BUFFALO – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – David Pastrnak logged a goal and two assists while four teammates each scored their first goal of the season as the visiting Boston Bruins beat the Buffalo Sabres 5-2 on Tuesday night.
Danton Heinen, Brandon Carlo, Oskar Steen and Hampus Lindholm also scored for Boston, which extended its unbeaten streak to four games (3-0-1).
The Bruins never looked back after scoring twice in the first 4:09 and had 3-0 and 5-1 leads at the intermissions. Pavel Zacha and Charlie McAvoy each contributed two assists to Boston’s attack while Bruins goalkeeper Linus Ullmark made 32 saves, improving to 6-1-1.
Victor Olofsson scored both goals for Buffalo, which finished with a 34-32 shots advantage.
Devon Levi made 13 saves on 18 shots before Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen entered in relief late in the second period. Luukkonen stopped all 14 shots he faced.
Boston netted its second and third shots on Levi within a span of 1:08 early in the opening period. At 3:01, Heinen got the scoring started outside the crease, burying the rebound of McAvoy’s shot from above the right circle.
Pastrnak caught Zacha’s cross-ice pass for a one-time goal from the left circle, doubling the Bruins’ lead at the 4:09 marker.
It was 3-0 after the opening frame. At 15:14, after Ullmark scurried out of his net to break up an odd-man rush, Carlo finished a great passing sequence with Pastrnak and Zacha as the trailer coming down the slot at the other end.
The Boston lead ballooned to 4-0 at 4:07 of the second. Buffalo defenseman Owen Power turned a puck over right to Steen, who was left wide open in the left circle for a finish through a screen.
The Bruins continued the scoring on the power play when Pastrnak set up Lindholm’s shot from the center point at 12:23.
Olofsson got the Sabres on the board with 4:53 left in the middle frame, collecting the carom of Power’s shot off the end wall.
Olofsson spun in the slot and buried JJ Peterka’s feed with 4:48 remaining, but the Sabres could not find another goal on a late 6-on-4 with Luukkonen pulled.
Sabres forward Tage Thompson suffered separate lower-body and upper-body injuries during the game. After being initially listed as questionable to return in the first period, he took four shifts in the second period and was forced out after taking McAvoy’s shot off the hand.
Buffalo captain Kyle Okposo became the 381st skater in NHL history to reach 1,000 games played and the 12th to do so as a Sabre.
–Field Level Media