Bruins First Goal, Were They Offsides?

Last night, the Boston Bruins opened the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs by pounding the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-1. The Bruins won the special team’s war going 3-for-6 on the man advantage. The B’s also outshot the speedy Maple Leafs 40-27.

At the 5:28 mark of the first period, everyone’s favorite Bruin, forward Brad Marchand got the Bruins on the board with this beauty.

.@bmarch63 was ready to roll right from the hop. #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/DiHE0OqtcL

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) April 13, 2018

Alright, after watching the video above, were the Bruins offsides entering the zone? It’s pretty close. Nonetheless, in the end, it didn’t matter.

While it’s only one game, and no one is celebrating, the Bruins did play well. Leading the Bruins on the score sheet, David Krejci, and Marchand, both had a goal and an assist each.

Bergeron didn't look offside, but Marchand may have been. Either way, 1-0 Bruins. pic.twitter.com/p2re0hBvgL

— Flintor (@TheFlintor) April 12, 2018

Why didn’t the Leafs Challenge the play?

“Do I really want to be down 1-0 and back on the penalty kill five minutes into Game 1?” Leafs head coach Mike Babcock said.

From Rule 78.7:

If the result of the challenge is that the play was “On-side”, the goal shall count and the team that issued the challenge shall be assessed a minor penalty for delaying the game. (Link)