Sens bounced by Bruins

The Belleville Senators hit the road to Providence to begin a brief road trip against the Bruins, falling 5-2 in regulation.

It took just twenty-seven seconds for the game’s first goal, and it was the Bruins who struck first. A takeaway at the offensive blue line by Brett Harrison sent him in on a breakaway, where he scored his seventh of the season to make it 1-0.

Nearly halfway through the first frame, Belleville netted the tying goal. Arthur Kaliyev snapped his pointless streak with a one-timer, with assists from Philippe Daoust and Jorian Donovan, to even the score at 1-1.

The Bruins did not let the momentum linger, retaking the lead just fifteen seconds later. An in-tight shot from Riley Tufte slipped past Leevi Merilainen, with Matej Blumel picking up the assist to give Providence a 2-1 edge.

At the 9:33 mark of the second period, Belleville tied the game again, this time while shorthanded. Olle Lycksell broke away on his own and buried his tenth of the year on the backhand to knot the score at 2-2. Later in the period, the Bruins regained the lead.

A takeaway just before the blue line by Georgii Merkulov helped set up Blumel, who scored to put Providence back on top, 3-2. With less than a minute remaining in the period, Providence extended the lead with two quick goals.

The first was Harrison’s second of the game off a quick point shot, with Merkulov and Victor Soderstrom earning the assists to make it 4-2. The fifth goal came twenty-four seconds later when Joey Abate capitalized on a two-on-one rush to make it 5-2.

The final twenty minutes were quiet, with no goals scored in the frame. The Bruins outshot Belleville 15-10 in the third. The Senators killed off the only penalty of the period but were unable to capitalize on their power-play opportunity, as the game ended 5-2.

Tonight marked the final meeting of the season between the Senators and Bruins. Belleville finished with a 0-3-1-0 record against Providence, bringing the lifetime series to an even 5-5-2-2.