Although the regular season does not officially get under way until Saturday, this abridged NHL off-season and training camp schedule came to fruition Tuesday night at the TD Garden.
In somewhat of a surprising occurrence, the Providence Bruins defeated the Boston Bruins by a final score of 7-5 in the annual "Black & Gold" Scrimmage. Max Sauve had three points while Anton Khudobin got the start in goal for the visiting P-Bruins.
As for Tuukka Rask's first start in goal this season, he looked a little shaky. There really is no need to read too much into that. Remember, the NFL Pro Bowl is a glorified scrimmage where no defense is played. Odd comparison, but not completely far-fetched.
Regardless, one can look at it two different ways: Khudobin blew a three-goal lead or Rask allowed six goals to an AHL team. Unfortunately, those are facts. Is there a reason to be concerned? No, not yet at least.
The Bruins had all five goals come from five different players (Chris Bourque, Brad Marchand, David Krejci, Dennis Seidenberg, Rich Peverley). Bourque looked pretty good on that third line with Peverley and Chris Kelly. He might just be a placeholder until Jordan Caron returns from injury, but Bourque will most likely earn a roster spot.
Dougie Hamilton was paired with Seidenberg as the second defensive pair. He played solid at times, but there were instances where he could have been more aggressive in front of the net.
Also, Adam McQuaid, months removed from blood clot surgery, dropped the gloves with Bobby Robins. Even though this was an in-squad scrimmage and the fight was probably uncalled for, the P-Bruins came into this game with something to prove. They were not going to be intimidated. It is hard not to respect that.
The next time a puck will drop at the TD Garden, it will be for real. The Bruins open up the regular season Saturday night against the New York Rangers.
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