Canadiens vs Bruins Top Six Minutes: A hard-fought effort, but a shootout loss

For our new readers and members, the Top Six Minutes is a continuation of the discussion in the game thread. We try to keep it light and entertaining. Full recaps are up the morning after every game.

Pre-game:

• It’s a Saturday night Habs vs Bruins showdown!
• Both teams are coming off their bye week.
• This’ll be fun!
• ...as long as the Habs win. /

First period:

• And we’re off!
• Pacioretty opens the scoring three minutes in with a dirty rebound off the pad of Rask!
• Dirty. Clean. Pretty. Lame. Mind-blowing. Don’t care. I’ll take whatever ya got.
• Rask caught out wandering around his net and the Habs almost make it 2-0.
• Prediction: We’re going to see a good ol’ fashioned Tuukka Rask flip-out tonight.
• Habs are first up on the power play after Shaw draws a tripping penalty. Nada.
• Hudon with a bomb that beats Rask but not the goalpost.
• Danult heads to the sin bin for slashing.
• Turns out the Bruins are better at power plays than us. /

Second period:

• Confession: Marchand’s goal made me nauseous. But then again, they usually do.
• Jake De-Brusk takes advantage of a confusing Habs line change and makes it 2-1.
• Deslauirers ties it up two minutes later with a swift snipe. We’ve got ourselves a game folks!
• Habs head to the power play for the second time tonight. Time to take the lead.
• Galchenyuk gets to his magic spot and rises to the occasion 20 seconds in, notching his 100th career goal in the process.
• Prediction: See first period.
• Miller slams Gallagher into the boards and gets called for boarding. Dude, relax. It’s just a game.
• Danault is in the wrong place at the wrong time and gets a 123 km/hr Chara slapshot to the side of the head. That is not a typo.
• Big goof Chara skates over to say whoopsi. Poor guy looks horrified.
• After about six minutes of lying on the ice in a silent area, Danault is carried off the ice on a stretcher.
• The period is cut short at 1:37 and we head into the final period with a 3-3 tie./

Third period:

• In the words of the great Freddie Mercury, “The Show Must Go On.”
• Drouin speeds through the middle of the ice, takes a shot and hits the goalpost.
• Another goalpost, this time by Deslauirers. Beating Rask is a piece of cake, but that goalpost has some mad skills.
• Time for a little four-on-four as Krug gets called for interference and Petry follows for testing out his acting chops with a little embellishment.
• Mete with a shot and the goalpost...oh wait, Rask actually made that save.
• McAvoy heads to the box for tripping Hudon after he makes him look like a fool.
• Get all the goals you want, but your weaselness will always be there Marchand.
• Twenty-two shots fired but no tie-breakers so..../

Overtime:

• Mete all over Pastrnak to keep it even.
• Three-on-three hockey is exciting, stressful, exciting.
• Drouin and Mete with a two-on-one but can’t follow through.
• Price with the save with 49 seconds left to keep the game going.
• Close call with Habs batting the puck in the blue paint but Rask decided it was time to wake up and kept it out.
• And..../

Shootout:

• First up: Byron with a clean shot past Rask.
• DeBrusk: Goal.
• Drouin can’t make it past.
• Easy poke-check for Price on Pastrnak.
• Pacioretty couldn’t finish it.
• McAvoy with a lame shot. Pretty sure Price laughed at that one.
• Galchenyuk hits the post.
• Marchand finishes the game. Excuse me while I go vomit. /

Highlight of the night

What a pass by Jonathan Drouin, and I don't think that Alex Galchenyuk should move from that spot on the power play. #Habs lead 3-2. pic.twitter.com/mYpUMgAzDy

— Jared Book (@jaredbook) January 14, 2018

EOTP 3 Stars