were able to salvage the finale of a difficult three-game road trip. Up next is a season-long five-game homestand, with four of those five opponents sitting below Boston in the NHL standings as of Sunday night.
“Guys did a really good job of bearing down and not complicating things (Sunday),” Marchand told reporters. “We really simplified the game and played the way we’re supposed to, and that’s when we’re at our best. You’ve got to give the guys a lot of credit.”
Some additional notes from Sunday:
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— One day after Julien called for a better example from the Bruins’ veteran leaders, Bergeron delivered.
Though he did take two penalties in Sunday’s win, the Bruins alternate captain otherwise was excellent. He scored one of Boston’s goals, assisted on the other, recorded a game-high seven shots on goal and led all Bruins forwards with 21:05 of ice time.
“It was important for all the leaders, I guess, to step up and show the way to the rest of the team,” Bergeron told NESN rinkside reporter Sarah Davis after the game. “That’s something we talked about (Sunday), and we needed that win after a tough road trip.”
Julien was pleased with the response he saw.
“I think Bergy, in all areas, from penalty kill to power play to the effort that he gave (Sunday), he really led the way the way we’re used to seeing Bergy lead the way,” the coach said.
— Tuukka Rask was phenomenal in net for the Bruins. He stopped a season-high 36 shots, and his only goal allowed came while Boston had two men in the penalty box.
“I was good (Sunday),” Rask told reporters. “I felt really good. One of the best that I’ve felt in a long time. Hopefully I can feel like that every game.”
The Bruins again threatened to crumble late with six third-period penalties, but their NHL-worst penalty-killing unit proved up to the task. The Islanders spent 9:03 on the power play but managed just four shots on goal.
“We didn’t make it easy on ourselves again,” Rask told reporters. “We got a lot of penalties, especially in the last period there. They just kept coming and coming. But we stuck with it, and it paid off. It’s a great character win.”
—Â The video board operator at Barclays Center might want to brush up on his NFL knowledge.
Thumbnail photo via Kathy Kmonicek/Associated Press
