"In the midst of movement and chaos, keep stillness inside of you." -- Deepak Chopra
Chaos reigned supreme in the first period of Game 4 of the Eastern Conference second round between the Bruins and Columbus on Thursday.
There were 42 shot attempts combined by the two teams, and that was far from the craziest thing that happened. David Pastrnak, whose only prior goal in this series went in off his skate in Game 2, finally scored one off his stick.
The Bruins scored on one of their three power plays in the stanza to take a 2-0 lead, but still outshot Columbus center Boone Jenner just 4-3 while on the man advantage.
One of Jenner's three shorthanded shots was a penalty shot he was awarded when his breakaway was cut short by a diving trip from Brad Marchand.
And then the ultimate act of chaos came just before the 8:46 mark. Pierre-Luc Dubois tipped a shot off Boston goaltender Tuukka Rask and out of play into the netting. None of the four officials saw the puck touch the mesh while the players all searched for the puck. After it landed, Oliver Bjorkstrand was the first to find it, and he set up Artemi Panarin for a goal that obviously shouldn't have counted.
But there's no replay review on such a play if the puck doesn't immediately enter the net. So it was a good goal, and the Bruins lead was sliced to 2-1.
Chaos seemed like it was the Blue Jackets' 19th skater. But the Bruins, led by a core that eight years ago won the Stanley Cup, and the return of a 35-year-old veteran who's still in pursuit of his first championship, found the stillness within themselves and calmed Columbus 4-1 to even the best-of-7 series 2-2.
Game 5 is Saturday night at TD Garden.
In what felt like a tornado more than a hockey game, the Bruins leaned on their experience and leadership of their best players, and their coach, to make sure they wouldn't be pushed to the brink of elimination.
There was more chaos than just what happened in the first 8:46 of the first period. Jenner finished with four of Columbus' six shorthanded shot on net, as the Blue Jackets continued to turn the tables on the Bruins' power play – that is until late in the game, when coach Bruce Cassidy slid David Krejci into David Pastrnak's spot on the first power-play unit, and then made sure had had two defensemen on the ice at all times for the last man advantage. Boston even finished 2-for-6 on the power play
Shorthanded or 5-on-5, Pastrnak continued to handle the puck like he's trying to pick up a meatball with a piece of spaghetti. The Blue Jackets turned a few of his gaffes into scoring chances that were more often than not stopped by the calm, collected Tuukka Rask, who finished with 39 saves. At times he received helped from defensemen shutting down plays just inside the blue line or backchecking forwards lifting Blue Jackets sticks, but make no mistake this was the type of game that should (but won't) shut up the naysayers that claim Rask isn't elite enough to get the Bruins where they want to go.
There was an elbow to David Backes' face from Dean Kukan that earned just a minor penalty late in the first period. Backes, in his return to the lineup for the first time since Game 5 of the first-round series against Toronto, came back after a brief stay in the dressing room. He finished with an assist and five hits, and as usual was a vocal presence on the bench.
Dubois and Patrice Bergeron, who scored two goals, exchanged massive hits within seconds of each other at both ends of the ice. Sean Kuraly scored yet another playoff goal (his sixth in 23 games) and then did a leap into the glass on the road (although Columbus is his hometown, and he said he saw some Bruins fans in the area where he leapt).
There were 133 shot attempts before the final horn.
But nothing was crazier than Panarin's goal, a break that easily could've put all the momentum in the Blue Jackets' favor. A record crowd of 19,431 at Nationwide Arena suddenly had something positive to cheer for from its team rather than just jeering Marchand. The Blue Jackets even got the next power play – I'm sorry the Bruins got the power play, but the Blue Jackets got the offensive chances.
The Bruins had to hang on for dear life in the second half of the first period, but they made it to the intermission with that 2-1 lead, largely because they didn't panic or let the blown call get to them.
"With the things that are reviewable nowadays, that should be an automatic call. But regardless, you play through it," Marchand said. "You know that's hockey, I mean that stuff happens. A lot of calls that are missed, that's part of the game."
One doesn't have to try to hard to imagine Marchand hammering home that message to his younger, less-experienced teammates: "play through it."
No doubt Bergeron, Backes, David Krejci and Zdeno Chara had the same message. They've been through it all before in the postseason – on both the winning side and losing side of a final, extra overtime games, major injuries, blown calls. Wins in hostile environments like Montreal, Vancouver and Chicago. So whether it was the mayhem of the first period, or the nuttiness of the next two periods, the Bruins' best players managed to keep the team on point while playing their best hockey.
Teams with less character, one with less fortitude would fold in the face of such adversity. Not these Bruins.
They could easily not win another game in this series, or they could play all the way until mid-June and cause a parade. If they come up short, it won't be because they don't know how to handle chaos. They proved that again in Game 4.
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