Rask backstops Bruins to win over Isles

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[November 09, 2015]  NEW YORK -- If there are two things that have plagued the Boston Bruins during the 2015-16 season, they are penalty killing and the inability to play a full 60 minutes.

Coming to Barclays Center for a third game in four days against the New York Islanders, who had the previous two days off, didn't appear to be a recipe for success, but the Bruins made it work.

Goaltender Tuukka Rask stopped 36 shots as the Bruins held off a late charge by the Islanders to snap a three-game losing streak and win 2-1 on Sunday.

The Bruins allowed a power-play goal -- a 5-on-3 tally by defenseman Johnny Boychuk late in the third period -- but shut down the Islanders' six other chances with the man-advantage. Four of those six chances occurred in the third period as the Bruins appeared to grow fatigued, but Rask was there to salvage the victory.

It was a welcome sight for a goaltender that entered Sunday with an .879 save percentage and a team that ranked 30th in penalty killing.

"Give him credit -- he played really well for us tonight," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "He made the saves when we really needed them. Our guys in front responded well for their third game in four nights. There were a lot of challenges today and we didn't use them as excuses."

It's nearly impossible to deliver a complete effort over 60 minutes against a team that's rested and playing at home, but the Bruins were the much better team during the first two periods.

Center Ryan Spooner put the Bruins ahead 1-0 with seven minutes remaining in the first period. The Bruins took advantage of an extended 5-on-3 advantage when Patrice Bergeron, a center working the point, moved the puck down low to center David Krejci. He found Spooner with a cross-crease pass for a goal that gave the Bruins a lead they wouldn't relinquish.

Bergeron doubled the lead with 5:47 left in the second period when his long shot caromed off bodies in front of goaltender Jaroslav Halak and into the net.

Rask had to be strong over the rest of the period, as a shot by left winger Taylor Beck glanced off the post and right winger Cal Clutterbuck was denied on a breakaway.

Even with the Islanders tilting the ice in the third period -- they had a 13-6 advantage in shots -- the Bruins did enough to keep the door shut.

"(Rask) was making big saves for us," Bruins captain Zdeno Chara said. "But all 20 of our guys were sharp, ready to play, ready to battle. That was a big game for us after yesterday's game and all the travel and late night checking, it was not an easy game. But I thought we really handled it well. We were working extremely hard. I thought that was a very big character win.".

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The Islanders, meanwhile, have lost five of six and scored nine goals during the skid.

"You shoot pucks, you score goals," Islanders coach Jack Capuano said. "For whatever reason, we wanted to be on the perimeter. You're not going to win games like that."

"When you're not scoring, it's frustrating," Islanders center John Tavares said. "You've got to work through it, that's all you can do."

The Bruins will embark on a five-game homestand starting Thursday, and if Rask and the penalty kill are rounding into form, good things could be on the horizon in Boston.

"It's a great two points, especially after a tough road trip like we just had," Bergeron said. "It was important for us to show up and bring out a solid effort, being composed and bringing not just a good start of a game but sustaining that for the full 60 no matter what was happening on the ice.

"I thought we did a good job of that."

NOTES: Bruins D Dennis Seidenberg (back), RW David Pastrnak (foot) and LW Chris Kelly (leg) were all out with injuries. ... The Bruins' healthy scratches were D Joe Morrow and RW Tyler Randell. ... Islanders LW Josh Bailey was a healthy scratch. Coach Jack Capuano cited defensive lapses as the reason for Bailey watching from the press box. Bailey was replaced by LW Taylor Beck, who made his Islanders debut. .... The Islanders were without LW Eric Boulton (lower body) and D Thomas Hickey (lower body)

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