New species of wasp named after Bruins' Rask

Turns out Brad Marchand isn't the only pest on the Boston Bruins' roster.

A new species of wasp found in East Africa has been named after goaltender Tuukka Rask, Carolyn Y. Johnson of The Boston Globe reports:

Rask’s insect namesake, Thaumatodryinus tuukkaraski, was discovered in the Teita Hills of Kenya by a team of entomologists that happened to include an admiring Boston sports fan who has closely followed his home teams despite moving to Africa more than 25 years ago.

The new species bearing Rask's name is featured in a scientific journal known as the Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae.

"This species is named after the acrobatic goaltender for the Finnish national ice hockey team and the Boston Bruins, whose glove hand is as tenacious as the raptorial fore tarsus of this dryinid species," the journal reads. 

The project that led to the wasp's discovery was underwritten by the Finnish government.

"That’s funny," Rask said upon being informed of the honor. "That’s pretty neat. We’re the B’s. It’s flattering, I guess."

The Bruins netminder stung plenty of opponents last season, winning the Vezina Trophy as the league's top goaltender with a 2.04 goals-against average, a .930 save percentage and 36 wins.

He hasn't garnered as much Vezina buzz this season, but the Bruins will need him to remain consistent if they hope to bee in the postseason.