PROVIDENCE, RI -- Here are five thoughts from the first period with the Providence Bruins and Worcester Sharks tied at 1-1 apiece after the first 20 minutes at the Dunkin' Donuts Center.
1) The P-Bruins outshooting the Sharks by a 25-8 tally after just one period of play. That's a full night for plenty of AHL teams, so consider me impressed. Might be of some concern that they managed to finish off just one of those shots, but Lane MacDermid also rang a post in the first.
2) Was good to see Michael Hutchinson finally pick up his first win of the season in goal for Providence last night, but they go right back to the Swedish magic man Niklas Svedberg this afternoon. Tough period withoiut a lot of action in the one-sided affair.
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3) P-Bruins let down for a Worcester goal with just 20 seconds left in the period that was awarded to Yanni Gourde, and tied it up for the Sharks. Might be a harbinger of bad things to come given the way Providence dominated the entire period.
4) Christian Hanson with the goal for Providence in the first period. The "buzzsaw line" of Hanson, Bobby Robins and Lane MacDermid has been awesome for the P-Bruins and they continue that energetic effectiveness this afternoon.
5) Just perusing the stats: team-worst minus-9 ratings for Torey Krug and flashy forward Carter Camper. Ouch, babe. The Boston Bruins can't be loving that kind of slouching at the defensive end of the ice.
SECOND PERIOD
Providence Bruins and Worcester Sharks are tied at 2-2 after the first 40 minutes at the Dunkin' Donuts Center.
1) Providence getting offense from unexpected places like Christian Hanson and Justin Florek in the first 2 periods, but they'll need something from their offensive sparks if they're going to beat the Sharks.
2) Providence has to wonder what's going on after squeezing off 37 shots in the first two periods, but still sitting tied after two periods. That's a difficult challenge for a team in the final period when they probably feel they should be up two or three goals at this point.
3) P-Bruins need to do something about their penalty kill. It's the worst in the AHL statistically, and looks just as bad in actual theory on the ice. Kills the Bruins momentum when they can't cover for mistakes that lead to penalties and power plays.
4) Love the feisty attitude from Niklas Svedberg, who was throwing shoves with Worcester's Curt Gogol during a particularly busy exchange in front of the net. You might expect a goalie from Europe would show some timidity in a new situation, but he hasn't backed down one bit.
5) Tim Kennedy the best player on the ice for either team today. Creating chances and he roofed a puck over Niklas Svedberg's shoulder for the Sharks' game-tying goal. The red-hot Kennedy has five goals this weekend and 11 goals in 21 AHL games this year.
The Providence Bruins fell to the Worcester Sharks, 3-2, after an overtime and shootout at the Dunkin Donuts Center.
1) Horrible knee-on-knee collision between Sharks forward Freddie (brother of Dougie) Hamilton and Ryan Spooner at center ice. Luckily both skaters managed to get away from it, but can you imagine what would have happened if Dougie's brother took out Boston's best forward prospect.
2) Bruins defenseman Zach Trotman scored his first goal of the season on Saturday night in Portland, and fired six shots on net through the first two periods on Sunday.
3) Tommy Cross has looked pretty solid after getting the call up from the ECHL last week. He's got two assists and is a plus player in those three games after tearing it up for the South Carolina Sting Rays. Willing to get involved in the offensive end with his big shot, and has looked calm enough with typically tough AHL forechecks bearing down on him.
4) A minus-1 and one shot on net for Ryan Spooner and no shots on net for Jordan Caron in the first two periods. Nothing doing for that talented twosome on Sunday afternoon.
5) No fights today. First time I've watched a P-Bruins game without Bobby Robins dropping the gloves. That's saying something.
6) Bonus thought: Matt Bartkowski playing much better hockey than he was earlier in the year. Playing a ton of minutes and picking his spots to jump into the play.