Keenan discovers they are a work in progress

[ Game summary ]

By Nancy Marrapese-Burrell, Globe Staff, 11/12/2000

hey are a work in progress, clay to be molded, a blank slate to be filled, a canvas to be painted.

Coach Mike Keenan is aiming to put his signature on this young Boston team and when he does, it promises to be a throwback to the good old days of the Big, Bad Bruins.

His club showed some good signs and some not so good in its 2-2 tie with the Nashville Predators at the FleetCenter. Too many missed chances, too many failures to finish were on the debit side. On the credit side was the fact the Bruins came back from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits to earn the point and extend their unbeaten streak to two games (1-0-1-0).

Left wing Sergei Samsonov came to the rescue with only 13.2 seconds left in regulation.

''A confident team finishes,'' said Keenan. ''A team with fragile confidence doesn't even get a tie tonight. So, that's a step in the right direction.''

With goaltender Byron Dafoe at the bench in favor of an extra attacker and Boston already on the power play, the Bruins had a two-man advantage, which they cashed in.

Bruins defenseman Jarno Kultanen dished a pass to center Jason Allison at the right point and he fed Samsonov in the slot. With center Joe Thornton screening in front, Samsonov gunned a shot past Nashville goalie Tomas Vokoun (22 saves) to pull Boston even for good.

''What we're striving for here, in my opinion and my estimation,'' said Keenan, ''what we're looking for, as far as this hockey club, is to see the Boston Bruins of the days when Terry O'Reilly and that group played. For me, that's Bruins' hockey. That's the personality you want to see. They have to understand what the expectations are for them and make the application accordingly.''

That means playing with grit, commitment, and consistency. It also means finishing hits (which the Bruins did well) and offensive chances (which they didn't do so well).

''We certainly have to work on our finishing skills,'' said Keenan. ''If we had those sharp, we would've won the hockey game in the second period but we showed the resilience and the persistence necessary to improve as a hockey club. If you're honed in and really have it turned up in terms of concentration, you don't miss those chances.''

The most encouraging sign of the night was seeing Dafoe back in net. Dafoe was making his first start since Oct. 13 when he reinjured his left hamstring in Los Angeles. Last night was the first time Dafoe played a complete game since opening night Oct. 5.

''It was a good game for me to play because I didn't get a lot of work, especially in the first two periods,'' said Dafoe, who faced 22 shots. ''It kind of allowed me to ease myself into the game. I felt better as the game went on.''

Dafoe gave up a goal at 2:40 of the first period when center Sebastien Bordeleau blasted a shot from the right point. Dafoe made a right pad save but the rebound bounced out and glanced back in off Kultanen as he battled Nashville right wing Scott Hartnell in front of the net.

Hartnell was credited with the goal, his first of the season.

''It was kind of a shot-pass across the center of the net and I tried to kind of deflect it into the corner and it hit Jarno as he was coming in and went in the open net,'' said Dafoe.

In the second, the Bruins pulled even on a goal from an unlikely source: left wing Ken Belanger, who has received a generous boost in ice time under Keenan. It was Belanger who provided the winning goal against Ottawa Thursday night for his first point of the year.

Last night, Belanger used his cannon of a shot to make it 1-1 at the 54-second mark.

Boston had its chances to go ahead during two power plays but couldn't cash in. Keenan singled out forward Brian Rolston, who played the point on the power play but had trouble finding the net.

''That was the play that could establish the point shot for us. And it did, but we weren't on target,'' said Keenan. ''If we had been, we would've won the hockey game right there.''

Nashville went ahead, 2-1, during a man-advantage with 1:27 remaining in the period. Defenseman Kimmo Timonen beat Dafoe on a shot that the goaltender seemed to get a late start on. Timonen ripped a shot from the left point that clanged off the far post and in at 18:33.

''I was looking on the right side of [defenseman Don Sweeney],'' said Dafoe. ''As I started to go to the left, he took the shot and I didn't pick it up and he just beat me, bottom line.''

This story ran on page E01 of the Boston Globe on 11/12/2000.
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