Locked & Loaded: Bruins Defender Scores Incredible Goal

BOSTON – Former Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara once said there’s no better feeling than stepping into a one-timer and blasting it past an opposing goaltender to light the lamp.

Big Zee experienced that feeling often during his Stanley Cup-winning career and he once owned the NHL’s hardest shot at 108.8 mph. Goalies feared when the 6-foot-9, 250-pound defenseman would unleash a one-timer, especially from the high slot. Well, Bruins newcomer Nikita Zadorov felt that Chara-like euphoria during Boston’s 3-2 overtime victory against the Detroit Red Wings Tuesday at TD Garden.

Zadorov’s blast from the high slot beat Detroit goalie Ville Husso to give the Bruins a 1-0 lead at 9:15 of the first period. Brad Marchand delivered a perfect backhand pass to Zadorov, who ripped the one-timer top left corner for his second goal of the season.

“Marchy made a good play. I just had to go for the puck, close my eyes, shot it and it went in – good things,” Zadorov said after playing one of his better games for the Bruins this season.

Zadorov said he’s connected with the puck harder than he did Tuesday night. He believes he ramped it up during the playoffs last spring for the Vancouver Canucks. Either way, Boston’s overtime win was key as the team continues to win under interim coach Joe Sacco, who said he was thrilled to see Zadorov’s shot go in.

“I like it. It went in the back of the net,” Sacco said with a smile. “He was engaged in the game tonight. He was physical. He was just defending hard tonight. When he was on the ice the opposition knew he was playing. The goal was good and we’d like to see more of that. We talked about D being shot-ready, and there actually wasn’t any traffic in front of him on that one. We were trying to get there, but it was just a good enough shot where it went off the post.”

There’s already a long list of Bruins players – past and present – who possessed the ability to score on the one-timer, including David Krejci and David Pastrnak. Patrice Bergeron had a stealthy one-timer from the bumper spot. He never produced a big wind up. His shot was short and sweet, but it was still dangerous and effective. He always described it more of a sweeper than a one-timer.

The art of shooting a one-time is a skill. It’s become a science in today’s game and not necessarily the old-school mentality of close your eyes and shoot. It helps that NHL players have incredible hand-eye coordination and it helps when there’s a quality pass. The best result is a good, clean, tape-to-tape pass that allows the shooter to pick a corner and let it rip. If the pass is a bit off, the shooter still wants to get the puck on net in hopes of a rebound.

Marchand made a perfect pass to Zadorov and his shot paid dividends.

There are also different trigger points for the masters of the one-timer. Some like to shoot it off the middle of their stick blade, while others, like Pastrnak, release it off the toe. The trick’s also to shoot the puck about a foot off the ice to keep opponents’ stick out of the way from blocking or deflecting the puck. Zadorov simply stepped into his and let it fly.

For a goalie, there are two shots that are a challenge to stop – a backhander and a one-timer. Bruins’ Joonas Korpisalo is on the receiving end of plenty of those shots from his teammates during practice, so he understands first-hand what it’s like when Zadorov blasts one towards the net.

“He has a bomb,” Korpisalo said. “He has a great shot. He puts all that weight behind it and it’s hard to stop.”

On Tuesday, Zadorov unleased the fury both with his shot and his physicality. The Bruins signed him to a six-year deal worth $30 million in July and he’ll need to do a lot more for the Bruins than score an occasional goal. He also needs to use that 6-foot-6, 248-pound frame and scare opponents in that manner, too, which he was more consistent and effective during the win over the Red Wings.

The Bruins are 5-2-0 under Sacco and Zadorov feels like the team is finally hitting its stride.

“We’re playing with passion. We’re playing with pride. We’re playing for each other. We were disconnected before and that’s why it wasn’t working. I don’t think we’ve fixed much with X’s and O’s. It’s the same system, same game plan, we’re just doing it this time,” Zadorov said.

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