The Boston Bruins host the N.Y. Rangers at 5 pm (NESN Plus, 98.5 … both Judd Sirott and Ryan Johnston debut in their new roles alongside respective, long-time color analysts Andy Brickley on TV and Bob Beers on radio).
Here is the Bruins’ Game Roster (as announced hours beforehand):
Forwards: Johnny Beecher, Patrick Brown, Riley Duran, John Farinacci, Mark Kastelic, Cole Koepke, Trevor Kuntar, Vinni Lettieri, Fabian Lysell, Georgii Merkulov, Jaxon Nelson, Riley Tufte
Defensemen: Frederic Brunet, Mason Lohrei, Jordan Oesterle, Andrew Peeke, Billy Sweezey, Parker Wotherspoon
Goaltenders: Brandon Bussi, Michael DiPietro
HARD KNOCKS
Parker Wotherspoon left the game after getting rocked in the neutral zone 12:42 into the game. Not sure if he got kneed incidentally, no penalty on the play. Wild guess he’s done for the night and the Bruins will play this one with five D’s.
None other than former Bruin Anton Blidh put a hard hit on Jaxon Nelson in the corner.
Mark Kastelic has his first skirmish as a Bruin, responding to a challenge for tripping Filip Chytil hard into the boards with 2:21 left in the opening period. Chytil hot-dogged the celebration on his ensuing PPG.
The Bruins scored first on a bang-bang reward to GM Don Sweeney’s offseason work, disrupting the Rangers with a hard forecheck, centering and scoring. Impressive work by Riley Duran (assist) and Cole Koepke (goal).
Louis Domingue played the first for NY. Brandon Bussi got beat twice, the first shot from the point through a screen. 2-1 Rangers after one.
One cool addendum to the scoreboard that I hope I’m not just catching onto after missing it all last season is time on ice for shifts of individual players as it happens.
Rink Rap long figured that, as soon as it became apparent many arena owners were replacing perfectly operational hi-def scoreboards with slightly larger ones capable of so much more that this emerging avalanche of information would be geared toward gambling. So far, that purpose has yet to materialize in any explicit form, but it’s the only sense I can make out of a league-wide expenditure that didn’t seem necessary and happened in a rather spectacular trend coincidental with the legalization of sports betting.
BACK TO THE GAME …
Wotherspoon is back in the game.
Just occurred to these old specs that both Brandon Bussi and Louis Domingue are left-stick, right-catch goalies. Rare in the same game.
Midway through the second period, both teams switch out their left-stick starters for right-stick relievers, as Dylan Garand (NYR) and Michael DiPietro (Bruins) enter the fray.
Filip Chytil is obviously one of the more talented and established NHLers in this game, but he’s doing a lousy job of freelancing, working at rushing the puck and making his own shot like some stealth rover at public stick time.
Trevor Kuntar bangs in a rebound of a point shot to tie the game for Boston. The former Boston College grinder is an interesting study. He’s definitely a size of the dog in the fight kind of player, but he’s strong on the puck and in traffic and lingers as one of the Bruins’ less flashy but nonetheless legitimate NHL prospects. He’s tough and smart. The question for him is can he keep up the required pace of play especially on an energy line.
In media scrums, Mark Kastelic (KASStellick) has downplayed his scrappiness, but so far tonight he has given as much or more than he’s gotten. Kastelic was just denied on a goalmouth bang-bang with 4:16 left in the second period, took a crosscheck in the back, gave it back enthusiastically, took another from another direction and responded in kind to that one, too. The next move was NY’s, and nothing doing. Kastelic gets the W.
Late second period: Wotherspoon just took a thunderous hit behind the Boston net while relaying the puck hard around the end boards. Brennan Othmann separated Wotherspoon from his stick and knocked the Boston defenseman flying backward. Wotherspoon got right back up this time.
LW Cole Koepke and D Billy Sweezey have both played lively games for the Bruins.
In a throwback to the Bobby Orr vs. Pat Quinn feud, an unrelated scrum at the Rangers net at the conclusion of the second period provided Wotherspoon with his opportunity to take on Othmann and he gave it to the winger that hit him with a series of rights and lefts.
2-2 after two periods.
Rangers go ahead on a pretty shot by Alex Belzile on a great assist from Chytil, who started it all with an excellent puck-strip backcheck just inside the New York line. (I had just finished identifying Chytil as a selfish player in second-period commentary, then he goes and makes a brilliant team play that looms as the difference in the hockey game.)
Chytil and Kaapo Kakko are two most accomplished players in this game, and they came out for the third period looking to take charge.
For a result tonight, the Bruins need a response.
Georgii Merkulov has played well with many solid decisions to maintain, gain and otherwise move pucks to make plays and/or extend possessions. It just hasn’t translated into any gold.
Fabian Lysell, who has a shift with 6:18 remaining in regulation, has been less noticeable from this vantage point.
Blidh is off for roughing with 5:47 remaining, so here it pretty much is for the Bruins. The powerplay: Frederic Brunet and Jordan Oesterle on the points, Koepke, Vinny Lettieri and Duran up front. Unit 2 (Kuntar, Nelson and Patrick Brown) generate a close call, but the Rangers get the kill and times drains off the clock.
Lysell gets a putback chance in tight that Garand kicks over the glass.
Faceoff in the NYR end with 2:33 left. Timeout Boston.
We are tearing down here. Anything worth noting after the game find me on X @MickColageo. Thanks for reading. Drive safely. School night!
Rink Rap with Mick Colageo 