Bergeron’s Heroics Erase Last Minute Tally

Over the weekend, the Boston Bruins were less than one second away from securing a victory, when Pittsburgh’s Bill Guerin scored to force overtime in an eventual 6-5 win for the Penguins. On Thursday night, the game had a similar feel to it, as the Bruins took a 3-2 lead into the final minute of play against the Atlanta Thrashers. Maxim Afinogenov evened the score with 41 seconds left, but the end result was different, as Patrice Bergeron’s goal in the shootout gave Boston a 4-3 road victory over the Thrashers at Philips Arena.

As the contest approached the six-minute mark, the first goal was scored. Andrew Ference fired the puck around the boards from center ice, hoping to connect with a teammate in the offensive zone. The puck eluded Ondrej Pavelec and Mark Popovic, kicking over to Mark Recchi just inside of the blueline. Recchi skated the puck into the right circle, before centering a pass to Marco Sturm in the slot. Sturm kept his stick on the ice, redirecting the pass through Christoph Schubert’s legs and past Pavelec.

With less than two minutes remaining in the first period, the Bruins added to their lead. David Krejci was pinned by an Atlanta defender along the boards, but the puck managed to squirt free for Blake Wheeler. Wheeler curled out of the left corner, tossing a pass back to Dennis Wideman at the right point. Wideman thought about a slap shot, but opted for a return feed, setting up Wheeler at the top edge of the left circle. Wheeler spun a low shot toward the net, getting a tip from Michael Ryder to send it over Pavelec and into the cage. Boston outshot the Thrashers 13-7 in the opening stanza, while leading 2-0 where it counted.

Midway through the second period, the Thrashers got on the scoreboard. Tobias Enstrom started a breakout deep in his own zone, snapping a pass ahead to Nik Antropov in center ice. Antropov quickly sent a backhand pass over to Ilya Kovalchuk, sending him in on the left side of the offensive zone. As he reached the circle, Kovalchuk dropped a pass back for the oncoming Enstrom, who put a one-timer on goal. Antropov got a piece of the shot, tipping it past the glove side of Tuukka Rask.

With approximately six minutes to go in the middle frame, Mark Recchi was whistled for high sticking, putting Atlanta on the power play for the second time on the night. After an unsuccessful first attempt, the Thrashers needed only 22 seconds to cash in with the equalizer. Atlanta controlled the puck in the offensive zone, with Maxim Afinogenov and Ilya Kovalchuk playing catch on the left side of the ice. Afinogenov ended up with the puck, before sending a cross-ice pass to Tobias Enstrom at the right point. Enstrom faked a slap shot, then passed to his left, setting up Ilya Kovalchuk for a one-timer. Kovalchuk blasted the shot through, tying the score at two.

Shortly after the goal, Boston got an opportunity, as Rich Peverley picked up a minor penalty for hooking. Not to be outdone, the Bruins regained the lead with a power play tally of their own. David Krejci searched around for passing options, before tapping the puck low for Michael Ryder. Ryder tried to connect with Dennis Wideman on the right side of the crease, but the pass slid just wide. Krejci hustled in to chase down the puck, digging it free, and passing to Ryder behind the cage. Ryder came out from beneath the goal line, roofing a shot over Pavelec. The play was much closer in the second period, as the Bruins completed 40 minutes of play with a 3-2 lead.

Both netminders were put to the test during the third period, as the two sides were each able to create breakaway opportunities. The first test went to Pavelec, as Michael Ryder broke in with a forehand attempt. The Atlanta goalie was successful, putting the pressure on Rask. The Bruins’ backstop was also sharp, turning aside Vyacheslav Kozlov’s backhander.

The score stayed at 3-2 for the majority of the third period. However, with 41 seconds left in regulation, Atlanta knotted things up. The Thrashers tried to set up their best player, getting the puck to Ilya Kovalchuk for a one-timer from the left circle. Kovalchuk’s shot was blocked, but Atlanta’s captain regained possession, slipping a pass through the slot. Byron Bitz nearly broke up the pass, but missed, as Maxim Afinogenov took control in the right circle. Afinogenov hesitated for a moment, before wristing a shot past Rask’s blocker.

Afinogenov’s goal forced overtime, which went by scoreless, meaning that a shootout would be necessary to decide the tilt. For the Bruins, it was already their sixth shootout of the year, as they entered with a record of 2-3. The Thrashers were playing in their third shootout, entering with a mark of 1-1.

The host Thrashers elected to go first, sending Rich Peverley out to lead off. Peverley didn’t get off to the brightest start, missing the net. The Bruins switched up the order from recent games, picking Patrice Bergeron to get things started. Bergeron got Pavelec to bite on a fake to the backhand, before sliding a forehand shot in past the helpless goalie. Vyacheslav Kozlov took the second shot for Atlanta. Kozlov started out extremely slowly to the wide right, and made a bunch of stickhandles, but it was all for none, as Rask made a left pad save on his backhander. Blake Wheeler had a chance to win the shootout for Boston, but the puck just rolled off of his stick after he had faked out Pavelec with a similar move to Bergeron’s. That left the Thrashers’ hopes in the hands of their captain, Ilya Kovalchuk. Kovalchuk decided to shoot, but Rask flashed the leather, locking up the victory for the Bruins.

With Tim Thomas nursing a minor injury, Tuukka Rask played well for the Bruins, as he made 32 saves on 35 shots during the game, before a perfect 3-for-3 effort in the shootout. Ondrej Pavelec also had a solid night for the Thrashers, stopping 39 of 42 shots during the game. However, Pavelec came up on the short end, allowing one goal on two shootout attempts.

The Boston Bruins will be right back at it on Friday, as they travel to Buffalo for a 7:30 face-off against the Sabres. The Providence Bruins return to action on Friday night, as they start a three-game weekend at home against the Springfield Falcons. Face-off for that game is scheduled for 7:00 at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.

Scoring Summary:
1. BOS Sturm (5) (Recchi, Ference) 5:59
1. BOS Ryder (5) (Wheeler, Wideman) 18:11
2. ATL Antropov (1) (Enstrom, Kovalchuk) 9:20
2. ATL Kovalchuk (13) (Enstrom, Afinogenov) (PP) 14:23
2. BOS Ryder (6) (Krejci, Wideman) (PP) 16:45
3. ATL Afinogenov (8) (Kovalchuk, Kubina) 19:18

Shootout:
BOS Patrice Bergeron- G
BOS Blake Wheeler- S

ATL Rich Peverley- S
ATL Vyacheslav Kozlov- S
ATL Ilya Kovalchuk- S

Penalty Summary:
1. BOS Chara- Delay of Game 9:32
2. BOS Recchi- High Sticking 14:01
2. ATL Peverley- Hooking 14:49
3. BOS Sturm- Tripping 1:15
3. ATL Peverley- Hooking 3:01
3. BOS Recchi- Interference 3:21
3. BOS Ryder- Hooking 4:19
3. BOS Wheeler- Goaltender Interference 11:46
3. BOS Wideman- Hooking 14:09

Goalies:
BOS Tuukka Rask (4-2-1): 35 shots, 32 saves
ATL Ondrej Pavelec (6-5-2): 42 shots, 39 saves

Shots on Goal:
BOS 13-13-15-1-1=43
ATL 7-11-14-3-0=35

Power Plays:
BOS 1-for-2
ATL 1-for-7

Three Stars of the Game:
1- BOS Michael Ryder
2- ATL Ilya Kovalchuk
3- ATL Ondrej Pavelec