Tuukka Rask proved again Tuesday how he did not miss a beat since returning after a month out of the lineup due to an upper-body injury.
The Boston Bruins goaltender, playing in his third game back, stopped all 32 shots he faced and lifted the Bruins to a 2-0 win over the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center. It was his first shutout of the season save for a one-period performance on March 25 before he left the contest after re-aggravating the same upper-body injury.
Rask, though, offered an optimistic update on his health following Tuesday's win.
"Well, good enough to play. It's maintaining the strength and everything else, the health, as much as possible and kind of giving it rest when need be, and not pushing it too much," Rask said on a postgame video conference. "Hopefully I'll be able to play in many, many more months ahead. But I'm feeling good and it doesn’t bother me playing. So, that’s a plus."
Fortunately for the Bruins even despite Rask's absence, and the subsequent absence of Jaroslav Halak who landed in the league's COVID-19 protocols, rookies Jeremy Swayman and Dan Vladar filled in nicely to keep Boston more than afloat.
The Bruins, though, certainly can rest assured now that they have their No. 1 goaltender back between the pipes -- especially given the level of which he's playing -- with what seems to be plenty of depth behind him. Rask has now won three straight starts in net.
His previous performances came this past week as he stopped 22 of the 23 shots he faced in his first game back against the Islanders on Thursday. Rask then recorded 30 saves on 33 shots against the Washington Capitals on Sunday. His showing against the Islanders was just his first game since March 7.
Rask will look to keep that momentum going as the 26-12-6 Bruins return to the ice Thursday in Buffalo.
