Plus/Minus: Bruins Best Oilers With Third Period Flurry, But Krejci Rusty In Return
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Boston Bruins won their fourth straight Thursday night, mounting a furious third period comeback against the Edmonton Oilers.
David Krejci returned from a lingering injury, but their top-line center was a bit rusty and the Bruins found themselves down 2-1 early in the game's final frame. No worries though, as they scored three goals in a 2:34 span and added an empty netter to secure the 5-2 win.
Everything turned around when Claude Julien put Chris Kelly back with Carl Soderberg, who scored the go-ahead tally -- his fourth of the year -- on a power play chance. Following the game, 98.5 The Sports Hub's Adam Jones caught up with Dave Goucher and Bob Beers of the Bruins Radio Network to break it all down.
"[Kelly with Soderberg gave them] some spark offensively, no question about it," said Goucher. "The Bruins, honestly, outside of (Patrice) Bergeron's line, didn't have much going offensively for most of the game. The switch in the third period led to some quick strikes... This is the second game in a row when the Bergeron line had most of their chances. They got Krejci back tonight, but that line was hit and miss, and that Soderberg line, before they changed it, didn't generate much. Once they made that switch it generated more pressure which led to a goal, a penalty, a couple of power play goals.
"They were good enough to win, but against better competition I don't know if that's going to be the case," said Goucher.
As for Krejci's return, Beers said it might be a few games before all the rust is knocked off.
"There was some good and some bad. He had been off skates for the last few days and who knows if he was 100 percent," said Beers. "Now he gets three more days before their next game, and you have to wonder if he takes a couple of days off (from practice) to get himself right. We'll have to keep an eye on that."
Hear Goucher & Beers' full breakdown of the win:
After his chat with Goucher and Beers, Jones gave his three highlights and lowlights from the game in a segment he calls "Plus/Minus."
Plus
Loui Eriksson's Goal In The Third
"Eriksson pounced on the rebound from Dougie Hamilton, and that evened the score at 2-2 at 11:04. Eriksson would add on an assist later in the period, and the floodgates were open."
Carl Soderberg's Power Play Goal To Take The Lead
"That came about a minute and a half after Eriksson evened the scoring... It was a beautiful feed from Patrice Bergeron, a one-timer from the left circle to give the Bruins a lead."
Dougie Hamilton's Goal In The Third
"Third goal of the year for Hamilton, it comes on the power play, and the Bruins took a 4-2 lead at that point. Those three goals we (talked about) came in a span of 2:34, with two on the power play."
Minus
Krejci Not Krejci
"He clearly had to knock off some of the rust with two penalties in the first period. One came as the period was expiring, the other a double-minor for a high stick. The Oilers were able to bump it home on that first power play, said Jones. "He told reporters he was dealing with some soreness, and that's something he's going to have to deal with. It's something to keep an eye on."
Tuukka Rask
"Not really the totality of his performance; I thought he was OK -- not that he was tested that much with 24 saves on 26 shots," said Jones. "The goal that gave Edmonton the lead, I thought the huge rebound from Tuukka is something you don't typically see, and then just a soft goal on the rebound from Mark Arcobello."
The Refs
"Dave Goucher and Bob Beers pounced on the refs, and rightfully so. Seth Griffith had a shot from the right circle, David Krejci pounced on it and put it in the net but it was disallowed because the referees had already stopped play," explained Jones. "There was also one disallowed earlier in the game as Griffith put in a goal after the whistle. But the second one was much more egregious of the two. It was a rough night for the refs, but it didn't hurt the Bruins."
Listen to the full Plus/Minus segment:
Hear every Bruins game on 98.5 The Sports Hub -- the flagship station of the Boston Bruins! Pregame coverage with Dave Goucher and Bob Beers begins 30 minutes prior to every game.
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