Bruins Daily
Bruins Brief: Pastrnak Completes Comback In OT; Sabres Imploding; Rangers Turning Toxic
Good morning, my name is Andrew Fantucchio. It’s Wednesday, December 18, and here are the top stories, news items, and highlights surrounding the Boston Bruins and from across the NHL today.
Bruins News:
Bruins Burn Flames: The Bruins were far from deserving of two points early on against the Calgary Flames on Tuesday night. But after coming back from two separate two-goal deficits, the Bruins more than earned the victory in overtime.
Sabres Implode, Make Owner Eat Words:
Amidst a miserable 10-game losing streak, the Buffalo Sabres had a team meeting on Monday. During it, team owner Terry Pegula reinforced his support of the team.
On Tuesday, the Sabres made Pegula eat his words, as a 6-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens was the 11th straight for Buffalo.
Sabres fans have already called for general manager Kevyn Adams to be fired. He took over the front office in Buffalo four years ago, and the team isn’t any closer to returning to the postseason now than it was then.
Even if Pegula does ultimately decide to fire Adams, this recent streak has all but officially eliminated the Sabres from playoff contention, making for another lost season in Buffalo.
Rangers Turning Toxic:
Wherever the Sabres are heading, the New York Rangers aren’t far behind.
A 2-0 shutout loss to the Nashville Predators last night was the third in a row for the Rangers and their seventh in their last 10 games, further amplifying a situation that was already turning toxic.
One of Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette’s latest tactics to turn the team around was scratching forward Kaapo Kakko from the lineup.
“I was surprised, yeah,” Kakko said. “I know you got to do something as a coach when you’re losing games, but I think it’s just easy to pick a young guy and boot him out. That’s how I feel, to be honest.”
There was hope that all that was wrong in New York would disappear when the team shipped away former captain Jacob Trouba.
Nevertheless, the problems still persist.
Yesterday’s Scoreboard:
Bruins: 4, Flames: 3 (OT)
Canadiens: 6, Sabres: 1
Lightning: 5, Blue Jackets: 3
Senators: 3, Kraken: 0
Penguins: 3, Kings: 2 (OT)
Hurricanes: 4, Islanders: 0
Devils: 4, Blues: 1
Predators: 2, Rangers: 0
Blackhawks: 3, Capitals: 2
Jets: 4, Sharks: 3
Today’s Schedule:
All Times EST
Philadelphia Flyers vs. Detroit Red Wings, 7 p.m.
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Dallas Stars, 7:30 p.m.
Florida Panthers vs. Minnesota Wild, 9:30 p.m.
Vancouver Canucks vs. Utah Hockey Club, 10 p.m.
Winnipeg Jets vs. Anaheim Ducks, 10 p.m.
More From National Hockey Now:
Montreal: Patrik Laine three times on the power play to power the Montreal Canadiens over the Sabres.
Detroit: There’s not much to like about the current Detroit Red Wings product, but the future remains bright in Hockey Town with their AHL team surging. (+)
Pittsburgh: Don’t look now; the Pittsburgh Penguins are ‘starting to get [that feeling]’ again.
New York: Another bad loss for the New York Islanders is leaving fans demanding change.
San Jose: The San Jose Sharks are a young team loaded with skill and potential. However, they need to develop a killer instinct.
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