It hasn’t come easy for the Bruins, but they found a way to extend their point streak to 19 consecutive games. Saturday’s game versus the Ottawa Senators wasn’t the easiest one, despite the lopsided matchup on paper. However, the B’s showed great patience again and claimed yet another victory.
After dominating wins against the San Jose Sharks and the Tampa Bay Lightning to start the six-game homestand, the Bruins struggled to beat each of their last four opponents.
They defeated the New Jersey Devils 1-0, then had to make back-to-back comebacks from 0-2 holes to beat the Carolina Hurricanes and the Florida Panthers. Lastly, they had to score yet another dramatic late game-winner to down the worst team in the NHL, the Senators.
Nevertheless, now the Bruins stand with a point in 19 straight games. That’s the second-longest points streak in the Bruins franchise history. Last year, Boston had an 18-game points streak snapped by the Anaheim Ducks at TD Garden.
The Senators came close to repeating the fate, but the B´s were reluctant to that matter. Boston swept the season series from the Senators for two straight years. Since getting eliminated in Game 6 of the first round in the 2017 playoffs by Ottawa, the Bruins are 8-0 versus the Sens.
Their best points streak in the history came in the 1940-1941 season with a 23-game run. Hypothetically, Boston can tie that record seven days from now, when they will host the Columbus Blue Jackets at TD Garden. The last team to record a 19-game points streak in the NHL was the Chicago Blackhawks in 2013. Their season ended with lifting the Stanley Cup at TD Garden.
On Thursday against the Panthers, the Bruins scored the game-tying goal with less than 40 seconds left and scored a game-winner with 7.4 seconds to go in the third period. Last night, David Krejci scored a game-winning tally with 45 seconds to go in the third frame. It has marked the first time in Bruins history that the team has scored the game-winning goal in the final minute of regulation in consecutive games.
The Bruins swept a six-game homestand for the second consecutive season. Ironically, last season’s six-game homestand sweep featured a 4-3 overtime win over the Hurricanes after coming back from a two-goal deficit, three third period comebacks and a game-winner with just seconds left on the clock. Sweeping the six-game homestand has happened twice in the Bruins franchise history; last year and this year.
Tuukka Rask has extended his personal points streak to 19 games, sporting a 16-0-3 record. The Finnish netminder has a GAA of 1.94 and a save percentage of .929 in that time span. Last time Rask lost a game in regulation it was a game in Carolina Dec. 23 last year.
