{"id":24517,"date":"2018-02-28T11:36:00","date_gmt":"2018-02-28T16:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=24517"},"modified":"2018-02-28T11:36:00","modified_gmt":"2018-02-28T16:36:00","slug":"boston-bruins-trade-deadline-acquisitions-immediately-paying-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2018\/02\/28\/boston-bruins-trade-deadline-acquisitions-immediately-paying-off\/","title":{"rendered":"Boston Bruins Trade Deadline Acquisitions Immediately Paying Off"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Tuesday night, the Boston Bruins<\/a> trade deadline acquisitions paid immediate dividends against the Carolina Hurricanes<\/a> in a 4-3 win in overtime. Rick Nash<\/a><\/strong> and Tommy Wingels<\/a>,<\/strong> both traded to the Bruins shortly before the deadline, immediately gave the fans of Boston a reason to love them.<\/p>\n

Immediate Production from the Boston Bruins Trade Deadline Acquisitions<\/h1>\n

Rick Nash<\/a> is Born Again<\/h2>\n

Early in the first, Rick Nash was part of a potential scoring chance\u00a0but was unable to capitalize. A quick turnaround by Carolina sent the Boston defence back to their own zone, including Nash. Tuukka Rask<\/a><\/strong> stopped the Hurricanes shot, but a rebound gave them another scoring opportunity. As the skate of a crashing Hurricane knocked the puck toward the goal line, Nash hooked it away, saving a goal. It wasn\u2019t until the replay was shown on the screens inside TD Garden that most of the fans got to see Nash\u2019s effort.<\/p>\n

The importance of the save by Nash carries past one game. After seeing his chances of the postseason dwindle with the New York Rangers<\/a>, Nash has found a reason to play again. The Rangers sit in dead last in the Metropolitan Division and had openly announced that they were going to rebuild for next season.<\/p>\n

With a fresh start on a new, practically playoff-bound team, Nash can play his game. That also includes scoring goals \u2013 something he did minutes later. After a steal by Jake Debrusk<\/a><\/strong> and a pass from David Krejci<\/a><\/strong>, Nash stickhandled the puck in a rather instinctive motion that a 15-year veteran scorer has. Before goaltender Scott Darling<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>even saw the shot, Nash put the puck in the back of the net and had his hands in the air with the spotlight on him.<\/p>\n

Tommy Wingels<\/a> Wins Fans Over<\/h2>\n

In the final shift of the first period, Wingels took to the ice to make something happen. With less than 10 seconds left, he pressed the Carolina defence on a scoring chance but was stopped. However, the puck was not fully taken away from him and Wingels used one arm to slap the puck to a trailing Riley Nash<\/a><\/strong> who finished with a simple dangle to cut the Hurricanes lead to one. Then in the second period, Wingels got his first goal as a Bruin on a top left corner snipe from the right face-off circle to tie the game at 3-3.<\/p>\n

In just one game, Wingels is showing that he wants to play with the edge the Bruins wanted when the traded for him. With the Chicago Blackhawks<\/a> in the last place in the Central Division, it was unlikely that he would have a shot at the Cup, just like Nash with the Rangers.<\/p>\n

Wingels also faced a problem in seeing his career come to a plateau. With 16 goals in 2013-14 followed by 15 in 2014-15, he hadn\u2019t reached double digits in any season before or after. The grit Wingels has shown is a perfect match for a team looking to be a serious contender in the playoffs.<\/p>\n

When news broke that Boston acquired him, it was expected that he would be a reliable fourth-line centre. But with the recent news that star centre\u00a0Patrice Bergeron<\/a><\/strong> would miss the next few weeks with a fractured foot, Wingels was forced to step up \u2013 which he did against Carolina.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s Next for Boston<\/h2>\n

With a tough upcoming schedule against playoff-ready teams like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, the Bruins will need their new additions to keep playing the way they did on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Main Image Credit:<\/p>\n

\n
Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n