Anton Khudobin got the nod in net tonight (Photo Credit; Steph Phillips)
Tonight the Bruins traveled to Ottawa for the last meeting of the regular season without forward Patrice Bergeron, defensemen Zdeno Chara and Johnny Boychuk and goaltender Tim Thomas. On most occasions this would be a situation that the Bruins should never endure, but as the season comes to a close and the Division and playoff spot has been clinched, it makes sense to rest your “big wigs”. With the big name players missing from the line up, players like Torey Krug and Anton Khudobin got their time in the spotlight.
Anton Khudobin got the nod in net over Marty Turco, providing him with just his fifth appearance as a Boston Bruin. Khudobin faced 45 shots tonight and was able to save all but one, not bad for a player coming back from an injury. Khudobin was hands down the best player out on the ice for the Bruins tonight, who managed to post three goals against the Senators, possibly dropping them to the eighth playoff spot forcing them against the New York Rangers.
The first period the Bruins provided a good, steady tempo with the Bruins Benoit Pouliot lighting the lamp halfway through, providing the Bruins with a one-goal lead that they would take into the second period with the Sens holding a 17-7 edge in shots. Through the second period the Bruins came out aggressive and ready to take charge as Greg Zanon blasted a shot that soared past Bishop, providing Zanon with his first goal as a Bruin. As David Krejci went to the box for holding at 11:04 Khudobin would be put to the test and prevailed, stopping three shots right after another. It wouldn’t be until 13:56 of the second that the Senators would get on the board and cut the Bruins lead to one goal.
As the third period went underway, the Bruins again came out with good energy, but the Senators dominated the shots, peppering Khudobin with shot after shot. There is no doubt that if it were not for Khudobin being on point tonight, the outcome of this game could and most likely would have been very different. With just 4:33 remaining in the third period the Bruins secured their victory with a goal from Milan Lucic off of a beautiful pass from David Krejci, also providing Torey Krug with his first NHL point. Along with Krug, Joe Corvo and Greg Zanon each finished with some pretty impressive stats, each with a game-high plus-3 rating and Zanon hit double-digits in blocked shots with 10. That is something you definitely don’t see every day. Zanon is proving that he is ready to play and that he has the potential to be a valuable asset to the Bruins organization here in the post-season.
The last and final game of the regular season will be on Saturday, April 7 at the TD Garden at 4pm EST against none other than the Buffalo Sabres. The game is to be broadcast on NESNand you can hear it on 98.5 the Sports Hub.
A Cup A Bruin 