It wasn't just Columbus goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and the Blue Jackets' penalty kill that had it in for the Bruins in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference second round Tuesday.
Commercials weren't their friend either.
The Bruins were down 2-1 – the scored they'd eventually lose by – early in the third period. Their fourth line, which was on the ice for Columbus' only even-strength goal of the night back in the first period, was pressuring and Noel Acciari even hit the post with a one-timer from the high slot.
The Bruins were able to complete a line change while keeping the Blue Jackets hemmed in, and Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand jumped over the boards, along with David Pastrnak instead of Danton Heinen. Coach Bruce Cassidy finally decided to reunite his top line, and it looked like the move would pay off.
Boston had Columbus on its heels, but when Bobrovsky gloved Matt Grzelcyk's weak wrist shot from the left point, 6:12 had elapsed in the period and the television timeout arrived. The Blue Jackets had time to catch their breath.
Momentum, however, wasn't totally killed. The Bruins kept the heat on and outshot the Blue Jackets 14-7. None of their shots found the back of the net, and they now trail the series 2-1 heading into Game 4 on Thursday.
But the third period gave the Bruins some reasons for hope that they can tie, and eventually win, this best-of-7 series.
Here's a look at the four reasons the Bruins should be feeling confident heading to Game 4:
1. David Pastrnak looks ready to come alive.
Cassidy may have waited too long to move Pastrnak back up with Bergeron and Marchand because not only was the right wing struggling to find chemistry with Charlie Coyle and Marcus Johansson, he was ruining what that duo had going prior to Game 3.
Nonetheless, Pastrnak got back with his top-line mates and started to look more like himself. He had a few shots on net, but more importantly he got in on the forecheck. With a little more than four minutes to play he made strip of the puck near the goal line in Columbus' end and fed Marchand in front. The ensuing scramble led to a couple chances, including a Pastrnak backhand shot that might have been the forward's best chance of the night.
Pastrnak, whose one goal in this series is the only point by him Bergeron or Marchand in this series, looked revitalized during the 6-on-5 for the final two minutes as well.
He might be hurting after all the hits he's taken, but he doesn't seem injured. And now he might be getting his game on track.
2. You can marvel at Bobrovsky all you want but you also have to give the Bruins credit for playing tight defense. Thirty-four shots against is a little high, but the Bruins, led by their top two defense pairs, kept the Blue Jackets' big guns off the score sheet at 5-on-5, and …
3. If you're going to credit the defense, you have to credit Tuukka Rask. He came out too far on Boone Jenner's goal, but he wasn't helped by Connor Clifton's stick on stick contact while Jenner was firing.
Otherwise Rask did everything asked of him to keep the Bruins within striking distance, especially during their sleep second period.
4. Last but not least, the Bruins should be rested now. The double-overtime in Game 2 taxed them, but then they had two days off. In Game 3, Cassidy rolled four lines. None of his forwards exceeded 20 minutes, and Patrice Bergeron only skated 17:33.
Cassidy should be able to shorten his bench in pursuit of a win in Game 4. And hopefully that includes more ice time for Coyle, who played just 15:12. The Bruins' hottest hand didn't even get off the bench for the 6-on-5.
Karson Kuhlman played his usual end-to-end solid game. But the Bruins need more. And if they're going to grind out some offense they're going to have to consider moving Coyle to David Krejci's right side. Cassidy's also going to have to up the minutes for Coyle, Krejci and Jake DeBrusk.
Although the Bruins' best players haven't earned extra ice time, this can't be a meritocracy anymore. Cassidy has to dole out ice time based on reputation, and if that means shortening his bench as soon as the third period, so be it. Maybe the only way to get Boston's best to play like they're the best is to give them more opportunities to play.
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