First period quick hits

If the opening 20 minutes was any indication of how this Bruins-Stars game will be officiated, then we’ll be in for a long night. Both teams went to the box three times committing 12 penalty minutes in the opening period. The B’s and Dallas are both 0-for-3 with the man advantage so far.

Tyler Seguin by far has been the most important piece of the Stars since being traded by the Bruins and part of that is the play of Jamie Benn. Dallas certainly found a diamond in the rough in the older Benn – who was a fifth round selection in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft – and his speed is one of the reasons why. Just nine seconds in, Benn was in all alone on a breakaway, and while his shot was stopped by Tuukka Rask (10 first period saves), he drew a hooking penalty on Adam McQuaid to give his team the first power play of the night.

David Pastrnak was drafted for his crafty playmaking, but don’t overvalue his defensive game. A fine example of that was his back check late in the period to help stop a potential Dallas odd-man rush.

Jordan Caron’s hooking call negated Gregory Campbell’s goal. It wasn’t much of a hook, but it’s safe to say that Caron will be watching the game in the press box tomorrow night in Colorado as Brad Marchand makes his way back from a two-game suspension. Also, Campbell had a goal waived off last year in Dallas, which proves that no matter where he goes this year, he can’t get a break offensively.