Pittsburgh Penguins center Nick Bonino has a knack for this sort of thing, regardless of what level he’s playing at.
Bonino’s game-winning goal against the San Jose Sharks in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals was the latest in a series of clutch tallies.
Bonino’s heroics date back to his days at Farmington (Connecticut) High School, where he scored the game-winning goal against Trumbull in double-overtime of the CIAC Division II championship. In college, he scored the tying goal with 17.4 seconds left in regulation in Boston University’s remarkable, late-game comeback victory over Miami (Ohio) in the 2009 national championship game.
Bonino previously scored two series-clinching overtime goals. He had one in 2014 for the Ducks against the Stars and one against the Capitals in the second round this postseason.
Bonino has 12 career postseason goals, five of which have been game-winners. The past four of those have come in the last three minutes of regulation or in overtime.
History indicates that Bonino’s goal was a pretty big one. The past four teams that won Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals went on to win the series. Teams that won Game 1 are 59-17 all time in the finals.
That this game was tight was no surprise. The past seven Stanley Cup openers have been decided by one goal, with the game-winning goal coming in the final five minutes of regulation or in overtime of the past five.
Although the recent Cup finals openers have been close, the Penguins have been owning the shots on goal this postseason. They have now outshot their opponents in 10 consecutive games. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, it’s the longest streak in a single postseason since the 2009 Penguins outshot their opponents in 12 straight. That Penguins team won the Stanley Cup.
The Penguins had a 54-31 edge in shot attempts, which includes those missed, blocked or on goal, in the first and third periods Monday.
In addition to Bonino, the Penguins got goals from rookies Bryan Rust and Conor Sheary, who scored 62 seconds apart in the first period. Rust has a Penguins rookie postseason record of six goals, one more than he has scored in 55 regular-season games.
The Penguins called Sheary up five times during the regular season before finally keeping him for good on March 12.
The Sharks are now the fourth straight team to lose in their Stanley Cup finals debut. They trail a series 1-0 for the second consecutive time.