Honest?

I’m not even mad.

1st period

It’s off to a great start for Boston, and I mean it’s off to a great start Brad Marchand sent the puck over the boards to Elias Lindholm, who put a shot on net and it, uh…just went in. 1-0 Bruins.

To think this would be the worst goal of the game in almost half an hour of play.

Then, as the period ended and Boston was able to land many more shots on Stuart Skinner, Mark Kastelic took a puck that was quickly beaten up on a run around the Oilers boards, out of the defensive zone, cut up the middle and sent home a backhander in a truly impressive performance! 2-0 Bruins!

2nd period

For most of that time, the Bruins struggled with the Oilers’ rush as they desperately tried to get into the game. On the whole, they kept their agreement and put up a strong defense…And then, 11 minutes into the quarter, this happened.

There is no defense for this. That’s just a miserable goal to give up. 2-1 Bruins.

But hey! If that’s the only goal we achieve, everything is clear, right? It’s a strange aberration, the Bruins finish a game with few events, we all go home happy, some crazy people keep pointing out that a .920 SV% is a bad thing on this one strange event, and we just ignore it that it ever happened, right?

So…

3rd period

To their credit, the Bruins really tried hard to keep the Oilers from tying this game; They stayed even until the final three minutes of the game, when a poorly timed line change caused the fatal mistake of not throwing the puck to anyone in the neutral zone when Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid were on the ice. The consequences of what happened next are predictable, but no less painful.

We continue with the extension.

Over time

Look, man, this is the last team you should be playing in overtime. For some reason.

Mattias Ekholm got Ryan Nugent-Hopkins’ second chance all alone, and the Oilers took advantage, winning 3-2 in overtime.

Game notes

• Their TOI leader was Charlie McAvoy, who logged 24:36 tonight.
• See. This was a result the Bruins could have and probably should have avoided. Even when the Oilers decided it was time to turn on the McDavid machine, the Bruins largely controlled this game from the start and didn’t let it go until overtime finally snuffed it out. They were active, they cleared their zones, they were physical, they got another goal early from Elias Lindholm and Mark Kastelic and once again managed to get almost every big star on the board through assists, and a lot at that early! However, the little details began to pile up and a dangerous Edmonton team did what they always do when even tiny mistakes were made; it placed great emphasis on it. Despite this, they spent much of the game on defense. You can build on a game like this.
• This means that when you play against the best of the best scorers, your goalkeeper has to do his best. For most of the game? Swayman was completely fine. Then Hyman’s goal came. There’s not much you can do about Connor McDavid deciding to turn on the death machine, but a terrible rebound was the difference between RNH and Ekholm winning the game and Brad Marchand trying to close the zone leave, and while it’s not a guarantee, it’s something Swayman can control. Given the way the game started, the sudden and severe decline was remarkable and unacceptable. Swayman should be better, and tonight he wasn’t. It’s also a damn shame; Had he been able to stop Hyman’s chance, we might just be talking about how he managed to hold the fort despite Edmonton’s push in the 2nd and 3rd.
• If nothing else, it ensures that Jeremy Swayman’s rascification will be effectively completed by the end of the year. I realize it will require a lot more actual discussion about the game than his pass will be different; This is a nice change.
• Oliver Wahlstrom played tonight! He handled his limited ice time pretty well; He led the team in most possessions, was a physical presence and had a golden opportunity early on to play for the first time as a Bruin. If he keeps this up, I think there’s a Bruin quality somewhere in his game; They just have to get it out of the islanders’ years of dirt.
• Considering how this road trip started, I think it’s…okay to take about half the points you could have gotten. It will mean you now absolutely When they come to town they’ll have to beat up the Buffalos, Detroits and Montreals of the world to compete, but to bounce back the way they did is encouraging, even if it’s a little frustrating.
• I can’t wait for the third Bruins player to score in double figures. This will be really fun.

The Bruins finally come home from that nightmarishly long road trip and get the chance to set an example of true, endless torment; the Buffalo Sabres. In this game, the puck drops at 7:00 p.m. EST.

See you there!