{"id":153415,"date":"2025-09-13T07:50:08","date_gmt":"2025-09-13T07:50:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/153415\/"},"modified":"2025-09-13T07:50:08","modified_gmt":"2025-09-13T07:50:08","slug":"bruins-goalie-zajicek-displays-true-colors-at-prospects-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/153415\/","title":{"rendered":"Bruins goalie Zajicek displays true colors at Prospects Challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBruins\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tZajicek had several outstanding stops against the Penguins.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\n\tBruins forward Dylan Edwards impressed, and engaged in a fight, against the Penguins’ rookies at the Prospects Challenge. John Tlumacki\/Globe Staff\t<\/p>\n

BUFFALO \u2014 Simon Zajicek looked sharp Friday.<\/p>\n

The Bruins<\/a>\u2019 rookie goalie made a hockey statement \u2014 and fashion statement \u2014 in his first appearance in Black and Gold threads.<\/p>\n

Zajicek popped out of the locker room at KeyBank Rink at LECOM Harborcenter wearing gold pads with black accents before the Bruins faced the Penguins at the Prospects Challenge.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, considering I do all my shopping at Costco, I can\u2019t really say anything about style,\u201d Bruins coach Ryan Mougenel said through laughter following Zajicek\u2019s 30-save performance in a 2-1 loss. \u201cBut he looks like he\u2019s going to be a good goalie for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zajicek, who signed a free agent deal in May, didn\u2019t have the pads custom built for Boston, however. His old team, HC Litvinov in Czechia, also sported black and gold.<\/p>\n

He did get a lot of positive feedback when he pulled them out of the bag for the first time at rookie camp at Warrior Arena.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes. Good comments,\u201d Zajicek said. \u201cMy previous team has the same colors. So, good for here, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zajicek had several outstanding stops against the Penguins. The 6-foot-2-inch, 187-pounder was strong on his skates and against the iron, holding the fort against the chaos in the crease.<\/p>\n

Among his beauties was a blocker stop on Ryan Miller, a kick save on Ben Kindel breakaway after the center had split the Bruins defense, and point-blank dandies on Jordan Charron and Kale Dach.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought he was awesome,\u201d said Mougenel, who coaches AHL Providence. \u201cHe seems like he reminds me a lot of, and it\u2019s unfair, but he reminds me of a lot of the personality of Dan Vladar, who was a fantastic kid for us. They\u2019re both Czech and he seems like he loves the game. He\u2019s full of life, so that\u2019s encouraging and I look forward to working with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zajicek (pronounced ZAH-yee-chek) had other suitors but decided to take Boston\u2019s offer \u2014 an entry-level deal with a $872,500 salary cap hit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am glad I came here to Boston,\u201d said Zajicek, who said he received no specific instructions upon landing at camp. \u201cI just wanted to make sure I got here and go 100 percent, so that\u2019s it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Bruins have a vacancy in Providence, where there is nobody behind Michael DiPietro.<\/p>\n

\u201cProbably I got good speed,\u201d Zajicek said when asked for a self-scouting report. \u201cI think I can read the game, so that\u2019s probably it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zajicek allowed goals to Ville Koivunen during a delayed penalty in the first period and to Avery Hayes on a breakaway with less than 30 seconds left.<\/p>\n

Camp invitee Mavrick Lachance scored the Bruins\u2019 goal on a pretty no-look shot in the third.<\/p>\n

\u2026<\/p>\n

Dylan Edwards was one of the Bruins\u2019 most impressive players. The 5-8, 170-pounder can really buzz and also provided some buzz in a bout with 6-foot, 183-pound defenseman Quinn Beauchesne, who came calling after Edwards buried Kindel with a blindside check.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, initially [getting in a fight] wasn\u2019t on my bucket list coming in, but right away right after that hit I knew something was coming so I just prepared and was ready to go,\u201d said Edwards, who gave up size, but hung tough.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m probably one of the smallest guys on the ice, but I know that I was working hard out there and that hit came and I know I got to hold my own.\u201d<\/p>\n

Edwards said he had a couple of fights under his belt from his time with Erie in the Ontario Hockey League.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was pretty comfortable with what I was doing, but typically that\u2019s not my game, but I\u2019m willing to do whatever I got to do out there,\u201d said Edwards.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, he\u2019s trying to make some noise. I like that. There\u2019s a lot of good things that kid did. He\u2019s been great all camp and I know he played in Erie, and he played for a mentor of mine and Stan Butler, who definitely taught him the right way to play, so that was good to see,\u201d said Mougenel.<\/p>\n

\u2026<\/p>\n

Bruins president Cam Neely and general manager Don Sweeney were on hand for the game. Likewise for assistant GMs Evan Gold (who also serves as Providence\u2019s GM) and Jamie Langenbrunner \u2026 The Harborcenter Zamboni driver wore a Josh Allen Bills home-blue game jersey. Because of course he did \u2026 The Bruins will practice Saturday morning and wrap up the weekend when they take on New Jersey\u2019s rookies (the little Devils?) Sunday.<\/p>\n

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