Bruins Wrap: Tuukka Rask, Penalty Kill Shine In 2-1 Win Over Panthers

The Boston Bruins are back above the .500 mark after beating the Florida Panthers 2-1 at BB&T Center on Tuesday night, and it was all thanks to Tuukka Rask.

Boston’s starting goaltender stopped 33 of the 34 shots he faced to secure the team’s second consecutive win on its four-game road trip.

The B’s improved to 5-4 overall and 4-2 on the road with Tuesday’s victory.

Here’s a recap of Bruins-Panthers.

SCORING FIRST
Brad Marchand scored his fourth goal of the season with a beautiful backhand move to beat Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo at 3:53 of the first period. Reilly Smith couldn’t slow down Marchand on the backcheck and hooked the Bruins winger, which resulted in the penalty shot being awarded.

The Bruins now have scored on five consecutive penalty shots, and Marchand has scored on four of five in his career.

MOORE THE BETTER
Dominic Moore scored his third goal — and first shorthanded tally — of the season in the second period, which doubled Boston’s lead to 2-0.

The refs weren’t sure if it actually was a goal, but they ended up reviewing the play and determined the puck crossed the goal line.

Moore now has points in back-t0-back games. He assisted on Boston’s only goal in a 1-0 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday.

2 U’s, 2 K’s, 2 POINTS
Rask continued his excellent start to the season with his fifth win in five starts. He was particularly good in the first period with 13 saves, five of which came on high-danger scoring chances. The Panthers dominated puck possession throughout the game and finished with a 70-38 edge in shot attempts, but Rask stood tall.

He has allowed just two goals during 5-on-5 play this season (just six goals against overall), and his .961 save percentage in all situations is the second-best in the league.

SPECIAL TEAMS
The Bruins have the worst power play in the league with just two goals through nine games. They also are the only team in the league with a power-play percentage below 10.

10% of the way into the season and the Bruins have 2 PP goals and 1 SH goal.

— Bruins Stats (@bruins_stats) November 2, 2016

The Bruins are 1 for 26 on the power play over the last seven games, including an 0 for 4 mark Tuesday night against a Panthers team that ranked 25th in penalty killing.

Luckily for the Bruins, their penalty kill was a perfect 7 for 7, including a late kill of a 6-on-4 Panthers advantage late in the third period.

Special teams were the difference in the outcome.

UP NEXT
The Bruins finish their four-game road trip Thursday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.