Charlie Coyle snaps slump, notches winner for Bruins over Sabres

The Sabres are hardly the easy out they were earlier this season, but the Bruins did just enough at the right time to secure a 5-2 victory at the Garden on Thursday.

After the B’s coughed up two one-goal leads, the key play was authored by a player who desperately needed something good to happen for him.

Mired in the worst slump of his career and his team deadlocked in a game they needed, Charlie Coyle snapped a 28-game goal-less streak in style. He picked off a Sam Reinhart pass attempt in the neutral zone to create a partial break fro himself and he buried a shot over Ukka-Pekka Luukonen’s glove with 12:02 left in the third to make it 3-2.

Then David Krejci put a bow on it with 3:17 left. The centerman gained the zone, did an amazing curl and drag to elude Henri Jokiharju and fed Taylor Hall for an easy goal.

Brad Marchand added a shorthanded empty-netter for good measure.

The Bruins started out like they wanted a first-round knockout of the young Sabres and, on the top line’s first shift, they took a 1-0 lead.

Rasmus Dahlin tried to make a too-cute pass to himself off the boards in the neutral zone, but Marchand picked it off and went on the attack on the right side. He battled through a check to get the puck over to Patrice Bergeron, who fed David Pastrnak for a one-timer goal at 1:16. It may not have been a vintage Pastrnak slapper – the puck was in his skates so he couldn’t wind up – but his shot was well placed enough to beat Luukonen.

The B’s continued to push but, after a while, they themselves started to get a little careless. Hall sent a centering pass from his own corner right to the stick of Riley Sheahan in the slot for a great chance that Tuukka Rask stopped.

But Pastrnak later made a mistake that Rask could not cover up. He tried to kick a Kevan Miller pass into the middle of the ice for Marchand, but it went right to Rasmus Asplund, who fed it down low to Arttu Ruotsalainen. Rask made a pad save on Ruotsalainen, but the rebound came out to Casey Mittelstadt, alone on the left side for an easy goal at 14:09.

The B’s turned it back up after that. Pastrnak drew a tripping penalty on Reinhart and the B’s then snapped an 0-for-14 skid on the power play with a clock-beating goal. The B’s had a handful of chances, but it looked like they were going to run out of time looking for the perfect shot. But Charlie McAvoy set up David Krejci for a crushing one-timer from the left circle that hit the shortside post, bounced off Luukonen and crossed the goal line with less than a half second on the clock.

But that goal was not the stab to the heart it could have been. The Sabres have shown their mettle in the last few weeks and they hung in there in the second period. They had several chances to even the game but Rask was excellent.

The netminder made a terrific glove save on a Rasmus Ristolainen through a screen. Then late in the period, Dahlin, stepping out of the penalty box, was sprung for a clean breakaway, but his five-hole attempt was gobbled up by Rask.

Luukonen made a few good saves himself, most notably glove stops on Hall and McAvoy. And the B’s, who had a 28-22 shot advantage through two, went into the third hanging on to their slim one-goal lead.

They didn’t hold it for long. Victor Olofsson won a battle behind the net with Jeremy Lauzon, McAvoy and Begeron. That left Reinhart all alone in front, Oloffson got it to him and, with 18:17 left to play in the, the game was knotted at 2-2.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/3t9hSKm