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The $9.75 million the Bruins are spending on goaltending this season continued to pay off Saturday.
For the second straight night, playing without their top five defensemen because of injuries, the Bruins allowed just one goal – but this time they scored a couple of their own and hung on for a 2-1 win at Arizona. They were also without Patrice Bergeron.
Jaroslav Halak got back in the crease after a night off and made 32 saves one night after Tuukka Rask made 37 saves in a 1-0 overtime loss in Dallas.
Beyond the outstanding goaltending performance, here’s a look at a few other highlights:
*Rookie center Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, playing his fifth NHL game of the season, is known most for his high skill level but is also known for sometimes not playing with enough intensity. Well coach Bruce Cassidy’s decision to stick high-intensity Noel Acciari on Forsbacka Karlsson’s right wing made up for any vigor the center lacked and resulted in the Boston University product’s first NHL goal.
*The penalty kill went 4-for-4 and there was no bigger kill than the 6-on-4 over the final 90 seconds of regulation. Cassidy went with Brad Marchand and Acciari up front with Steven Kampfer and Jeremy Lauzon on the back end (Matt Grzelcyk was the Bruins player in the penalty box).
Inexplicably Arizona coach Rick Tocchet called a timeout after a whistle at 18:58. This allowed the Bruins killers to catch their breath and Cassidy never had to make a change. Considering the Bruins’ injury situation, who knows who Cassidy would’ve called on if play had continued, but Tocchet let him off the hook.
*Next up for the Bruins: a Thanksgiving Eve game in Detroit on Wednesday.