Recap: Bruins stumble in OT, lose by a score of 3-2

The Bruins’ mini-skid continued last night with a 3-2 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers. Leon Draisaitl scored on a 2-on-1 just 37 seconds into the extra frame, sending the B’s to their second-consecutive loss.

The Czech Daves, David Krejci and David Pastrnak, were the goalscorers for the Bruins, while Jaroslav Halak made 19 saves in his first defeat in black and gold.

With much of the New England area focused on the Red Sox game in Houston, the Bruins quietly turned in an up-and-down performance that, while an improvement over the showing in Calgary, simply wasn’t good enough again.

Some thoughts:

• Brad Marchand gets the goat horns for the game-losing goal. You get what he’s trying to do: spring Patrice Bergeron for an overtime breakaway. However, the situational awareness needs to be better. Connor McDavid was in good position to break-up the pass, and if Marchand’s pass wasn’t perfect, there was a 99% chance it was going to come back to bite them. He made it worse when he attempted to confront McDavid at the blue line and promptly got turned inside out. Just an ugly play all around.
• There’s not a ton that can be said about the performance of Jaroslav Halak. He was...there. Not spectacular, not bad. It’s hard to fault him on any of the goals, but something tells me the reaction would have been very different if it had been Rask who over-committed on Ryan Nugent-Hopkins’ PPG. Still, Halak kept the Bruins in it with some big saves and ultimately was beaten by a perfectly executed 2-on-1. Not much you can do about that.
• Speaking of that 2-on-1, it wasn’t Charlie McAvoy’s best night. You can’t expect too much of him defending that play when it’s McDavid on one side, but McAvoy got burnt on Edmonton’s first goal as well. While the pass from Adam Larsson was great, McAvoy took a weird angle at Kailer Yamamoto; Yamamoto eased past McAvoy and walked in alone on Halak, finishing with a great shot.
• David Krejci is quietly off to a solid start. His goal last night gives him six points (1G, 5A) in seven games. Considering he’s been playing with a revolving door at right wing since Game 1, his production has been encouraging.
• Danton Heinen, Ryan Donato and Anders Bjork seem content to continue to pass the healthy scratch baton around. While Bruce Cassidy undoubtedly wants to get them all regular looks, he also must hope that at some point, two of the three seize their opportunities and make it impossible for them to sit. That hasn’t happened at this point. Heinen had an assist last night, but hasn’t looked as dangerous as he did at times last season. Donato has had flashes as well, but they’re mixed in with dekes that end up being turnovers. At some point, one can’t help but wonder if a guy like Peter Cehlarik gets a chance to claim a spot.
• David Backes probably suffered another concussion last night when he was hit up high by Matt Benning. He left and went to the quiet room, eventually returning to the ice in the second period. One would hope that, given his history, if he was in fact diagnosed with a concussion, the Bruins wouldn’t put him back out there at all, so hopefully the quiet room was just a precaution. However, Backes certainly looked a little dazed on his feet. The hit by Benning might merit a fine, as he gets a little wiggle room due to Backes returning. It was an unnecessary hit, but probably won’t rise to the level of a suspension-worthy play.
• David Pastrnak’s third period goal was his eighth of the season. With Auston Matthews held scoreless last night, Pastrnak remains second in the NHL, two goals behind the Leafs’ star.

The Bruins are back at it tomorrow night in Vancouver. 10 PM start on the East Coast!