The Boston Bruins showed signs of life Friday night in their Game 3 win over the Carolina Hurricanes, but lost in all the excitement was just how good a game Derek Forbort played.
The defenseman blocked an eye-popping and game-high nine (!) shots, played 23:07 and made every shift count, especially on the penalty kill.
The Hurricanes' power play went 0-for-5 and Forbort was a big part of helping keep them off the board.
The nine blocked shots tied the playoff record for the first time since 2013 when Dennis Seidenberg blocked as many against the Chicago Blackhawks in a triple-overtime Game 1 loss in the Stanley Cup Final. Steve Montador also blocked nine shots against the Montreal Canadiens in 2009.
Forbort signed with the Bruins in the offseason and struggled to find where he really fit on the blue line in the beginning of the season. But Friday's game showed his importance to the team, and head coach Bruce Cassidy called Forbort an "unsung hero" in the win.
"To me, those are the unsung heroes: Guys that worked really hard to keep the puck out of our net," Cassidy told reporters at TD Garden, per team-provided video. "He really showed his value (Friday).
"He's a popular guy. He's very quiet, doesn't say much. Talks about him and his dog, his simple life. But he's got personality when you get to know him, so guys root for guys like that. He was brought in to be that type of stay-at-home, try to be a stiff defender, keep the puck of your net, shot blocker. He's been as advertised.
"Those are the guys that make a difference in these type of games. You need your scorers to score and your muckers or checkers to be physical and block shots. And that makes a well-run machine."
The praise didn't stop there, though, as Brad Marchand credited his teammate as a "huge reason" why the Bruins were able to cut the 'Canes' series lead in half.
"He's one of those guys who plays the game that guys don't want to play. He sacrifices every night for the group. He puts his body in harm's way," Marchand told reporters. "Those are the guys you win with in the playoffs. You need to have guys who are willing to put their body on the line and risk getting hurt every night if you want to go deep. He was a huge reason (we won).
"He blocked some really good opportunities from that team over there, and he has all year. He's a reason why we're in the position we're in, and he's a big reason we won (Friday), and a huge reason why the penalty kill was good at big moments tonight. You've got to give him a ton of credit. Sometimes those guys who eat pucks and play hard like that don't get the credit they deserve, but it's great that he's getting the recognition because you don't win without guys like that."
Jeremy Swayman, who made 25 saves between the pipes for the Bruins, had a simple way to word how much he appreciates Forbort.
"I love that guy," he told reporters. "He's the man. He's been doing that all year for us, too. Nothing new from him, he does everything for the team, for the crest. It shows and guys play hard for him, and he does the same for us. It's an awesome person to have in front of me"
Forbort will look to replicate Friday's performance Sunday when the Bruins try to tie the series 2-2. Puck drop from TD Garden is set for 12:30 p.m. ET on NESN.
