Axelsson Lifts Bruins in Five-Round Shootout
Shootouts have brought lots of excitement to the NHL since they were brought in for the 2005-06 season, as shooters have had the opportunity to raise the roof with dazzling moves. On Thursday night, it was all about the goaltenders. With the score tied at three after overtime, Tim Thomas and Brian Elliott went head-to-head in a five-round masterpiece. Finally, in the fifth round, PJ Axelsson was able to solve Elliott, giving the Boston Bruins a 4-3 victory over the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Place.
Coming off of a win in Philadelphia just 24 hours earlier, the Bruins were looking to ride some of that momentum into Thursday's contest. Midway through the opening stanza, Jarkko Ruutu was whistled for high sticking, giving Boston a power play. With the man advantage, Andrew Ference got the puck at the point and handed off for Phil Kessel at the top of the left circle. Kessel held onto the puck for a bit, as he looked for a passing option. Finally, the Boston forward opted to go back to Ference for a one-timer from the point. Similar to Wednesday's game in Philadelphia, the Bruins were able to get bodies into the slot. One of those players was Blake Wheeler, who tipped Ference's shot past Brian Elliott for the lone goal of the first period.
Boston doubled the lead midway through the second period. Blake Wheeler took a hit from an Ottawa defender behind the net, but still managed to force his way around the boards to get a pass off to David Krejci. Once Wheeler got free, he received a pass back from Krejci, before dishing back to Zdeno Chara at the left point. Chara wasn't about to waste any time, as he fired a low one-timer past Elliott for the 2-0 lead.
With less than five minutes remaining in the middle frame, the Senators began to swing momentum in their favor. PJ Axelsson cleared the puck through center ice, only to have Brendan Bell start a rush the other way, as he picked up the clearing attempt at his own blueline. Bell immediately looked up to find Nick Foligno at the Boston blueline. Despite being challenged by the defense, Foligno carried the puck in on the left side, dangled into the middle, and slipped a backhander past a lunging Tim Thomas. That completed the scoring in the second period, with the Bruins still clinging to a 2-1 lead.
The lead did not last long in the third, as Ottawa evened things up less than one minute in. Shane Hnidy tried swinging the puck around the boards, but was only able to get it as far as the circles, as a pinching Dany Heatley kept the play alive. Heatley tossed a pass into the slot, hoping to hook up with Daniel Alfredsson. Although the pass was initially intercepted by PJ Axelsson, there was enough force behind it for Axelsson to lose control to Alfredsson. With the puck on his stick, Alfredsson ripped a wrist shot into the top right corner of the net, just beating Thomas under the crossbar.
As the halfway mark of the third period approached, the Bruins got a bit of bad luck, and ended up falling behind. After a save by Thomas, Phil Kessel threw a backhander up the right side of the ice. Unfortunately for him, it went straight over the glass, which meant an automatic penalty for delay of game. Although it was only the Senators' second power play of the game, they capitalized. Daniel Alfredsson battled hard behind the net, ultimately nudging a pass to Nick Foligno above the goal line. While this was happening, Jason Spezza parked himself on the left side of the crease. Foligno saw this, backhanded a pass over to his teammate, and Spezza did the rest, knocking a one-timer past a sliding Thomas.
Down by one with a little more than five minutes left to play, Boston would get the chance it was looking for. The chance took some dirty work to create, as Michael Ryder was clipped in the face by Antoine Vermette's stick, meaning the Bruins' forward would need some quick repair work. That also meant that Boston had four minutes of power play to work with. Although they had plenty of time, the visitors only needed 1:04 to tie the score. Zdeno Chara rifled a one-timer from the point, only to have it blocked by Jarkko Ruutu. However, there was enough power behind the shot to send it right back to Chara. On his second attempt, Chara went the slow route, tossing a wrist shot toward the net. Elliott made the save, but gave up a juicy rebound to Blake Wheeler in the slot. Wheeler tapped the puck to Chuck Kobasew, who jammed the equalizer into the cage.
The Bruins were unable to score on the second half of Vermette's penalty, keeping the game tied as regulation came to an end. Both teams had terrific chances to score in overtime. The first chance belonged to Boston, who began the extra session on a power play, as Mike Fisher took an interference minor at the end of the third. The Bruins worked the puck back to Dennis Wideman for a slap shot from the point. The shot was on target, but Elliott reached out to make a glove save. Later in overtime, Fisher was given a chance to redeem himself for the penalty, as he got a partial breakaway. However, Thomas was ready, as he stacked his pads to keep the Ottawa forward out. Boston outshot the Senators 4-2 in overtime, but the score remained tied, meaning a shootout would be necessary.
Being the home team, the Senators elected to shoot first, giving Jason Spezza the first crack. Spezza kept the puck on his forehand, and tried beating Thomas over the glove, but Thomas stayed with it, making a tough save. Blake Wheeler went first for the Bruins. Wheeler stickhandled down the middle, then tried beating Elliott through the legs, but Ottawa's netminder kept his pads shut. Daniel Alfredsson was the second shooter for the Senators, and similar to Spezza, he went with a shot. Once again, Thomas held his position, making a left pad save. Phil Kessel shot second for Boston. The Bruins' shootout specialist tried a bit of a new move, as he started out to his right. As he cut back, Kessel tried beating Elliott high over the glove, but was stopped. Brendan Bell and Patrice Bergeron exchanged misses in the third round, sending the shootout into extra frames.
For round four, Ottawa went with Antoine Vermette. Vermette came in off to the side and tried to get Thomas to open up his pads, but came up empty. Marc Savard was Boston's fourth shooter, as he tried to replicate his success at the NHL Skills Competition. Savard started out on the left side, cut toward the middle, then tried going against the grain, but Elliott was able to make the save. Scoreless after four, Dany Heatley stepped up to the plate. Similar to Spezza, Heatley tried beating Thomas with a shot on his glove side. That wasn't the place to beat Thomas on this night, as Heatley also skated away unsuccessful. That gave PJ Axelsson a chance to be the hero for the second time this season. Axelsson started out wide to the right, cut back, and snuck a backhander through Elliott's pads for the winner.
Tim Thomas made 19 saves on 22 shots during the game, but the real story for him was the shootout. Thomas stopped all five Ottawa attempts, giving him and the Bruins the bonus point. Brian Elliott turned aside 27 of 30 shots during the game, before going 4-for-5 in the shootout.
The Boston Bruins have Friday off, as they return home for a Saturday afternoon tilt with the Philadelphia Flyers. The Providence Bruins are back in action on Friday night. The Manitoba Moose visit the Dunkin' Donuts Center for a 7:00 face-off.
Scoring Summary:
1. BOS Wheeler (15) (Ference, Kessel) (PP) 11:46
2. BOS Chara (12) (Ryder, Krejci) 10:27
2. OTT Foligno (7) (Bell) 15:54
3. OTT Alfredsson (15) (Heatley) 0:58
3. OTT Spezza (19) (Foligno, Alfredsson) (PP) 8:33
3. BOS Kobasew (10) (Wheeler, Chara) (PP) 15:58
Shootout:
BOS Blake Wheeler- S
BOS Phil Kessel- S
BOS Patrice Bergeron- S
BOS Marc Savard- S
BOS PJ Axelsson- G
OTT Jason Spezza- S
OTT Daniel Alfredsson- S
OTT Brendan Bell- S
OTT Antoine Vermette- S
OTT Dany Heatley- S
Penalty Summary:
1. OTT Ruutu- High Sticking 10:10
2. BOS Bitz- Roughing 11:26
3. OTT Kuba- Slashing 5:08
3. BOS Kessel- Delay of Game 7:41
3. OTT Vermette- High Sticking (Double-Minor) 14:54
3. OTT Fisher- Interference 20:00
Goalies:
BOS Tim Thomas (24-5-5): 22 shots, 19 saves
OTT Brian Elliott (4-3-2): 30 shots, 27 saves
Shots on Goal:
BOS 8-10-8-4-1=31
OTT 7-7-6-2-0=22
Power Plays:
BOS 2-for-5
OTT 1-for-2
Three Stars of the Game:
1- OTT Nick Foligno
2- BOS Blake Wheeler
3- OTT Daniel Alfredsson
Coming off of a win in Philadelphia just 24 hours earlier, the Bruins were looking to ride some of that momentum into Thursday's contest. Midway through the opening stanza, Jarkko Ruutu was whistled for high sticking, giving Boston a power play. With the man advantage, Andrew Ference got the puck at the point and handed off for Phil Kessel at the top of the left circle. Kessel held onto the puck for a bit, as he looked for a passing option. Finally, the Boston forward opted to go back to Ference for a one-timer from the point. Similar to Wednesday's game in Philadelphia, the Bruins were able to get bodies into the slot. One of those players was Blake Wheeler, who tipped Ference's shot past Brian Elliott for the lone goal of the first period.
Boston doubled the lead midway through the second period. Blake Wheeler took a hit from an Ottawa defender behind the net, but still managed to force his way around the boards to get a pass off to David Krejci. Once Wheeler got free, he received a pass back from Krejci, before dishing back to Zdeno Chara at the left point. Chara wasn't about to waste any time, as he fired a low one-timer past Elliott for the 2-0 lead.
With less than five minutes remaining in the middle frame, the Senators began to swing momentum in their favor. PJ Axelsson cleared the puck through center ice, only to have Brendan Bell start a rush the other way, as he picked up the clearing attempt at his own blueline. Bell immediately looked up to find Nick Foligno at the Boston blueline. Despite being challenged by the defense, Foligno carried the puck in on the left side, dangled into the middle, and slipped a backhander past a lunging Tim Thomas. That completed the scoring in the second period, with the Bruins still clinging to a 2-1 lead.
The lead did not last long in the third, as Ottawa evened things up less than one minute in. Shane Hnidy tried swinging the puck around the boards, but was only able to get it as far as the circles, as a pinching Dany Heatley kept the play alive. Heatley tossed a pass into the slot, hoping to hook up with Daniel Alfredsson. Although the pass was initially intercepted by PJ Axelsson, there was enough force behind it for Axelsson to lose control to Alfredsson. With the puck on his stick, Alfredsson ripped a wrist shot into the top right corner of the net, just beating Thomas under the crossbar.
As the halfway mark of the third period approached, the Bruins got a bit of bad luck, and ended up falling behind. After a save by Thomas, Phil Kessel threw a backhander up the right side of the ice. Unfortunately for him, it went straight over the glass, which meant an automatic penalty for delay of game. Although it was only the Senators' second power play of the game, they capitalized. Daniel Alfredsson battled hard behind the net, ultimately nudging a pass to Nick Foligno above the goal line. While this was happening, Jason Spezza parked himself on the left side of the crease. Foligno saw this, backhanded a pass over to his teammate, and Spezza did the rest, knocking a one-timer past a sliding Thomas.
Down by one with a little more than five minutes left to play, Boston would get the chance it was looking for. The chance took some dirty work to create, as Michael Ryder was clipped in the face by Antoine Vermette's stick, meaning the Bruins' forward would need some quick repair work. That also meant that Boston had four minutes of power play to work with. Although they had plenty of time, the visitors only needed 1:04 to tie the score. Zdeno Chara rifled a one-timer from the point, only to have it blocked by Jarkko Ruutu. However, there was enough power behind the shot to send it right back to Chara. On his second attempt, Chara went the slow route, tossing a wrist shot toward the net. Elliott made the save, but gave up a juicy rebound to Blake Wheeler in the slot. Wheeler tapped the puck to Chuck Kobasew, who jammed the equalizer into the cage.
The Bruins were unable to score on the second half of Vermette's penalty, keeping the game tied as regulation came to an end. Both teams had terrific chances to score in overtime. The first chance belonged to Boston, who began the extra session on a power play, as Mike Fisher took an interference minor at the end of the third. The Bruins worked the puck back to Dennis Wideman for a slap shot from the point. The shot was on target, but Elliott reached out to make a glove save. Later in overtime, Fisher was given a chance to redeem himself for the penalty, as he got a partial breakaway. However, Thomas was ready, as he stacked his pads to keep the Ottawa forward out. Boston outshot the Senators 4-2 in overtime, but the score remained tied, meaning a shootout would be necessary.
Being the home team, the Senators elected to shoot first, giving Jason Spezza the first crack. Spezza kept the puck on his forehand, and tried beating Thomas over the glove, but Thomas stayed with it, making a tough save. Blake Wheeler went first for the Bruins. Wheeler stickhandled down the middle, then tried beating Elliott through the legs, but Ottawa's netminder kept his pads shut. Daniel Alfredsson was the second shooter for the Senators, and similar to Spezza, he went with a shot. Once again, Thomas held his position, making a left pad save. Phil Kessel shot second for Boston. The Bruins' shootout specialist tried a bit of a new move, as he started out to his right. As he cut back, Kessel tried beating Elliott high over the glove, but was stopped. Brendan Bell and Patrice Bergeron exchanged misses in the third round, sending the shootout into extra frames.
For round four, Ottawa went with Antoine Vermette. Vermette came in off to the side and tried to get Thomas to open up his pads, but came up empty. Marc Savard was Boston's fourth shooter, as he tried to replicate his success at the NHL Skills Competition. Savard started out on the left side, cut toward the middle, then tried going against the grain, but Elliott was able to make the save. Scoreless after four, Dany Heatley stepped up to the plate. Similar to Spezza, Heatley tried beating Thomas with a shot on his glove side. That wasn't the place to beat Thomas on this night, as Heatley also skated away unsuccessful. That gave PJ Axelsson a chance to be the hero for the second time this season. Axelsson started out wide to the right, cut back, and snuck a backhander through Elliott's pads for the winner.
Tim Thomas made 19 saves on 22 shots during the game, but the real story for him was the shootout. Thomas stopped all five Ottawa attempts, giving him and the Bruins the bonus point. Brian Elliott turned aside 27 of 30 shots during the game, before going 4-for-5 in the shootout.
The Boston Bruins have Friday off, as they return home for a Saturday afternoon tilt with the Philadelphia Flyers. The Providence Bruins are back in action on Friday night. The Manitoba Moose visit the Dunkin' Donuts Center for a 7:00 face-off.
Scoring Summary:
1. BOS Wheeler (15) (Ference, Kessel) (PP) 11:46
2. BOS Chara (12) (Ryder, Krejci) 10:27
2. OTT Foligno (7) (Bell) 15:54
3. OTT Alfredsson (15) (Heatley) 0:58
3. OTT Spezza (19) (Foligno, Alfredsson) (PP) 8:33
3. BOS Kobasew (10) (Wheeler, Chara) (PP) 15:58
Shootout:
BOS Blake Wheeler- S
BOS Phil Kessel- S
BOS Patrice Bergeron- S
BOS Marc Savard- S
BOS PJ Axelsson- G
OTT Jason Spezza- S
OTT Daniel Alfredsson- S
OTT Brendan Bell- S
OTT Antoine Vermette- S
OTT Dany Heatley- S
Penalty Summary:
1. OTT Ruutu- High Sticking 10:10
2. BOS Bitz- Roughing 11:26
3. OTT Kuba- Slashing 5:08
3. BOS Kessel- Delay of Game 7:41
3. OTT Vermette- High Sticking (Double-Minor) 14:54
3. OTT Fisher- Interference 20:00
Goalies:
BOS Tim Thomas (24-5-5): 22 shots, 19 saves
OTT Brian Elliott (4-3-2): 30 shots, 27 saves
Shots on Goal:
BOS 8-10-8-4-1=31
OTT 7-7-6-2-0=22
Power Plays:
BOS 2-for-5
OTT 1-for-2
Three Stars of the Game:
1- OTT Nick Foligno
2- BOS Blake Wheeler
3- OTT Daniel Alfredsson
