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Bruins Win; NHL Round-Up

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Bruins 4, Blue Jackets 0

Justin Brazeau scored 2:29 into the first period, and Boston never looked back in blanking visiting Columbus Blue Jackets in the latter game of the teams’ home-and-home series.

Morgan Geekie had one goal and one assist, while David Pastrnak and Cole Koepke also lit the lamp for Boston, which bounced back from a 6-2 loss in Columbus on Friday and improved to 5-1-1 in its last seven games. Jeremy Swayman stopped all 18 shots he faced en route to his second shutout this season.

Bruins forward Fabian Lysell made his NHL debut. The 21-year-old former first-round draft pick had a plus-1 rating in 11:32 of ice time. Daniil Tarasov (24 saves) took the loss in his first start since Dec. 5 for the Blue Jackets, who were shut out for only the second time this season and had a four-game point streak (3-0-1) snapped.

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Canadiens 4, Panthers 0

Jakub Dobes made 34 saves in his NHL debut, leading the visiting Montreal Canadiens to a 4-0 win against the Florida Panthers on Saturday afternoon in Sunrise, Fla.

The 23-year-old Czech, who was selected by the Canadiens in the fifth round of 2020 NHL Draft, is the first Montreal goalie with a shutout in his first NHL game since Yann Danis in a 2-0 victory against Atlanta Thrashers in October 2005.

Kirby Dach scored two goals, Jake Evans and Cole Caufield also scored and Alex Newhook had two assists for the Canadiens, who have won four of five.

Spencer Knight made 20 saves for Florida. The Panthers were shut out in back-to-back games for the second time this month.

Kraken 5, Canucks 4 (OT)

Vince Dunn scored twice, including the winner on a breakaway at 2:15 of overtime, as Seattle rallied from three goals down to beat host Vancouver.

Jaden Schwartz also tallied twice for the Kraken, who trailed 4-1 with five minutes remaining in regulation. Matty Beniers also scored, and goaltender Philipp Grubauer made 18 saves as Seattle snapped a five-game losing streak.

Brock Boeser scored twice, Jake DeBrusk had a goal and assist, Conor Garland also tallied, and J.T. Miller and Carson Soucy had two assists apiece for the Canucks. Thatcher Demko made 24 saves.

Capitals 5, Maple Leafs 2

Alex Ovechkin scored into an empty net in his return from a broken fibula and visiting Washington defeated Toronto.

It was Ovechkin’s 869th goal, leaving him just 26 shy of surpassing Wayne Gretzky’s NHL record of 894. The Russian superstar missed 16 games with the injury. Andrew Mangiapane and Jakob Chychrun each added a goal and an assist for the Capitals, who have won three of four. Nic Dowd and Tom Wilson also scored and Logan Thompson made 35 saves.

John Tavares and Bobby McMann scored for the Maple Leafs, who have lost three of four. Matt Murray stopped 27 shots.

Kings 4, Oilers 3 (OT)

Quinton Byfield scored twice, including the overtime winner, and had an assist in a win for Los Angeles against visiting Edmonton.

Warren Foegele had a goal and two assists, Jordan Spence had two assists, and Darcy Kuemper made 24 saves for the Kings, who improved to 11-2-1 at home.

Kasperi Kapanen, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Viktor Arvidsson scored for the Oilers, who lost for just the fourth time in their past 16 games (12-3-1). Stuart Skinner made 25 saves.

Lightning 6, Rangers 2

Brayden Point scored one goal in a three-point night and host Tampa Bay scored four times on special teams en route to pounding reeling New York.

Nikita Kucherov had a power-play goal and two assists, and Anthony Cirelli and Ryan McDonagh recorded short-handed tallies. Nick Paul notched the final tally, and Cirelli added an assist.

Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy made a season-high 42 saves as the Lightning improved to 8-2-0 in December. New York’s Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck hit the net, but the Rangers lost for the 14th time in their past 18 matches (4-14-0).

Flyers 3, Ducks 1

Samuel Ersson put his recent struggles aside and made 32 saves to propel Philadelphia past host Anaheim.

Noah Cates, Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee scored for Philadelphia, which improved to 1-1-0 to start its six-game road trip. Ersson had allowed at least three goals in each of his previous eight appearances.

Troy Terry scored the lone goal for Anaheim, which has lost eight of its last 11 games. Lukas Dostal made 22 saves.

Jets 4, Senators 2

Gabriel Vilardi and Nikolaj Ehlers scored third-period goals in rapid succession after Winnipeg erased a two-goal deficit and went on to a home victory over Ottawa.

Ehlers finished with a goal and two assists, while teammates Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor each had a goal and an assist. Connor Hellebuyck made 33 saves for the Jets, who have won three in a row.

Mads Sogaard turned back 19 shots and Tim Stutzle and Ridly Greig found the back of the net, with the latter’s goal a short-handed tally for a 2-0 Ottawa lead.

Islanders 6, Penguins 3

Casey Cizikas posted his first two-goal game in more than three years, leading New York to a win over Pittsburgh in the opener of a back-to-back, home-and-home which started in Elmont, Long Island.

Anders Lee also scored twice for the Islanders, who won for the fifth time in 11 games this month (5-5-1). Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Anthony Duclair also scored, and goalie Ilya Sorokin made 22 saves.

Michael Bunting, Noel Acciari and Richard Rakell scored for the Penguins, who fell to 9-4-1 since late November. Goalie Tristan Jarry recorded 28 saves.

Hurricanes 5, Devils 2

Carolina scored twice in less than 90 seconds in the third period to break a tie and defeated New Jersey in Raleigh, N.C.

Jack Roslovic had two goals and an assist, Sebastian Aho a goal and an assist and Dmitri Orlov and Jackson Blake also scored for Carolina. Seth Jarvis had three assists, Sean Walker added two and Dustin Tokarski stopped 21 shots as the Hurricanes avenged a 4-2 loss to the Devils on Friday night in Newark, N.J.

Paul Cotter and Ondrej Palat scored for New Jersey, which had its three-game winning streak halted. Jake Allen made 36 saves.

Flames 3, Sharks 1

Jonathan Huberdau scored twice to lead visiting Calgary to a victory over struggling San Jose.

Goaltender Dustin Wolf made 21 saves in the win, including a handful late in regulation when the hosts made a frantic push for the equalizer. Mikael Backlund also scored and Nazem Kadri collected three assists for Calgary.

Macklin Celebrini replied for the Sharks, who are winless in seven games (0-6-1). Goalie Yaroslav Askarov stopped 30 shots in an outstanding performance.

–Field Level Media

Bruins Bow to Blue Jackets

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COLUMBUS – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Columbus Blue Jackets will look to stay hot and complete a three-game season-series sweep when they visit Boston to contest the second half of a home-and-home pair against the Bruins on Saturday.

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The Blue Jackets earned a 6-2 home-ice victory over the Bruins on Friday, giving them back-to-back wins and a four-game point streak (3-0-1). They have dominated the Bruins by an 11-3 combined score over the first two meetings.

“I think we were excited to get back to play after the break,” Columbus forward Sean Monahan said, referring to the team’s three-day Christmas hiatus. “Guys were moving the puck well, and we were finding the back of the net. We’ve got to keep that up and be consistent with that.”

That consistency starts with putting together another strong effort in the rematch after four Blue Jackets had multiple points and a four-goal second period marked the difference on Friday.

With a one-goal, two-assist performance, Kirill Marchenko upped his point streak to seven games (four goals, nine assists). The 24-year-old has been strong on a line with Dmitri Voronkov and Monahan, who both scored twice.

“They’re the line that drives our team,” defenseman Zach Werenski said after dishing out four assists.

The Blue Jackets already have tasted success in Boston with a 5-1 win back on Nov. 18. The next morning, Bruins coach Jim Montgomery was fired and replaced with interim coach Joe Sacco, who has gone 11-5-1 behind the bench.

Columbus is just 4-11-3 on the road as compared to 11-4-3 at home.

“We have to be better on the road if we’re going to get to where we want to go,” Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason said. “(Friday’s) game has to roll into (Saturday).”

Boston is on a five-game home winning streak.

The Bruins’ best run of play this season — a five-game point streak (4-0-1) following blowout losses in Winnipeg and Seattle earlier this month — was snapped with the Friday loss.

On the plus side for Boston, Charlie Coyle scored for the third straight game and captain Brad Marchand recorded an assist to move his point streak to 11 games (seven goals, seven assists).

Despite success on the whole under Sacco, the Bruins are again showing their up-and-down tendencies.

The loss immediately followed a complete effort in 4-1 win over the Washington Capitals on Monday, when Boston allowed only 11 shots on goal.

“I thought Columbus … deserved what they got (on Friday). They were the better team,” Sacco said. “So, the three-day break didn’t have as much toll on them as it did on us. We just have to be better, all of us.”

The Bruins have struggled mightily on the penalty kill of late, going just 14-for-24 (58.3 percent) across the past nine games. Boston killed off 71.4 percent of opponents’ power plays this season before the current slump.

Prior to a 3-for-3 night on Friday, the Blue Jackets’ power play had not scored more than once in a game all season.

Boston’s second-period downfall was also the result of losing battles.

“You can’t win many games when you’re being outworked like that,” Coyle said. “That’s embarrassing.”

Finding a quick response back on home ice will be key for the Bruins.

“We didn’t play up to our standards (on Friday). I certainly didn’t play up to mine,” Boston defenseman Charlie McAvoy said. “The best part of this league is you get to turn a new leaf every single day. So, we’re going to leave this one here and we get a chance to get it right (Saturday).”

Prior to this season, the Bruins had lost just once in their previous nine head-to-head meetings with the Blue Jackets.

–Field Level Media

Bruins Top Flyers in 2OT

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s Pavel Zacha scored his second overtime game-winning goal in three games to propel the Boston Bruins past the visiting Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 on Saturday afternoon. The game was the first of a day-night, hockey-basketball doubleheader at TD Garden.

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After Boston goaltender Jeremy Swayman (23 saves) stopped a Joel Farabee breakaway to extend the extra session, David Pastrnak curled around the net and fed Zacha for the back-door finish to decide the game at the 2:49 mark.

Trent Frederic posted his second multi-goal effort of the season before Brad Marchand’s tying goal for Boston, which has won four straight.

Matvei Michkov gave Philadelphia a 2-0 lead in the first period, becoming the first NHL rookie to reach the double-digit goal plateau this season.

Cam York also scored, Travis Sanheim had two assists and Aleksei Kolosov made 27 stops for Philadelphia, which has lost back-to-back games (0-1-1) following a 4-0-1 run.

Marchand found the tying goal with 5:22 left in regulation, going five-hole on Kolosov after corralling a Justin Brazeau pass down the wall to even the score at 3-3.

The game reached overtime despite Boston earning three power plays in the third period — all after Frederic scored for a second time at the 5:18 mark, netting the deflection of a Charlie Coyle shot in the slot.

The Bruins had a 31-26 advantage in shots.

Michkov buried two of Philadelphia’s first six shots, opening the scoring with a power-play goal at 7:24 of the first. After Emil Andrae had his straight-on try blocked, Sean Couturier directed a loose puck to Michkov for a drive from the right circle.

The Flyers took a 2-0 lead when Sanheim fired a perfect cross-ice pass off the wall and right to Michkov, who charged down the wing and right to the top of the crease to bury the puck into an open side of Swayman’s net.

After Kolosov made a sliding pad save on Morgan Geekie, Boston continued to put pressure on during the power play and got within 2-1 on Frederic’s rebound tally at 5:26 of the middle frame. Mason Lohrei triggered the point shot that led to the goal.

York reestablished Philadelphia’s two-goal lead with 4:31 left in the second, taking Sanheim’s low-to-high feed and beating Swayman with a wrist shot from the top of the right dot.

–Field Level Media

Bruins, Marchand Defeat Blackhawks

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CHICAGO – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s Brad Marchand scored two second-period goals 2:05 apart, Morgan Geekie also scored twice and Jeremy Swayman made 20 saves to lift the visiting Bruins to a 4-2 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday.

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Boston won for the sixth time in eight games until interim coach Joe Sacco, recovering from an early deficit to stretch its season-best winning streak to three.

Marchand sparked the Bruins with his second multi-goal effort of the season (Nov. 27), while Geekie had his first multi-goal game of the campaign.

Justin Brazeau, Mason Lohrei, Jordan Oesterle and David Pastrnak contributed two assists each.

Marchand’s first goal of the night came at 2:58 of the second period. Left unmarked as he darted from the slot to the right circle, he converted a backdoor feed from Pastrnak.

Marchand struck again soon after for what stood up as the game-winner, picking up a rebound of a Pastrnak shot and backhanding a second-chance opportunity past Blackhawks goaltender Petr Mrazek.

Chicago took a 1-0 lead just 1:23 into the game, as Alex Vlasic tallied his first goal of the season on a wrist shot from the right circle off a pass from Nick Foligno.

Sustaining momentum wasn’t to be, however, a familiar refrain as the Blackhawks lost their fourth straight to match a season-worst skid.

Boston got the equalizer at 12:17 of the first period. Geekie followed his own shot from the slot and stuffed it home when Mrazek was unable to control the rebound.

The Blackhawks drew to within 3-2 late in the second period as Jason Dickinson wristed a shot from the left circle past Swayman. Connor Murphy notched his second assist of the night on the play.

A Chicago flurry that produced two shots on goal, a blocked shot and a missed shot over a 19-second span early in the third period nearly tied the game. Boston restored the two-goal advantage at 5:02 of the third on a Geekie breakaway off a long pass from Brazeau.

Chicago was whistled for too many men with 1:55 to play after putting an extra attacker on the ice too quickly.

Mrazek stopped 23 shots for Chicago.

–Field Level Media

Bruins Surging Since Coaching Change

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Boston Bruins, winners of three of four games under interim head coach Joe Sacco, will look to keep the run going when they host the Pittsburgh Penguins today.

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A struggling offense had been a common theme between the end of the Jim Montgomery era last week and Sacco’s start behind the bench, as the Bruins endured a stretch of six consecutive games without scoring more than two goals prior to a 6-3 road win over the New York Islanders on Wednesday.

Could the latest game be a sign of things to come? Captain Brad Marchand hopes that, at least, his team’s three-goal third period to break a 3-3 tie will be.

“I just love the way that we played in the third,” Marchand said. “It’s always about a 60-minute effort. You can start well and tail off throughout the game, but we did a good job continuing our pace and executing.”

Marchand scored twice in the first 6:31 of the game, and Pavel Zacha led the Bruins’ finishing kick with two goals in less than a three-minute span after assisting on a previous Morgan Geekie tally.

David Pastrnak and Elias Lindholm each dished out three assists, helping Boston match its season-high goal total. The only other time the Bruins notched six goals was on Oct. 10 against the Montreal Canadiens — the team’s home opener and second overall game of the season.

“It’s good for the confidence of the group (to have nine players record points),” Sacco said. “I think it helps everybody. When you’re chipping in, you feel a little bit better about yourself, but being able to help the team is the most important thing.”

Despite being Boston’s leading scorer with 22 points, Pastrnak had not previously recorded a three-point game through the first 23 games. He had 14 such efforts last season, including a pair of hat tricks.

On the flip side, Pittsburgh had endured longer-lasting struggles.

A stretch of eight losses in 10 games (2-5-3) preceded the Penguins producing a four-goal first period on Wednesday en route to a 5-4 win over the Vancouver Canucks, who had posted a 2-0 shutout a night earlier in Boston.

“We should feel good about it because we really worked hard,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “I thought we played on our toes. When you’re going through a skid like we’ve gone through, as you guys can imagine, it’s human nature (that) we’re scarred, and it’s because they care.”

Similar to the Bruins’ win over the Islanders, the effort against Vancouver allowed many Penguins to enter the holiday with a good feeling about their game. It was a night when they needed to kill off just a single penalty after allowing three power-play goals to the Utah Hockey Club in a 6-1 loss on Saturday.

Bryan Rust led the way for Pittsburgh on Wednesday. He scored twice and registered an assist in his 25th career multi-goal game, but only his second multi-point game of the season.

Defenseman Erik Karlsson logged three assists and captain Sidney Crosby had two.

“We play a game for a living,” Rust said. “I think sometimes everybody forgets that. It’s supposed to be fun. Yes, it’s our job. Yes, it’s hard. We obviously take it very seriously. But it’s a game. We’re supposed to have fun. That breeds confidence, and everybody is on their toes when that happens.”

The Penguins snapped the NHL’s longest active road winning streak at eight with their Wednesday victory over Vancouver. Now they will now look to stunt a Bruins team that has not scored a third-period goal in Boston since its home opener.

–Field Level Media

NHL: Canucks Blank Listless Bruins

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BOSTON – (Staff and wire Service Report) – Vancouver’s Kevin Lankinen recorded a 33-save shutout and made former Bruins’ forward Jake DeBrusk’s second-period goal stand up as their Canucks edged past the host Boston Bruins 2-0 on Tuesday.

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Lankinen made 13 saves in the middle frame and another 11 in the third en route to his second shutout of the season. The 29-year-old goaltender was supported by a defense which blocked 26 shots.

DeBrusk’s game-winning goal against his former team marked his third tally in two games for Vancouver, which has now banked consecutive wins and won each of its last eight on the road.

Conor Garland added an empty-net tally with 12.5 seconds left to finish with a goal and an assist.

Jeremy Swayman stopped 13 of the 14 shots he faced for Boston, which was unable to stretch its win streak to three games for the first time this season and lost for the first time under interim coach Joe Sacco.

The Bruins had a 32-15 edge in shots on goal, but finished 0-for-3 on the power play compared to the Canucks’ 1-for-2.

DeBrusk gave the Canucks a 1-0 lead on a power-play goal at 5:53 of the second. Quinn Hughes had his shot from the high slot deflected off Conor Garland in front and right to DeBrusk at the right crease, where he corralled it and slid home the rebound on the backhand.

Lankinen held strong during the final frame, diving back to cover up a loose puck as Marc McLaughlin set up Trent Frederic for a redirect on the doorstep with 14:09 left remaining. He later stopped Zacha point-blank during the first of two Boston man advantages in the period.

David Pastrnak recorded the first shot on goal for either team at the 7:00 mark of a scoreless first, helping the Bruins open a 9-3 advantage in that department by the intermission.

Lankinen was tested coming out of the first break as well, including making a stop on Pastrnak’s semi-breakaway that Zacha set up with a stretch pass only 1:08 into the second.

–Field Level Media

Bruins Blank Kraken

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s goalkeeper Jeremy Swayman made 23 saves and two first-period goals were all his Bruins needed as they pitched their second shutout in as many days, defeating the visiting Seattle Kraken 2-0 on Sunday.

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Justin Brazeau and Charlie Coyle tallied in the first half of the opening period for Boston, which has won back-to-back games and three of five since a three-game losing streak.

Swayman made 13 of his saves in the final frame, seeing by far his heaviest workload against a late Seattle push. After Boston had a combined 30-10 advantage in shots on goal over the first two periods, the visitors responded with a 13-3 finish.

Making a Massachusetts homecoming, Seattle netminder Joey Daccord stopped 31 shots.

The Kraken have lost three straight and were shut out for the second night in a row.

Boston had a dominant territorial advantage in the first, building its 2-0 lead while holding the visitors without a shot over the first 15:30 and finishing the period with a 15-3 advantage in that department. Three power plays boosted the Bruins’ total.

Brazeau needed only 3:23 to net the opening goal, deflecting Nikita Zadorov’s shot from the left point while stationed amidst traffic right in front of Daccord’s net.

The 26-year-old Brazeau has been one of Boston’s hottest players of late, scoring four goals in his last six games.

A highlight-reel power-play goal by Coyle increased the Bruins’ lead to 2-0 at the 9:57 mark. After accepting Brad Marchand’s pass from the right end of the goal line to the left, Coyle deked Daccord by moving to his backhand and quickly to his forehand to tuck the puck inside the post.

At 10:56, Pavel Zacha had a potential third Boston goal taken off the board due to an offsides call following a successful Seattle challenge.

Neither side found a goal in the second, with both teams’ best chances coming during a last-minute Boston power play. After Swayman denied Yanni Gourde on a short-handed 2-on-1, the Bruins rushed up ice but were unable to pot a loose puck past Daccord as time expired.

Seattle’s strong finish included both Chandler Stephenson and Oliver Bjorkstrand hitting posts in the final nine minutes.

Swayman also made multiple point-blank stops in succession just after two minutes following the first pipe. Another came on a Brandon Montour drive in the final minute of regulation.

–Field Level Media

Bruins Caught in Hurricane

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RALEIGH – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Andrei Svechnikov and Jack Roslovic each scored two goals and the Carolina Hurricanes had a huge first period in thumping the visiting Boston Bruins 8-2 on Thursday night in Carolina.

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Martin Necas finished with one goal and three assists, while Dmitry Orlov, Sean Walker and Jesperi Kotkaniemi also scored. The Hurricanes doubled their previous highest goal total of the season in the opener of a four-game homestand.

Carolina scored its final three goals of a four-goal opening period during a 52-second span. That marked the second-fastest three-goal bust in franchise history.

Pyotr Kochetkov made 13 saves for Carolina.

Brad Marchand and Hampus Lindholm scored for the Bruins, who’ve won only one of their last six games. Boston goalie Jeremy Swayman allowed six goals on 22 shots in less than half the game before he was pulled in favor of Joonas Korpisalo, who made 13 saves.

Carolina, which was coming off a 5-1-0 road trip, had seven first-period goals this season before racking up four in barely more than 18 minutes to begin Thursday’s game.

Roslovic’s fifth goal of the season came 6:28 into the game. With a Boston delayed penalty pending, the Hurricanes took advantage of sending in an extra skater and benefited from crisp puck movement.

The Bruins didn’t register a shot on goal for the game’s first 10 minutes, finally doing so while on a power play when Kotkaniemi was in the penalty box for a high-sticking double minor.

Soon, it turned into a 5-on-3 advantage for the Bruins. Marchand’s goal came at 13:11, with the puck going off Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin’s shin and past Kochetkov.

Less than 20 seconds later, the Bruins were on another 5-on-3, but they didn’t convert.

But the Hurricanes benefited from a power play of their own when Svechnikov deflected in a blast from Shayne Gostisbehere. Thirty-eight seconds later, Orlov blasted in a shot and then Necas scored just 14 seconds after that on a power play.

After Lindholm cut it to 4-2 early in the second for Boston, Svechnikov added his second power-play goal of the night at 8:51 and Roslovic tallied 41 seconds later to blow the game open.

–Field Level Media

Flyers Blank Bruins, 2-0

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Samuel Ersson made 23 saves en route to his first shutout of the season as the Philadelphia Flyers beat the host Boston Bruins 2-0 on Tuesday. Tyson Foerster netted the game-winning goal in the second period, and Joel Farabee added a last-minute empty-netter.

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The Flyers have won two of their last three games since a six-game losing streak (0-5-1).

Emil Andrae had the primary assist on Foerster’s game-opening goal. It was the 22-year-old Swedish defenseman’s first career point in his sixth NHL game, his second contest this season.

Joonas Korpisalo made 17 saves for the Bruins, who have won just one of their past four (0-3-1). That span includes a pair of shutout losses.

Prior to Tuesday, the Bruins had earned at least a point in 20 consecutive home games vs. the Flyers since March 17, 2012.

The Bruins had a 24-19 shot advantage but finished 0-for-4 on the power play. Just three of their shots came in the third period.

Foerster broke the scoreless deadlock 5:32 into the second. Andrae slipped a pass from the half-wall through traffic and right to Foerster between the circles, where a straight-on wrist shot beat Korpisalo.

The Bruins had a prime scoring opportunity before the game was six minutes old but were unable to convert on 1:37 of five-on-three time.

On the other end, Korpisalo made a big save on Garnet Hathaway, who shot off a two-on-one break with Scott Laughton out of the penalty box.

One of Ersson’s best saves of the opening period came with 5:21 left when a crisp passing sequence resulted in Elias Lindholm getting a point-blank chance at the left post.

Ersson did not see a shot on goal on either of Boston’s last two power plays, including attempts in both the second and third frames.

The opening minutes of the third saw 19-year-old Flyers star Matvei Michkov attempt a lacrosse-style goal, only to be thwarted by Korpisalo, while Ersson pounced on a loose puck that Brad Marchand threw on from behind the goal line during a short-handed sequence.

–Field Level Media

 

Bruins, Marchand Face Philly

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Bruins captain Brad Marchand has the monkey off his back.

Marchand scored his first goal of the season on Saturday — an overtime game-winner to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs — and the Bruins will try to ride that momentum into Tuesday’s homestand finale against the Philadelphia Flyers.

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“It’s one game. It’s not going to completely turn things around,” Marchand said. “But … it’s a great way to start building our foundation of understanding the way that we need to play to have success. It’s something to build on, but again, it’s one game.”

Marchand’s goal lifted Boston out of a three-game losing streak (0-2-1). Following the game, coach Jim Montgomery was quick to recognize the lift that his team’s bench got when Marchand was the player to win it.

“You could tell how happy the bench was when he scored that goal,” Montgomery said. “He’s our leader, he’s someone that embodies what it is to be a Bruin — the right way.”

Marchand and David Pastrnak each registered a goal and an assist while Justin Brazeau and Mark Kastelic also scored for Boston in the 4-3 win. Montgomery saw better overall effort from his group, including better puck management and fewer odd-man rushes.

Boston held its opponent to three power plays for only the second time this season, though it has still been short-handed more times than any other team (43).

From Montgomery’s eyes, there was improvement in that area, and he wants to see more in another area as well.

“Our puck pressure last game was the best it’s been, but it’s still not where it needs to be,” Montgomery said. “I would not come close to describing our team as relentless and that’s where we want to get. … Someone’s got to be pressuring the puck.”

The Flyers arrive in Boston at 2-6-1, looking to climb out of the Eastern Conference cellar.

A winning streak has eluded Philadelphia as it was unable to follow up a 7-5 Saturday win over the Minnesota Wild — which broke a six-game losing skid — with another victory, falling 4-3 to the Montreal Canadiens in the second half of a back-to-back.

“We’re just not working as a group,” defenseman Travis Sanheim said. “Last year, the reason we were so successful was it was five-man units, one after another, every line. We had an identity, we were working hard.”

Some of that togetherness appeared on Saturday in the Flyers’ first regulation win of the season, but it did not last into Sunday. Sanheim did score twice against Montreal, but Aleksei Kolosov (20 saves) could not manage a win in his NHL debut.

Marginal improvement aside, the Flyers have not hit the 30-shot mark in their last six games. With leading scorer Travis Konecny and much of the team’s core returning from a season ago, that result has been a bit of a surprise to coach John Tortorella.

“Some guys, I’m sure, a little frustrated and are gripping their sticks tight,” Tortorella said. “But, it does, it looks disjointed. … We’ve just got to get a little bit of, what’s the word I’m looking for? Just some smoothness in our game, just some good tempo and puck support.”

Konecny has a team-leading five goals, including one in three straight games, and 10 points this season.

However, further evidence of the team’s struggles comes on defense — in a minus-13 goal differential that is tied for second-worst in the NHL. Sean Couturier (plus-1) is the only player with a positive rating.

–Field Level Media