As expected after their 11-day layoff, the Boston Bruins were a little rusty for the first period-plus in the Stanley Cup opener against the St. Louis Blues on Monday evening.
But after that … look out St. Louis.
The Bruins spotted the Blues a 2-0 lead early in the second period on a bad turnover by David Pastrnak, but they roared back with three before adding an empty-netter for good measure to win the opening game 4-2 to take a 1-0 series lead.
The Bruins’ speed was just too much for the Blues, and Boston’s defense was absolutely smothering as the Blues finished with just eight shots for the final 30-plus minutes of the game.
Less than a minute after the Blues took a 2-0 lead, the Bruins broke the scoring ice with a Chad Clifton backdoor goal from Sean Kuraly and Joakim Nordstrom.
Charlie McAvoy tied the game as he walked in alone and fired a goal past Jordan Binnington on one of Boston’s five power plays.
Sean Kuraly gave Boston the lead for good with a greasy goal from Noel Acciari and Zdeno Chara 5:21 into the period.
Brad Marchand added the empty-net goal.
Torey Krug had a helmet-less hit that will be talked about for a long time.
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The 2011 Bruins are here and TD Garden is already going bananas. pic.twitter.com/8QhhcDkw88
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) May 28, 2019
- Despite having a couple of questions marks arise over the last couple of days when it comes to the health of both David Krejci and Brad Marchand, Bruce Cassidy noted Sunday morning that both forwards will be good to go for Game 1, while Zdeno Chara will also be cleared after missing Game 4 against Carolina.
- There’s plenty to digest in a series that should feature plenty of low-scoring, competitive games. My preview covers the top 10 questions facing both clubs in the best-of-seven series, but I think the biggest keys will revolve around the play in net and who wins the slot battles. As constituted, the Blues D corps have five players measuring out at 6-foot-3 or taller, so getting inside could be a challenge.
- Plenty of takeaways from an eventful Media Day on Sunday.
- My series prediction? Bruins in 6.