NHL punishes Bruins’ Zadorov, Pittsburgh’s Malkin for incident
A poke from Bruins defenseman Nikita Zadorov to the Penguins’ Evgeni Malkin has proven to be a costly one, with Zadorov fined $5,000 for the incident, according to the NHL’s Department of Player Safety.
The incident, which came with Zadorov seated on Boston’s bench, occurred during the first period of Friday’s ‘Thanksgiving Showdown’ between the Bruins and Penguins at TD Garden.
The official ruling from the NHL’s DoPS was that it was an ‘unsportsmanlike conduct’ play from Zadorov.
Malkin, meanwhile, was also hit with a $5,000 fine for his slash at the Boston bench.
Both players were penalized on the play.
Speaking after the game, Bruins interim head coach Joe Sacco noted that the penalty was “not something the Bruins needed” in that moment. Zadorov, meanwhile, seemed to indicate that there’s no love lost between himself and Malkin despite both being from Russia.
“Oh yeah, we’re old friends, sure,” Zadorov said with an almost sarcastic tone when asked if there’s history between himself and Malkin. “I’m not gonna say more than that.”
In the first year of a six-year, $30 million contract signed back in July, the 6-foot-6 Zadorov has tallied one goal and seven points, along with 25 blocks and 69 hits, in 25 games with the B’s this season.
3 Stars: No leftovers for the Bruins' offense in setback vs. Pittsburgh
Third Star: Erik Karlsson
Nov 29, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson (65) tries to hold off Boston Bruins center Morgan Geekie (39) from getting to the puck during the third period at TD Garden. (Winslow Townson-Imagn Images)
The fit between Erik Karlsson and the Penguins has always been a bit of a weird one, I gotta say. But if Friday night was the first time you’ve seen Karlsson in a Pens uniform, you’d think that Pittsburgh made one hell of a trade, with the veteran turning in a straight-up vintage performance on the way to a win.
Deployed for 20:37, Karlsson finished this contest with an assist, was on the ice for both Pittsburgh goals, and landed three shots on goal. But Karlsson’s greatest impact in this game came in his own zone, as he provided a late-game block on what was a wide-open look for Morgan Geekie. Karlsson even denied what could’ve been a second-chance look for Geekie was holding firm and being strong on Geekie’s stick.
The Penguins also dominated the puck with Karlsson on the ice, with a 20-6 edge in on-ice shots with No. 65 out there in 17:49 of five-on-five time on ice. To put that in perspective, the Penguins were outshot 19-13 in the 31 minutes and change of five-on-five play with Karlsson on the bench.
Like I said, vintage night from Karlsson.
Second Star: Jeremy Swayman
Nov 29, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman (1) makes a save against the post against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the second period at TD Garden. (Winslow Townson-Imagn Images)
For Bruins netminder Jeremy Swayman, the 2024-25 season has been a mixed bag. There were some ugly games early and often out of the gate, but following a recent (and impromptu) ‘mini training camp’ between himself and B’s goalie coach Bob Essensa, the 26-year-old Swayman feels closer to himself.
And the play is starting to show as much, even if the goal support hasn’t been there.
Peppered for 36 shots in this contest, Swayman turned aside 34, and has now stopped 66 of 70 shots over his last three starts, which is good for a .943 save percentage.
Swayman himself will quibble with the goals against — he overcommitted to deny Sidney Crosby a wraparound goal on Pittsburgh’s first goal and was probably caught hand-fighting with Drew O’Connor a little too much on the Penguins’ second and final goal of the evening — but on the list of the Bruins’ problems in the losing effort, there’s no doubt that Swayman was dead last.
Which is how it needs to be for this goal-starved team most nights, for better or worse.
First Star: Tristan Jarry
Nov 29, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry (35) is congratulated by center Philip Tomasino (53) after their 2-1 win over the Boston Bruins at TD Garden. (Winslow Townson/Imagn Images)
On a night where the Penguins’ Philip Tomasino scored his first goal since January, the Bruins also allowed Pittsburgh netminder Tristan Jarry to feel good about himself for the first time in a long-ass time. In fact, not only was Friday’s 31-of-32 performance from Jarry his first time surrendering fewer than three goals in an outing this season, but it was also the first time he’s allowed fewer than two goals in a start since Feb. 22 of last season.
And for the Penguins, what had to be the most encouraging part of Jarry’s night was the fact that he found himself beat on the second shot of the game (and not even a minute and a half into the game), but that he turned aside the next 30 shots he faced and kept the Bruins off the board for the 58:36 that followed.
There’s no doubt that the Bruins could’ve and should’ve made it harder on Jarry, but in a season that’s been (to this point) defined by his struggles and inability to make saves on anything even resembling a somewhat consistent basis, Jarry delivered and left 18,000-plus booing Bostonians downright furious with their team.
