After a short two-game road trip with wins over the Dallas Stars and Nashville Predators, the Boston Bruins returned to the TD Garden to begin a quick two-game home stand against the New York Islanders Saturday afternoon (Feb. 18). The NHL didn’t do New York any favors with the schedule and the Black and Gold were ready to take full advantage.
Playing their second game in less than 24 hours, the Islanders were up against it from the drop of the puck as the NHL’s best team record and points wise was all over the visitors and three goals in each of the first two periods, combined with Mathew Barzal leaving after just three first periods shifts proved to be too much as the Bruins rolled to a 6-2 win. Here are three takeaways from Boston’s 42nd win of the season and 23rd on home ice.
Welcome Back Jake DeBrusk
Talk about making an immediate impact. After missing 17 consecutive games following suffering two injuries during the Bruins 2-1 Winter Classic win over the Pittsburgh Penguins at Fenway Park on Jan. 2, Jake DeBrusk was cleared and slotted back into the lineup. He took his normal spot on the right wing on the top line with Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron, as well as on the first power play unit.
It took the 14th overall pick in the 2015 Entry Draft just 2:19 into the game to make his presence felt when he scored on the power play when he took a pass in front of the net and slipped a backhander between the pads of Islanders goalie Semyon Varlamov. In the second period, his shot from the slot was deflected over the Islanders’ net, but the bounce came right out in front and Bergeron was able to use good hand-eye coordination to bat the puck out of the air and into the net past a stunned Varlamov. Overall, DeBrusk looked better than you would think after missing a month and a half.
Foligno, Greer & Frederic Supply Early Offensive Boost
The Bruins took full advantage of the Islanders grinding out a 5-4 win over the Penguins the night before by putting them into an early hole, in large thanks to the fourth line. Trent Frederic has slid down from the third-line wing spot and played really well the last three games and the whole line combined to supply the final two goals of the first period.
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Midway through the period, Nick Foligno collected a loose puck in the New York corner, circled around into the left circle, and beat Varlamov with a wrist shot through a screen. Later in the period, relentless forecheck led to the puck getting back to Charlie McAvoy at the point and Frederic tipped his shot past Varlamov for his 12th goal of the season. He would add his second of the game in the second period when he scored on a wrist shot from the slot after collecting a loose puck at center ice.
Frederic finished with two goals, Foligno had a goal and an assist, and A.J. Greer had an assist. Along with their offensive production, it was their relentless forechecking, passing, and physical presence that also played a big part in the win. Tomas Nosek is getting closer to returning and could do so on the upcoming four-game road trip, but Frederic has more than held down the fort recently in Nosek’s absence.
Ullmark Stands Strong Despite Teammates’ Sloppy Second Period
When you take a 6-1 lead into the second intermission, very rarely does your goaltender come up big, but that was the case for Linus Ullmark. After his team staked him to a 3-0 lead through the first period, Ullmark made some big and timely saves in the second period to keep the Islanders at bay.
For the second time in three games, it was a sloppy second period at times by the Bruins. Kyle Palmieri got New York on the board 6:46 into the middle period when he tipped home an Anders Lee pass at the doorstep of Ullmark’s crease. After that goal, the visitors had some chances to cut the deficit to a one-goal game, but the Bruins goalie was up to the task. Palmieri had a chance on a breakaway 4-on-4 and was stopped by Ullmark with a pad save. In the period, the Islanders fired 11 shots on the net, but Boston’s top netminder was up to the task with 10 saves. He finished the game with 26 saves.
After losing four out of five games, the Bruins now have won three in a row as they close out their short two-game stop at home against the Ottawa Senators on Feb. 20. Getting DeBrusk back and scoring early is big for his confidence and the fourth-line picking up the other three lines 5-on-5 should not be a surprise after the first two-thirds of the season should not be a surprise with the way 2022-23 has gone so far.
