Minten Has Three Points as Bruins Keep Flyers Winless, 5-1
Saturday matinees at the Garden don't get much better than this one. The Bruins took care of the Philadelphia Flyers 5-1 at TD Garden, with five different goal scorers and a three-point afternoon from our new favorite center, Fraser Minten. Boston improved to 4-2-0, finished its three-game homestand at 2-1-0, and sent everyone home happy in time for dinner.
Meanwhile, the Flyers are still searching for their first win of the season at 0-4-2. We'd feel bad for them, but, well, they're the Flyers.
Zacha gets a lucky bounce
Pavel Zacha opened the scoring at 12:21 of the first period, and it wasn't the prettiest goal you'll ever see, which is part of what made it fun. David Pastrnak slipped him a backhand pass in the high slot, Zacha's wrist shot knuckled toward Dan Vladar, and even though Vladar got a pad on it, the puck trickled over the line. Hey, they all count, and it was Zacha's first of the season.
Lohrei joins the rush
Mason Lohrei made it 2-0 at 17:12 of the second, and this one was a beauty. A Jeremy Swayman blocker save turned into a 4-on-2 the other way, Lohrei jumped into the play, and JJ Peterka fed him for a shot from the left circle that beat Vladar clean. That's exactly what we want to see from Lohrei: confident, aggressive, and making the most of his skating.
The Minten show
The third period belonged to Minten and his linemates. Just 1:55 in, Minten worked the puck behind the Flyers' net and found Marat Khusnutdinov out front for a point-blank finish. It was Khusnutdinov's first goal of the season, and it made it 3-0.
Porter Martone got one back for Philly on the power play at 6:32, spoiling Swayman's shutout bid, but the Bruins answered fast. Casey Mittelstadt redirected an Elias Lindholm centering pass through Vladar's five-hole at 9:21 for a 4-1 lead.
And then Minten capped his afternoon in style at 15:59. Peterka slipped the puck over, Minten took off through the neutral zone, charged straight at the net and tucked it past Vladar. Goal, two assists, three points. Not bad for a Saturday.
Peterka hits a milestone
A quick shout-out to JJ Peterka, who finished with two assists. The second one was his 200th career NHL point. Congrats, JJ. We're glad you're getting the next couple hundred in Black and Gold.
Locking it down
Defensively, this was about as tidy as it gets. The Bruins held Philadelphia to 15 shots, and Swayman only needed to make 14 saves. When your team is spending that much time in the other end, life gets a lot easier for everybody.
Our takeaways
That Minten line is cooking. Khusnutdinov, Minten and Peterka were all over the Flyers, and it's becoming clear that this trio has real chemistry. Depth wins. Five different goal scorers means opponents can't just key on one line. Defense first. Fifteen shots against is the kind of number that wins you a lot of hockey games.
Next stop: San Jose on Tuesday, as the Bruins head west for the season's longest road trip. Pack your snacks for the late start, Bruins fans. 🐻