Bruins Wrap: Boston Penalty Kill Shines, Erases Mistakes In Win

BOSTON — The Bruins will soon hit the road, and they probably feel pretty good about themselves after earning a 3-2 win over the Nashville Predators on Saturday night at TD Garden.

The B’s improved to 2-0-0 on the young season, while the Preds dropped to 1-2-0.

Check out the full box score here.

ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
The Bruins certainly didn’t make it easy on themselves.

If there was ever an example of one team begging for its opponent to take advantage of mistakes, it took place Saturday night at TD Garden. Boston was called for eight (!!!) penalties in the first two periods, spending nearly half of that time on the penalty kill. In most circumstances, that would lead to a pretty lousy game, but the Predators didn’t seem too interested in taking advantage of the Bruins’ sloppy night.

In fact, Boston’s three goals were a result of Nashville’s own mistakes.

✌️ FOR JVR pic.twitter.com/aTifaJLVkQ

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) October 15, 2023

The Bruins’ first goal belonged to James van Riemsdyk, who banked the puck past Predators goalie Juuse Saros, off of Predators defenseman Dante Fabbro. The second goal came on a penalty shot, as David Pastrnak made Nashville pay for dragging him down on a breakaway. The third goal? That belonged to JVR, too, as he tipped home a power-play goal following a roughing penalty on the Preds.

It’s no coincidence that the B’s cruised during a third period where they didn’t commit a single penalty.

STARS OF THE GAME
— van Riemsdyk potted his first two goals as a member of the Bruins on Saturday, including the game-winning tally in the third period.

— Jeremy Swayman was tremendous, despite being bombarded with shots all night. He made 34 saves on 36 attempts, leading the way on Boston’s seven killed penalties.

— Pastrnak not only scored on the penalty shot, but assisted on JVR’s game-winner.

WAGER WATCH
JVR was a money maker Saturday, scoring the final goal of the contest. If you saw that happening, you could have netted a $1,300 payout on a $100 bet at DraftKings Sportsbook, who gave the veteran +1200 odds to accomplish the feat.

UP NEXT ON NESN
The Bruins won’t play again until Thursday, opening up a four-game road trip against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center. Puck drop is scheduled for 10:30 p.m. ET, and you can watch the game, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.