BSJ Game Report: Bruins 4, Islanders 0 - Blue line, Rask highlight complete effort against New York

Everything you need to know from the Bruins’ 4-0 win over the Islanders in quickie form, with BSJ insight and analysis:

Box Score

HEADLINES

B’s benefit from multiple contributors: Ain’t it funny what a fully functioning top-six grouping can do to the rest of your lineup? For the first time in … quite some time, Bruce Cassidy was able to comfortably roll all four lines at will on Saturday at Nassau Coliseum. And as a result, the Bruins thoroughly dominated the Islanders throughout the afternoon — with eight different players recording at least a point in what was a 4-0 win for Boston. 

Boston’s top line of Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak and Patrice Bergeron did plenty of the heavy lifting in this matchup (two goals, four points), but the B’s other three forward lines all managed to generate a 5v5 shot share over 50 percent in the victory — with the Islanders struggling to generate much of anything in terms of puck possession through the first two periods. 

While all four forward lines made their presence felt, Boston’s D corps might have been the most effective grouping out on the ice — combining for two goals (Matt Grzelcyk, Charlie McAvoy) and seven total points in the matinee matchup. 

With the win, the Bruins improve to 41-13-12 on the season, and have now won 10 straight road games against the Islanders. Tuukka Rask stopped all 25 shots that came his way en route to his fourth shutout of the season. 

Jeremy Lauzon avoids major injury: The Bruins’ blue line had a scare midway through the first period, as Jeremy Lauzon was forced to exit the game after taking a shot from Ondrej Kase off the face. While Connor Clifton and John Moore are waiting in the wings in case of injury, any potential injury to Lauzon would have been a tough hit — as the 22-year-old skater’s simple, physical style of play has shored up the back end of Boston’s D corps. 

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But it appears as though Boston dodged a bullet, as Lauzon returned in the second period and finished the contest — all while sporting a couple of nasty stitches on his chin. 

FIVE UP

Penalty kill: New York’s man-advantage may not be the most devastating grouping in the NHL (18.2 percent - 22nd in NHL), but the B’s penalty kill didn’t give the opposing power play much of anything throughout the afternoon — limiting the Islanders to just one high-danger scoring chance in 10:14 of 5v4 ice time. Boston’s PK went a perfect 6-for-6 in the win.

Charlie McAvoy: Don’t let McAvoy get hot. After failing to score a goal in his first 51 games of the 2019-20 campaign, McAvoy has now lit the lamp four times in his last 12 outings — leading Boston with a three-point afternoon (one goal, two assists) on Saturday. 

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Matt Grzelcyk: Grzelcyk’s third goal of the season might have been off of a fortunate bounce, as his shot in the opening period hit off of Johnny Boychuk and sailed past Semyon Varlamov 13:10 into the contest — but Grzelcyk was strong for most of the game when it came to limiting chances down the other end of the ice. Through the first 40 minutes of regulation, Boston held a 7-0 edge in shots on goal during Grzelcyk’s 8:52 of ice time. 

Tuukka Rask: Despite a few early scares in the opening period, Rask quickly settled down as Saturday's game continued, stopping all 25 shots that came his way en route to his fourth shutout of the season. He now has 49 shutouts in his career.

Charlie Coyle: He may not have recorded a point on the box score, but Coyle was a force all afternoon when it came to extending O-zone possessions. Boston held a 5-2 edge in shots on goal during his line’s 8:55 of 5v5 TOI together, while Coyle led all Bruins forwards with 4:52 of shorthanded TOI. 

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TWO DOWN

Jake DeBrusk: DeBrusk managed to get stronger as the game went along, landing three shots on goal in 13:08 of ice time, but the B’s winger appeared to be in the doghouse for most of the afternoon — logging just 6:15 of ice time through the first two periods of play.

Nick Ritchie: He combined for a few solid forechecking shifts with Ondrej Kase, but Ritchie had a much quieter outing on Saturday — landing zero shots on goal while getting whistled for a pair of penalties. Boston has a stout PK, but Ritchie can’t keep heading to the sin bin with such regularity. 

PLAY OF THE GAME

Add Ryan Pulock to the long list of skaters who realize far too late that Brad Marchand is very, very strong on his skates. 

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PARTING THOUGHT

Good to know that Torey Krug can also serve as an emergency backup goalie if need be:

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LOOKING AHEAD

The Bruins will return home to practice at Warrior Ice Arena on Monday, but will then head down to Florida for a couple of key divisional matchups — starting with a showdown against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.