Zdeno Chara and Johnny Boychuk, given the task of rubbing out Alex Ovechkin, kept the Capitals sharpshooter off the scoresheet.
Up front, the trio of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, and Tyler Seguin, currently the club’s most consistent line, was spared of shutdown duties. Washington coach Dale Hunter, owning the last change, matched sandpaper forwards Matt Hendricks, Brooks Laich, and Troy Brouwer against Bergeron’s line. As a result, coach Claude Julien would have found it difficult to roll out Bergeron’s unit against Ovechkin, Johansson, and Alexander Semin.
But Julien countered by flip-flopping David Krejci and Chris Kelly. Krejci, who had been centering Milan Lucic and Rich Peverley, had gone scoreless in consecutive losses to Pittsburgh and Carolina. By slotting Kelly into Krejci’s position, Julien had a defense-first center to help wear down Ovechkin’s line.
“We talked, as a group of forwards, about getting more involved,’’ said Lucic after Sunday’s win. “It felt like we were today. It was nice to win a game like that.’’
Tomorrow, the Bruins take on the Sabres, who are only a point out of last place in the Eastern Conference. On Saturday, they host Nashville at TD Garden. They will then depart for their longest road trip of the season. They kick off a six-game swing Feb. 15 at Montreal that concludes Feb. 25 in Ottawa.
By then, the roster will most likely feature some additions. The trade deadline is Feb. 27, but management would prefer to add the final pieces before or during the trip to ensure maximum bonding time away from home.
But although Kelly, Peverley, and Tomas Kaberle were complementary pieces last year, Thomas, Chara, and Bergeron helped lead the way. As they proved in Sunday’s win over Washington, a very Bruin-like victory, the three core stars will be crucial during the stretch run.
Caron makes impact
When the Bruins square off against Buffalo, Jordan Caron will be in the lineup for the second straight game.
