The Bruins wanted to shake the rust off their core players tonight in their second preseason home game (and third overall) against Philadelphia at TD Garden.
It was a slow start.
Bruins lines for tonight:
Brad Marchand Matt Poitras Danton Heinen
Anthony Richard Pavel Zacha David Pastrnak
Brett Harrison Georgii Merkulov Alex Chiasson
A.J. Greer John Farinacci Jakub Lauko
Mason Lohrei Charlie McAvoy
Hampus Lindholm Kevin Shattenkirk
Parker Wotherspoon Reilly Walsh
Linus Ullmark
Kyle Keyser
FIRST PERIOD
Bruins defenseman Parker Wotherspoon had words with Philly winger Cooper Marody after the latter went for a high hit as Wotherspoon got rid of the puck in front of the teams’ benches.
Linus Ullmark gave up his first goal of the preseason midway through the first period when he overplayed the angle on left shot Joel Farrabee, whose wrister to the far corner found the net. 1-0 Philly.
When Ullmark snagged a shot from the right point 11 minutes into the game, the Bruins were down 1-0 and were being outshot 10-1.
Nick Deslauriers was off for slashing when David Pastrnak scored on the powerplay at 12:46 to tie the game, 1-1. It was Boston second shot on Samuel Ersson. Before Pastrnak knotted the score, the Bruins set up Alex Chiasson twice, one of them a beautiful delivery by Brad Marchand, but Chiasson, who is in Boston camp without a contract on a professional tryout agreement, whiffed twice.
The Bruins seized momentum and pressured the Flyers on the next shift, and Mason Lohrei weaved low to the right before putting the puck to the goalmouth. Ersson covered, and the Bruins had their third shot on the board. Still 1-1.
Flyers went on the powerplay at 15:30 when Pastrnak lost a puck-rushing Travis Sanheim, reached out and got called for hooking. Philly went back out in front with 2:33 left in the period when Bobby Brink made a pretty pass to Ryan Poehling for the PPG. 2-1 Philly.
Marchand did Marchand stuff with 1:23 left in the period, playing puck-protection and getting feisty with Farrabee after the whistle. Players on both teams congregated, but nothing further came of it.
Lohrei whiffed on a centering feed to the high slot after Matt Poitras did some nice cycle work down low.
The Bruins were a lot better in the second half of the period.
Shots after one period, Philly 12-5.
SECOND PERIOD
Merkulov got clipped by an errant stick, the stick got caught in his arm pit, the opponent had to retrieve it from him as Merkulov was pawing at his face, and no penalty was called in a game where the refs have been all over hooking like 2005.
Hampus Lindholm has not been shy to join the rush. If the game situation and the next half zone of ice invites him, he goes like a left winger.
Jakub Lauko stuck his nose in at the Philly crease and had three guys trying to push his helmet off his head… whatever happened to that rule about pulling off helmets including your own and your opponents? All the linesmen did was push those players arms away. Game management getting looser or at least compartmentalizing allowable measured mayhem and pet-penalty enthusiasm.
Pastrnak ties it at 2-2 at 7:40, pick-pocketing Farabee’s lazy pass to defenseman Igor Zamula. Pasta walked in like a shootout, lightly put on the brakes and deftly beat Ersson glove side to knot the game. The funny part was Farabee did not stop, he went to the gate and walked straight through, disappearing like he’d been given a game misconduct.
Lauko and Flyers D Louie Belpedio fought at 9:10 of the second, and the Bruins winger got pounded by straight lefts. Lauko hung in best he could. Both got five for fighting.
Philly took the opportunity to switch goalies, Cal Peterson, a left-stick goalie, taking over.
Philly D Helge Grans went for interference. Poitras found Merkulov at the right post, but he had to fire the pass from the left point, and Merkulov couldn’t put it to the net cleanly. Kevin Shatternkirk, working with Danton Heinen and Lindholm, rifled a hard shot from the right circle that Peterson read and intercepted. Flyers get the kill.
Marchand deked Owen Tippett and drew the trip coming out of the Boston zone at 12:53. Bruins to the powerplay…
Heinen scored seconds after the expiration of the man advantage, but his go-ahead goal at 15:00 (3-2) will only be 5-on-5 from a technical standpoint, as Tippett was just reaching the outskirts of the play when the scoring play was made.
ALSO: Shots 17-17 after Heinen’s goal.
Bruins finally take the foot off the gas. Shots after two, Philly 18-17.
THIRD PERIOD
Pasta to the box, he’s all over this game sheet.
So that puck off a Flyer would have gone in had Ullmark not stopped it, but no shot counted on the board.
Marchand and Shattenkirk got entangled, no one controlled the puck and Brink pounced, lifting his shot over Ullmark’s glove to tied the game at 3-3 at 4:07, a PPG that really wasn’t one in terms of how it came about.
AJ Greer made a pretty cross-ice pass to Charlie McAvoy, whose shot from the off wing did not find the net. Greer has played well in his outings. His 61 games last season were remembered here for untimely penalties (his 166 PIM’s led the Bruins), but, while acknowledging that this is preseason competition, his game just looks more confident, smoother. He seems more comfortable. Just my impression so far.
Poitras is mad at himself after carrying down an open lane into the left circle (right shot), only to run out of room while holding on rather than letting it rip. His desperation, cross-ice pass was deflected up into the netting.
McAvoy and Pavel Zacha combined with Pastrnak for a rapid rush into the Philly zone, but Peterson stopped Pastrnak’s shot.
At the other end, Philly O-ffenceman Travis Sanheim has been a going concern.
Marchand and McAvoy at it again in Philly’s zone, but the glittering chance was produced by Merkulov, who burst down the left wing and centered to Heinen, whose shot was stopped by Peterson – save of the night.
Poitras had turned the puck over in his own end without ramifications, and he made a nice play to get the puck deep in the final minute of regulation, then battled to help Marchand get possession. That became a quick relay to McAvoy at the right point. His shot was off target, as he stumbled forward in the right circle.
Shots after regulation: 33-24 Philly (15-7 Flyers in the third)
OVERTIME
First two shifts all Bruins.
Tippett was awarded a penalty shot that Ullmark snuffed out at 2:48 of overtime. After some deep-zone digging didn’t pan out, Merkulov was hanging on when Tippett made a power move to get in on Ullmark.
Ullmark then stopped a 2-on-1 and a clean breakaway (Farabee) before final-minute mayhem happened after Marchand knocked down Farabee in the offensive (RW) corner, leading to a scrum that saw a frustrated Marchand chop down with his stick. Sanheim yanked away Marchand’s helmet, but the only penalty was holding the stick on Farabee with 45.2 seconds left. Philly survived it, the hockey portion of the evening ending with McAvoy apologizing to for ripping a one-timer into the Philly forward’s shin pads as the siren went.
SHOOTOUT
Philly wins. The one worth watching was Brink’s beautiful backhand finish.
Poitras and Pastrnak could not solve Peterson.
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