BSJ Game Report: Penguins 4, Bruins 3 - B’s blow another 3-goal lead, this time in regulation

Everything you need to know from the Bruins’ 4-3 loss to the Penguins  in quickie form, with BSJ insight and analysis:

Box Score

HEADLINES

B’s start strong...: The Bruins might have been the only team that got the memo about today’s 12:30 start, scoring a pair of goals just 2:02 into the game. You couldn’t have asked for a better start from a B’s team looking to generate some momentum going into the bye week — as Patrice Bergeron lit the lamp just 11 seconds into the contest off a set play from the opening puck drop. It only took 1:51 for Boston to strike again, with Boston’s new-look second line landing a punch against Matt Murray off of an Anders Bjork snipe. Add in David Pastrnak’s 37th goal of the season later in the first (off a fortuitous deflection from Jack Johnson in front), and the Bruins were well on their way toward a convincing win over a red-hot Penguins crew. 

Well, it was fun while it lasted. 



…. But blow another lead: Entering today’s game, the Bruins had posted a record of 200-1-6 when leading by at least three goals since the start of the 2010-11 season. That lone regulation loss was back on April 4, 2011 against the Rangers. Now, that disheartening defeat has some company. For the third time this season, the Bruins came up short in a game in which they held a three-goal lead — as Pittsburgh tallied four straight goals to shock the Bruins, 4-3, on Sunday afternoon at PPG Paints Arena. 

While Pittsburgh’s first two goals were generated off of some playmaking wizardry from Sidney Crosby, the Pens’ equalizer and eventual game-winner were both tough looks for the Bruins. Holding on to a 3-2 lead going into the third period, Pittsburgh tied things up off a shorthanded tally, with Johnson beating Jaroslav Halak on a high-slot shot that the B’s netminder would like to have back. A little under 11 minutes later, Pittsburgh put itself ahead for good. After Charlie McAvoy failed to clear a puck behind the B’s net and coughed it up to Evgeni Malkin, the Pens’ star pivot made Boston pay — feeding it in front to Bryan Rust to complete Pittsburgh’s comeback. 

Boston has sat comfortably in first place of the Atlantic for most of 2019-20, but with Tampa Bay continuing to gain steam — letting these points slip away is going to be costly for this club down the stretch. And from an optics perspective, dropping three games in which you held a three-goal lead is downright unacceptable. 

TWO UP

Anders Bjork: Along with his snipe in the opening minutes of the contest, Bjork has continued to look pretty solid on that second line — with Boston holding an 18-5 edge in shot attempts during that 11:30 of 5v5 TOI that the trio of DeBrusk-Coyle-Bjork logged on Sunday. 

David Pastrnak: Along with his 37th goal of the season, Pastrnak helped jumpstart the set play that led to Bergeron’s tally just 11 seconds into Sunday’s game. You won’t find much fault with the Bergeron line in general, with Boston’s top-line center also winning 80.0% of his faceoffs on the afternoon. 

TWO  DOWN

John Moore: After getting out-muscled by Crosby on Pittsburgh’s first goal at 16:34 in the first, Moore found himself on the bench for most of the afternoon — logging just 10:48 of ice time in the loss. You can’t give a player like Crosby time to work his magic down low with the puck. 

Charlie McAvoy: Just an inexcusable decision from McAvoy on Pittsburgh’s eventual game-winner. Rather than feed the puck over to Zdeno Chara and out of danger, McAvoy’s split-second hesitation allowed Malkin to get to the puck and win a battle down low. 

PLAY OF THE GAME

https://twitter.com/ConorRyan_93/status/1218954862387396609

PARTING THOUGHT

https://twitter.com/ConorRyan_93/status/1218971594841829377

LOOKING AHEAD

The Bruins will play one more game before entering the bye week, as the B’s will host the Golden Knights on Tuesday night. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. After that matchup, the Bruins will not play again until Jan. 31 up in Winnipeg.