The Boston Bruins won a game they absolutely needed to Saturday night, getting goals from Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara with an empty-netter from Matt Beleskey to take down the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1.
As the B’s prepare to head to the Garden State for Tuesday night’s matchup with the New Jersey Devils, let’s take a spin through some notes from Boston’s final trip north of the border this season.
— Frank Vatrano seems to be settling in nicely in his second stint with the big club. The rookie winger has tallied a point in each of the three games since his latest NHL call-up — the first multi-game point streak of his young career.
Vatrano finished with one assist, three shots on goal and two hits against the Maple Leafs, and one of his checks nearly sent Morgan Rielly tumbling into the Bruins’ bench.
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— Ryan Spooner logged just 9:32 of ice time for the Bruins — his second-lowest total of the season — and did not play at all in the third period. Bruins coach Claude Julien told reporters the center exited the game after suffering an undisclosed injury.
— Beleskey put his body on the line to help squash a spirited Maple Leafs rally. The Bruins winger blocked two shots on one shift late in the third period and was rewarded with the empty-net goal that sealed the game.
âThis time of the year, you need those things,” Julien said in a postgame interview with NESN’s Jack Edwards and Andy Brickley. “You need to show some desperation there, and I thought that he showed a lot of desperation and a lot of commitment to do something that was courageous on his part. And he did it, and I think it just ignited the bench.”
Beleskey finished with three blocked shots in all, while also contributing an assist and four hits.
— Speaking of hits, Chara made it a point after the game to praise his defensive partner, Kevan Miller, who dished out four and blocked three shots in 21:04 of ice time.
âItâs our responsibility (as veterans) to lead this team,” the Bruins captain said on “Bruins Overtime LIVE” to reporters. “But other players — for example, Kevan Miller was unbelievably strong (Saturday night). He was just a force. We had a number of guys who really elevated their game, and thatâs what you need from the team.”
— The game nearly devolved into a brawl in the final minute.
As Beleskey fired his shot into the empty Toronto net, Maple Leafs forward Nazem Kadri tagged Loui Eriksson with a couple of unnecessary checks while the Bruins winger was on his knees in the corner.
The other four Boston skaters immediately rushed to Eriksson’s aid, and a whole bunch of pushing and shoving ensued. Miller dropped his gloves and challenged Rielly, but the Leafs defenseman was having none of it.
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âI think you go through some stages during the season, and unfortunately, we picked the wrong time to go through that where it really doesnât matter what you do, you donât seem to be able to finish or get some breaks,” said Julien, whose team had lost five in a row entering Saturday.
“Weâd been going through that for a while, so it was important for us to work our way out of it. And then what happens when things start turning around? You see the reaction of players like you saw (Saturday night) at the end — sticking up for each other and showing that weâre a close-knit hockey club.”
Thumbnail photo via Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports Images
