Devils at Bruins

It’s a big game tonight not only because they’re all big but because the Bruins are about to go on a three-game road trip, and it would be beneficial morally to win two in a row, something the Bruins have not accomplished since sweeping the home-and-home with Toronto on Nov. 11. It’s been an especially challenging stretch for the Bruins while missing their two best players, David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy, plus other top-nine forwards and a regular defenseman at times during the past four weeks. The Devils (16-11-1 but on a four-game losing streak) are also banged up (no Jack Hughes, Evgenii Dadonov or Brett Pesce) and lost 3-0 on home ice last night to Vegas. Jacob Markstrom played against the VGK’s, so Jake Allen is in the New Jersey net tonight against Jeremy Swayman.

FIRST PERIOD

Fraser Minten opens the scoring with 2:18 remaining in a period of hockey otherwise slanted toward the peskier and definitely more-fluid Devils, but the Bruins started building some 5-on-5 momentum later in the period, and Mark Kastelic recovered a missed pass that in effect became a dump to the right corner. He was outnumbered by the backchecking Devils, who briefly disrupted Kastelic’s effort, but Kastelic’s second effort on the play allowed Minten to ease into the slot, where he took a pass and hit the far, low corner inside the left post, 1-0 Boston.

Timo Meier ties the game 57 seconds later, batting in a rebound of a shot from the left point. Meier was stationed at the right post, uncovered. New Jersey fans chanting, “Let’s go Devils!” from the endzone balcony seats. The goal was Meier’s 11th.

Cody Glass provided a moment of deception at the period expired. Cognizant of time ticking down off the first-period clock, the Bruins tried to make a play into the Jersey zone. When the puck went the other way, the Devils simply did not have time, so Glass’s would-be breakaway wouldn’t have happened after all because the Bruins wouldn’t have played it that way with more time on the clock.

First-period shots: 12-5 Devils.

SECOND PERIOD

Nikita Zadorov digs the puck out to Elias Lindholm in the right circle, and Lindholm spins and fires a pass to Morgan Geekie, who one-times it past Allen to make it 2-1 Boston only 1:12 into the second period. Geekie’s 22nd goal of the season, and of course it came from left of center.

The Devils threaten with another response shift, and the Bruins are gassed. Things get worse when Alex Steeves loses his stick, but the deadwood eventually helps, slowing a cross-ice pass so Casey Mittelstadt can gain possession long enough to chop the puck off the bench boards to center, and the Bruins scramble for a change, surviving the shift. New Jersey had tied the game in the first period right after the Bruins took the lead.

Minten is upset with himself for not freeing his stride from a check while skating the puck through the middle of the rink, his pass to Jeannot deflecting out of play. Ditto Mikey Eyssimont after his shot is deflected into the netting above the end glass.

The Devils have another shift, and the Bruins get in big trouble when they vacate the weak side, perhaps looking for the wholesale change, but instead old friend Dougie Hamilton aggressively skates the puck from the right point into the circle and rings a shot off the near (right) goal post, the puck caroming hard out the other side to the crowd’s alarm.

Arvidsson’s apparently failed attempt to clear deflects out of the zone, and Mittelstadt tips it past the last line of defense. He loses the handle, though, in his hurried breakaway attempt.

Close call for both teams, but you have to like New Jersey’s end of it better, as the Devils are pressing for the equalizer. Truth be told, they were outplaying the Bruins in the opening period when Minten gave Boston the lead.

Zadorov went after Hischier, the Devils’ captain, after taking an unpenalized high stick. Then the two went down hard on their backs behind the net, and based on Zadorov’s response he felt Hischier’s leg behind his own – that’s slewfooting. As the play went to the far corner, Hischier waited for Zadorov, the puck against the boards and his back to the Bruin, who delivered two crosschecks, the first one without effect but the second knocking Hischier to the ice. The officials, feeling shown up, sent the big guy to the penalty box with 6:13 remaining in the second period.

The Devils, despite all their zone-time momentum this period, failed to execute on the powerplay, and the Bruins escaped what seemed like the inevitable, tying goal.

So how do you interpret this play by Zadorov? While it’s easy to criticize him for lack of composure at a critical juncture of the game, the Bruins bent and did not break in this case, so it actually reminds me of the times early in the 2007-08 climb toward what would evolved into Stanley Cup contention when coach Claude Julien applauded his players for standing up to opponents, standing up for themselves and standing up for their teammates. It’s a results business when it comes to these situations. You won’t win them all, but you can’t lose them all either.

Having survived, the Bruins pick up their own pace.

Geekie misses the far post off the rush.

Zadorov hits the left post from the slot.

Suddenly, the Bruins are feeling better late in the period.

The Devils have one more push in the final minute, and Jonas Siegenthaler’s shot from the right point grazes the left (far) post. Still an O-zone draw for NJ with 24 seconds left. Ondrej Palat gets a look from the slot but misses.

Shots after two: 20-9 New Jersey.

Swayman is having another game.

THIRD PERIOD

No doubt, the Bruins re-enter the rink knowing they need a better final 20 than their middle 20.

The Bruins dodge some bad puck luck when Hampus Lindholm fumbles a puck he’s reaching into Swayman’s crease for, scooping it out of harm’s way on the second effort.

Albeit in shielded matchups, Mason Lohrei continues to exhibit solid play on both sides of the puck. On his next touch, Lohrei blows a tire exiting his D-zone, but the Bruins get sticks on the puck and avoid a costly turnover.

Marat Khusnutdinov, who’s been struggling to make a fit on the fourth line since Elias Lindholm came back from injury, outraced defenseman Dennis Cholowski, drawing an interference penalty that has Boston on the powerplay midway through the third period, up a goal.

Steeves rings the post on the powerplay.

The Devils get the kill, but now have less then nine minutes with which to work.

Under siege, Lohrei endures an uncalled trip, crashes hard into the boards as a result and still makes the play that gets the Bruins out of trouble. With 6:20 remaining, it’s doubtful the Lohrei-Soderstrom pairing gets back on the ice.

Meier hits Hampus Lindholm hard in the Zamboni corner, and Lindholm is hunched over in obvious pain as he skates to the bench. Lindholm did not go straight down the runway, but it looks like Lohrei will be getting back out there opposite Peeke in his place.

4:13 left, and with a potential day off tomorrow (Sunday), Hampus’ status suddenly rockets to the top of immediate concerns. Good news for the Bruins: Lindholm does not miss a shift.

The Bruins get breathing room with a tic-tac-goal (thank you, Jack Edwards) with 3:35 remaining, as Mittelstadt finishes the play from Pavel Zacha. 3-1 Boston, so Allen just got closer to the bench in mind if not matter.

Allen stops Jeannot on a breakaway, as the Devils have gone wide open.

Empty-netter for Peeke, and this one will end in favor of the Bruins, who win two straight for the first time since sweeping Toronto last month.

New Jersey has now dropped five straight.

Drive safely.