The Bruins last night took advantage of a Larkin-less Wings team that really didn't put up much of a fight really. The Wings just are not the same team without their captain. The Bruins were pretty much in control, of the game from puck drop with the Wings finding little offensive zone time and when they did, the Bruins kept them to the outside and allowed very few shooting lanes.
The scoring in the 1st was started by Bergeron, who has been snake bit, going the first 7 games without a goal. On the PP, Bergy in the bumper took a pass from Brad and lifted the puck past Griess at the 11:03 mark. From there, the Bruins never had much of a pushback from the Wings.
Entering the 2nd with the lead, the Bruins continued to push the pace and the Wings got into penalty problems. At the 10:52 mark on the PP, once again Bergeron from another nice pass from Brad made it 2-0. Then deja vu, another PP near the end of the period, and at 18:45 Bergeron from Brad made 3-0 . The hat trick by Bergy was the 7th of his career. The Bruins had a decent period and suppressed the Wings again that had little fight at times it seemed.
Entering the 3rd with a commanding lead, the Bruins started strong, and once again the Wings seemed to have little offensive zone time. Then the Bruins around the 8 min mark ran into penalty problems and after Bergeron took a tripping penalty, the Wings had a 5 on 3. The Wings finally executed an excellent pass across to the rookie Lucas Raymond, having a great year so far, to cut the lead to 3-1 at the 7:46 mark of the 3rd. The Wings still had a decent amount of time on the 2nd penalty to maybe make this a game. But on a poorly set of passes, Lazar was able to get a breakaway and although he was stopped, Reilly following up the play put the puck in the net behind Griess who was out of position after making the 1st save. It deflated the Wings and it showed . The Bruins pretty much controlled the rest of the game and just to add a little salt into the Wings loss, at 15:52 Bergy netted his 4th goal, once again from a pass from Brad. At this point, the Wings seemed to just play out the clock and the bruins controlled the rest of the time. Game, set, and match 5-1 Bruins.
Bruins PP: Entering this game the Bruins PP was in a slump. Normally they have been in the top 5 of the league but find themselves in the bottom 3rd of the league so far this year. But with Bergy and Brad connecting for 3, hopefully, this will build some confidence. That being said, let's be honest the Wings have been very weak all year on the PK. So although the execution was great, the Wings are not a team to measure if you're finally clicking honestly. Grade B+
Bruins PK: The PK was in general solid again and only allowed a goal on a 5 on 3 . Plus they caused a turnover and got their 1st shorthanded goal of the season. So far this season the PK is finding its game and looks decent. B+
Player of the Game: Need leas to say the player of the game was the captain Patrice Bergeron. He was dominant in the face-off circle, at over 80%, and with 4 goals, found his touch. He has had his chances, but this time they found the back of the net. He is still playing at a high level and showed last night there is lots left in the tank.
Last Thoughts: The Bruins took advantage of a team without their captain and pretty much dominated from the puck drop suppressing the Wings to only 15 shots, Swayman made his best save on an alone Lucas Raymond but wasn't tested much beyond that. The Wings rookie D-man Sieder showed why he is going to be a player to watch. He iced 25 minutes and was a physical presence all night. Brad Marchand continues his stellar play. Where would the Bruins be without him ??? A concern I still have is the play of Pasta. He just is not playing consistent or well at times. Over handling the puck, missing the net, and failing to convert. Maybe he needs to slot back, giving him less of the hard matchups and getting his confidence going. DeBrusk had a solid game and although not rewarded on the score sheet, he is doing many good things.
Next up, the Leafs who are coming off a solid comeback victory over Tampa in OT, and they seem to be finding their game. So that will be a really hard test in Toronto, whom I'm sure want to make a statement game with the history with the Bruins. It will be the 1st match-up in like 2 years since the pandemic. So let's get it on, Go Bruins!
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