Three Goals in 75 Seconds: Bruins Blank Rangers in Opener
Hockey is back, Bruins fans! And what a way to open the season. For 56 minutes, Tuesday night's opener at TD Garden was a nail-biting goaltending duel. Then, in a span of just 75 seconds, the Bruins scored three times to beat the New York Rangers 3-0. One game, one win, one shutout. We'll take it.
A goalie battle for the ages
Through two periods, nobody could find the back of the net. Jeremy Swayman and Igor Shesterkin traded save after save, with Swayman making 15 stops and Shesterkin 14 through 40 minutes. It was tense, it was fun, and it was a reminder of how good both of these goalies are.
Midway through the third, the Rangers had their best chances of the night. Swayman stoned Pavel Dorofeyev and then J.T. Miller on back-to-back looks, and the Garden roared. Less than two minutes later, Shesterkin answered by robbing Casey Mittelstadt with a glove save on a 2-on-1. You could feel it: one goal was going to decide this.
The 75-second explosion
And then the dam broke. With 3:46 left in regulation, Fraser Minten took a pass from Mason Lohrei and beat Shesterkin stick side from the slot. The building exploded. Bruins 1, Rangers 0.
Just 52 seconds later, JJ Peterka, playing his first regular-season game in a Bruins sweater, took the puck on the rush, stickhandled it right between Braden Schneider's legs and buried a wrist shot. Welcome to Boston, JJ. What a way to introduce yourself.
The Rangers pulled Shesterkin for an extra attacker, and 23 seconds later, Mark Kastelic hit the empty net, with Minten and Marat Khusnutdinov assisting. Three goals in 75 seconds. Game over.
Sway's shutout
Swayman finished with 24 saves for the 19th shutout of his NHL career. That's exactly the kind of start you want from your number one goalie: calm, sharp and ready when the big chances came. Shesterkin was excellent too, with 20 saves, but he didn't get any help in that final stretch.
Notes from opening night
Will Borgen made his Bruins debut against his former team and finished plus-2. Charlie McAvoy sat out the first game of a six-game suspension, so we'll be waiting a little while to see him. And Minten finished with a goal and an assist, a little preview of things to come.
Our takeaways
Patience pays off. The Bruins never panicked in a scoreless game and got rewarded late. Peterka fits right in. A goal in your first game with a new team is a great way to win over a fan base. Swayman is ready. A shutout on opening night sets the tone for the whole season.
One down, plenty more to go. Next up, Winnipeg on Friday. Let's go, B's! 🐻