Boston Bruins bounce back in Prague
The Boston Bruins were able to rebound after a shaky season-opening loss by defeating the Phoenix Coyotes 3-0 on Sunday. The Coyotes got the better of the Bruins a day earlier with a 5-2
win, as both clubs opened the season with back-to-back games in their season-opening series in the Czech Republic's capital city of Prague.
Bruins forward Nathan Horton is certainly making an early impression with his new team picking up a goal and an assist in the win. Horton, who was acquired by the Bruins in a trade with
the Florida Panthers in June, also scored both goals for the Bruins in the 5-2 loss. Horton admitted he likes his new surroundings and was happy to contribute.
"Boston is hockey, it's sports. It's fun to be a Boston Bruin. Definitely, it's nice to get goals and to contribute, to help the team win. We had a little let-down in the first game and
tonight we bounced back and turned things around and we played quite well," he said.
Former Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas got the call for the Bruins in net and turned away 29 shots for the shut-out in his first game of the season.
The Bruins admitted they were not happy with the way they played during Saturday’s 5-2 loss and took control of the game early on, building a 2-0 lead and out-shooting the Coyotes 27-16
after two periods.
"We came out strong," Bruins captain Zdeno Chara said. "We created lot of chances. We were putting a lot of pressure on them, didn't give them much time to do anything and we got rewarded."
Bruins coach Claude Julien was also happy with the way his team bounced back on Sunday.
"A much better play from the whole team, more aggressive," Julien said. "We put pressure on them. Puck management was much, much better, and that made a big difference.
"If you looked at the team yesterday and you looked at it today, I think you saw two different teams. We hope to see the team that played the second game more than the team that played
the first one.
"We came here with a purpose in mind, and although we enjoyed the experience that was given to us, we also felt these games very important to us," he said.
Milan Lucic opened the scoring for the Bruins midway through the second period. Horton then put the Bruins up 2-0, scoring with just 33 seconds left to go in the period.
Rookie Tyler Seguin, who was the second overall pick at the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, closed out the scoring midway through the third period picking up his first career NHL goal and point.
Tags: