First Period:
Not much happened, but the Bruins lulled the entire fanbase into a false sense of security by playing a whole lot better than they did against Columbus.
...It didn’t last.
Second Period:
This period sucked. Oh how did this period suck.
It started with Travis Sanheim getting a puck and hitting Michael Raffl’s stick after the B’s couldn’t get out of their own end, and Raffl roofed it on Halak. 1-0 Flyers.
GOAL
— BetAmerica (@BetAmerica) August 2, 2020
Michael Raffl finds the net for the lead after the dish from Travis Sanheim#AnytimeAnywhere | #PHIvsBOS pic.twitter.com/PTvBSQ1Wy1
And it got worse! Nate Thompson wired a bullet past Halak offa drop pass that was completely undefended, and put the Flyers up 2-0.
Nate Thompson scoring the winner on Jaroslav Halak. Congrats to @kmaemaier and @TheNKinsey8 for the single point for the #Flyers win! #HiSticking pic.twitter.com/PkQT2a4tsr
— The 4th Line Hockey Podcast (@4thLinePodcast) August 2, 2020
Things got a little better with Chris Wagner getting a tally in really tight towards Hart, putting the B’s on the board, 2-1.
Chris Wagner with the tight angle tally to get Boston on the board!#NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/wg2ny53a4g
— Hockey Daily 365 (@HockeyDaily365) August 2, 2020
...And off the faceoff, the roof caved in.
Right after Wagner scores, Phillippe Myers skates in, and uncorks a bullet of a shot to restore the two-goal Flyer lead. #AnytimeAnywhere pic.twitter.com/L5BRg1Hvfy
— Brandon Maki (@BrandonMaki_) August 2, 2020
This. Period. Sucked.
Third Period:
And then...this happened.
Scott Laughton snipes the top corner to give the #Flyers a 4-1 lead and eventually a 4-1 win over the #NHLBruins.
— Full Press NHL (@FullPressNHL) August 2, 2020
( :@nhl)
pic.twitter.com/MtxhvYVJQq
The Bruins took over nine minutes in the 3rd period to register a shot on goal. It should not surprise you to learn things didn’t improve with time, and the B’s lost this one pretty badly, by a score of 4-1.
Game Notes:
- Jaroslav Halak did not have a good day in net, finishing with an .862 SV%. Three of those goals-against he got frozen on badly. It’s clear both goalies are not going to be helped out as much as either of them are used to while the team is going through this groggy spell.
- This team is still very rusty. Otherwise perfectly fine players were flubbing the puck, Brandon Carlo’s complete inability to corral a puck ended up becoming a goal against. One hard hit on the half wall got Chara off his feet and turned into a 2-on-1 and almost immediately into a goal. I know they don’t have the normal time frames to get ready, but this group looks lost on some shifts, and it’s very worrysome. The Bruins took almost 9 straight minutes in the third period to put a single shot on goal. The current leading scorer for the Bruins in this Round Robin setup is Chris Wagner. That’s just unacceptable. It’s doubly unacceptable that you’re so nearly out of ideas on how to get a goal that the back half of your third period is just feeding David Pastrnak to generate rebounds. This is one of the only teams on planet earth that seemingly has to be told to be selfish and shoot, and so far it’s sapping confidence in this team right out.
- Charlie Coyle’s line was probably the best of the night according to Expected-GF%. Good for them! Pity they didn’t score all that much or I’d probably have a little more praise for them!
- The Bergeron line as a unit didn’t see a whole lot of 5v5 time, while the depth had a pretty even split on time. Bergeron and Studnicka saw the least 5on5 hockey of any of the team, less than 9 minutes apiece. I think I’d call that a “Red Flag” if your best line is getting filled in like that.
- Gryz got dinged up in the mouth and got stitches. Another game, another scare...here’s hoping they don’t actually leave the Round Robin with an injury.
Tampa’s on Wednesday. Practice up, go to the rink to face the Lightning, and try to get a big win before the playoffs start in earnest.