Bruins falter in OT

Islanders boosted by quick strike

December 13, 2009|Kevin Paul Dupont, Globe Staff

UNIONDALE, N.Y. - The Bruins didn’t do all of the right things last night, but they did most of them, which in the end was like being the guy with nearly all the Megabucks numbers - all except, you know, the winning number that is the difference between a free ticket to the next game or a life living at the edge of a seaside Caribbean hideaway.

With only 24 seconds gone in overtime, and Boston defenders Andrew Ference and Dennis Wideman caught somewhere between the neutral zone and never-never land, Frans Nielsen raced off for a breakaway and beat Tim Thomas with a backhander for a 3-2 win over the Bruins in front of 13,744 at Nassau Coliseum. Blake Comeau made the key pass out of the Islander end, his quick dish sending Nielsen burning by Ference just after Marc Savard and Michael Ryder failed to connect on a scoring attempt at the other end of the ice.

“Andy caught an edge . . . the ice was sticky all night,’’ explained Wideman. “Otherwise, he would have had [Nielsen]. Really, if not for that it would have been a 2 on 2, but . . .’’

But, for all their effort, the Bruins left with only one point instead of two, their overall work still exemplary of late (8-1-2 in their last 11 games). They played a very good road game, outshooting their hosts, 32-19, including a lopsided 17-3 edge over the final 20 minutes of regulation. However, former UMass-Lowell star Dwayne Roloson had every answer in the Islander net in the third period, all part of a night in which he turned some very good chances into routine saves.

“I thought [Roloson] was the difference tonight,’’ said Boston coach Claude Julien, who saw his club take a brief lead, 2-1, in the second period. “From our end of it, you know, it’s hard to criticize my team when it shows that kind of effort.’’

The Islanders broke on the board first, thanks in large part to the Bruins getting charged with a too-many-men-on the ice penalty with 3:31 gone in the first.

Only 27 seconds into the power play, Rob Schremp raced to the right post and poked the puck behind Thomas after a Kyle Okposo shot from the mid-slot deflected on net. With Zdeno Chara, Derek Morris, and Matt Moulson all involved in a top-of-the-crease fender-bender, Schremp darted in and nudged in his first goal as an Islander.

The Bruins were back to tie with 5:37 remaining in the first, Ryder ripping home a wrister to the top right corner after collecting a nifty backhand dish from David Krejci. The strike came less that two minutes after the Bruins killed off a Wideman roughing penalty. Ference, with only two assists all season, picked up a helper.