Here are my Talking Points from the Bruins' win over the Senators . . .
GOLD STAR: Danton Heinen has struggled through long portions of this season, and just Saturday afternoon he was being implored to shoot the puck more at the net by his head coach. So it must have been sweet for the young winger to throw a puck at the net from the slot that David Krejci was able to put a tip in on redirect past Craig Anderson for a game-winning goal in the final minute of the third period. Heinen finished with the assist in 18:17 of ice time with three shot attempts, a hit and a takeaway, and showed some much-needed confidence and decisiveness with the puck on the game-winning play. Hopefully being part of that game-winning play can spark something in Heinen’s game to get him to go on a bit of an offensive spree.
BLACK EYE: Local kid Colin White is having a pretty big rookie season for the Senators, but the former Boston College standout didn’t do much in front of his friends and family at TD Garden. White finished with just a single shot on net, and was just 1-for-4 in the face-off circle in 17:23 of ice time. White wasn’t really much of an offensive presence and certainly didn’t do much in any other categories to be a factor in the game as well. There will be other days for White and surely he’ll have one of those big games at his hometown NHL rink one of these days, but it wasn’t meant to be on Saturday night for the talented youngster.
BRUINS 3, SENATORS 2
TURNING POINT: It looked like it wasn’t going to be the Bruins night when Patrice Bergeron, Torey Krug and Noel Acciari all hit posts and crossbars in the first 40 minutes of the game, and the Bruins had given up a goal in the minute after they had scored the initial goal in the second period. But for the third straight game, the Bruins pulled things together in the third period, scoring a pair of goals and winning the game in dramatic fashion with a winning score with less than a minute to go in the game. Interestingly both teams managed just five shots on net in the final period, but the Bruins capitalized on those few chances that they had.
HONORABLE MENTION: Chris Wagner continues to put together a strong season for the Bruins, as he scored his career-best 11th goal of the season, and did it in pretty rugged fashion. The fourth-line winger won a battle for position with Ben Harpur for a shot in front of the net, and Wagner was then able to put a stick on Torey Krug’s point shot that ended up tying the game for the Bruins in the third period. In all, Wagner finished with the goal, a plus-1 rating, two shots on net and two hits in an energetic 13:57 of ice time. Credit Wagner for continuing to step up his game in the second half of the season, and really helping to lead the B’s fourth line with his aggressiveness and production.
Boston Bruins
BY THE NUMBERS: 11 – the combined number of shot attempts (6) and hits (5) for Brandon Carlo in an extremely active game where he was providing offense and physicality in 20:33 of ice time.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “It’s not luck when you find ways to win over and over again, so obviously, we’ve got some good players in the room [that are] stepping up at the right time. It’s a sign of a good team because we need it.” –Bruce Cassidy, on the Bruins pulling out another comeback win to make the 19th consecutive game with a point.
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