What Happened
The Boston Bruins opened their regular season with a 3-0 victory over the New York Rangers on Tuesday night. After a scoreless deadlock through most of regulation, Fraser Minten broke through on the left side with just over four minutes remaining to beat goaltender Igor Shesterkin. JJ Peterka and Mark Kastelic added two more goals just 23 seconds apart, completing a three-goal outburst over a 75-second span. Goaltender Jeremy Swayman stopped all 24 shots he faced to record his 19th career shutout. Igor Shesterkin finished with 20 saves for the Rangers, who outshot Boston 24-23 in the contest.
Key Details
- Fraser Minten scored the game-opening goal with assists from Elias Lindholm and Hampus Lindholm.
- Mark Kastelic scored an empty-net goal assisted by Minten and Marat Khusnutdinov.
- Jeremy Swayman secured his 19th career NHL shutout.
- The victory extended Boston's winning streak in home openers to 11 games.
- David Pastrnak debuted as the 28th captain in franchise history.
What It Means
The victory gives Boston a positive start to the campaign following a first-round playoff exit against Buffalo in Marco Sturm's inaugural season as head coach. The team also addressed a leadership void by naming David Pastrnak captain after playing last season without a player wearing the patch. For Minten, the strong performance comes on the heels of signing a new seven-year contract.