That period didn't end up the way anyone thought it would, but the Bruins did earn two points in their 5-3 win over the Senators in Ottawa on Friday.
Not only did the B's win in the second game of a back-to-back set, but they did so without Nathan Horton, Rich Peverley or Shawn Thornton.
In the third period, they lost defenseman Johnny Boychuk as well after he was leveled by Senators forward Chris Neil at the beginning of the frame. Boychuk left the game and didn't return, leaving the Bruins with five defenseman for the rest of the game.
Not long after that, Senators forward Kyle Turris was sent to the penalty box for boarding Joe Corvo, hitting him right in the head and sending him to the ice. Corvo was able to get up under his own power, but the hit will most likely be visited by NHL head disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan.
Even then, the Bruins were able to hold their composure and even took a 4-1 lead after David Krejci scored a goal on the power play, when Colin Greening was sent off the ice for goaltender interference.
However, the Bruins borderline lost control of the game, when Bruins captain Zdeno Chara decided to go after Neil for his hit on Boychuk. Though the 6'9 behemoth nearly knocked himself down in the fight, Neil was able to take that momentum back to the bench and the Senators gave Boston a run for their money in the final seven minutes of play.
With Chara in the box for fighting, Ottawa's elite played on the ice with just four defenseman--Adam McQuaid, Andrew Ference, Dennis Siedenberg and Joe Corvo blocking their way. They found the net quickly and often, giving the building energy and the Bruins some headaches.
Captain Daniel Alfredsson scored twice in 1:37, putting the Senators within one goal with 2:08 left in the game. Jason Spezza and Erik Karlsson each assisted on both of the goals.
However Bruins go-to guy Patrice Bergeron added some assurance and took the wind out of Ottawa's sails with 19 seconds left to go, scoring and empty net goal from his own blue line to give the Bruins the 5-3 win.
Carter Camper earned his first career NHL goal in the second period, scoring the third goal of the game. The other Bruins goals were scored by Brad Marchand and another by Bergeron.
Marchand now leads the team in goals with 22, while teammate Milan Lucic sits just below him with 21.
The B's now sit five points above Ottawa with three games in hand. However both teams will have plenty of fodder to use in Tuesday's game, when the Senators come to Boston.
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