Gresh & Zo: Bruins OT Strategy Pays Immediate Dividends
BOSTON (CBS) - Andy Gresh and Scott Zolak broke down last night's Bruins 4-3 overtime victory at home against Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins.
It was a game where the Bruins were outshot, outskated and outplayed - but the hometown team was still able to eke out a win.
A lapse in play by the Bruins defense in the final seconds of the game led to a game-tying, buzzer-beating goal by Pens superstar Sidney Crosby.
READ: Bruins Snap Skid Against Pens' With 4-3 OT Win
However, the Bruins wouldn't let the disappointment fester, as rookie defenseman Torey Krug scored 34 seconds into the extra period to help snap a seven-game regular-season losing streak to the Penguins.
With the win, the Bruins improved to 8-1-1 in their last 10 games and sit alone atop the Eastern Conference with 34 points.
Felger & Mazz: Bruins Not Good At Shootout, That's Why They Hate It
Tuukka Rask, Milan Lucic and President Cam Neely all hate the shootout, so for the Bruins to be successful in the extra periods it's imperative that they be aggressive and try to win it that way.
Coach Claude Julien implemented this aggressive philosophy last night by playing three forwards and one defenseman.
Gresh and Zolak analyzed the decision and how quickly it paid dividends.
"I like it. I love the aggressiveness from Claude. For years and years we've hammered on this guy for not being aggressive on offense," said Gresh. "Well you know what? Now you're getting that on the 4-on-4 in overtime because they don't want to get into the shootout."
"It's just smart. It's a smart way to attack people, something they should have been doing in the first place quite honestly. For five minutes lean on your goaltender," explained Gresh.
Speaking on the Penguins in general, Scott Zolak says we look at them differently now because the Bruins swept them out of the playoffs last season.
The dynamics of the two teams have changed, but not all that significantly because of the Penguins superb lineup.
"I don't think we fear Sidney Crosby anymore, but I think we respect that team because we know that they're pretty damn good and have one hell of a skill set," said Zolak.
Listen below for their full postgame analysis:
Bruins OT Strategy Pays Immediate Dividends
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