Recap: Late goal leads to Bruins 2-1 OT loss to Oilers

Draisaitl pots two for Edmonton as they come away with the W.

The Boston Bruins dropped a tight game to the Edmonton Oilers, 2-1, in overtime, on a late, tying goal from Leon Draisaitl and his eventual game-winner in extra minutes.

After two scoreless periods, Pavel Zacha put the Bruins up 1-0 early in the third period with a one-timer past Stuart Skinner.

But again for the eighth time in the last 12 games, the Bruins had a hard time closing out the game and overtime was inevitable.

“We have to find ways to win,” Zacha said. “There have been a lot of them this season where you’re winning and then the last five minutes you get scored on. That’s something we have to get better at.”

The Bruins couldn’t hold onto their lead in the final minutes of play and allowed Connor McDavid to set up the tying goal, throwing the puck out front with traffic for Leon Draisaitl to redirect the puck which popped up over Linus Ullmark’s helmet with 1:20 left on the clock.

“In the end, they found a way to squeeze one by us,” Jim Montgomery said.

As the Oilers controlled overtime, McDavid found Draisaitl for a one-timer to take the game.

Here are the game’s highlights:

First period:

Scoreless

Shots – 9-9

Second period:

Scoreless

Shots – 12-8 Bruins

Third period:

The Bruins broke through on Stuart Skinner at 4:26 of the third period.

Danton Heinen found Pavel Zacha skating toward the right-wing circle where up high he blasted a one-timer past Skinner’s glove. 1-0 Bruins.

The Oilers tied it up at 18:40 of the third period.

McDavid threw the puck out front and with lots of bodies there, Leon Draisaitl tipped in a shot over Ullmark. 1-1 tie game.

Overtime:

The Oilers won the game at 2:18 of overtime.

Off a feed from McDavid, Draisaitl sent a one-timer past Ullmark’s glove. Final score: 2-1 Oilers.

Game notes:

• For back-to-back nights, the Bruins faired well against two high-scoring teams, and limited those teams’ chances both nights — despite allowing Draisaitl’s tying goal. The goal almost could be seen in a few plays leading up to it as Heinen hit the post on an empty net and the Oilers began crowding the net.
• The Bruins had done a good job taking away McDavid’s chances up until that point, when he created the opportunity for his teammates to capitalize on front. And then he sent up Draisaitl yet again for the game-winner.
• Although they only came away with one point, Jim Montgomery felt his team did a good job checking and thought Ullmark did his part in net. He also said they tried to stay out of the box as much as possible knowing the strength of Edmonton’s power play. The PK staved off two attempts successfully, were fast on the puck and made clears when needed on the kill to achieve that.
• But with that said, he believes his team is creating too many turnovers and had a hard time transitioning to offense. “We got a point because we checked, not because of our offense,” Montgomery said postgame.
• James van Riemsdyk played in his 1,000th game tonight. He said while it’s a milestone for him, it’s a chance for him to recognize who have gotten him to this point. JVR got a standing ovation during the first stoppage of play. In his first season with the Bruins, it was a moment he said was special to him, knowing the passion Bruins fans have for their team. “It’s nice to be on the right side of that too,” he added.
• Pavel Zacha now has three goals in his last two games after going 11 scoreless games.
• All in all, it wasn’t a bad game by any means. The frustrating takeaway from the game is that the Bruins couldn’t close it out with less than 90 seconds to go and it was going to be yet another overtime decision. And then when a team carries momentum heading into the overtime off a goal like that, it’s almost written on the wall.
• The homestand continues on Thursday, March 7, as the Bruins will face the Toronto Maple Leafs for the second time this week at 7 p.m.