Pastrnak reaches 50-goal mark as Bruins win again NHL standings
David Pastrnak's milestone performance with the Boston Bruins came with additional responsibility.
Minus a couple of key players, Pastrnak moved to the forefront and eclipsed the 50-goal mark by scoring twice and the Bruins won their seventh game in a row by defeating the Carolina Hurricanes 4-3 in a shootout Sunday.
Forwards Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand didn't make the trip with the NHL-leading Bruins, so Pastrnak boosted his contributions.
“I've been learning from those guys,” Pastrnak said. “You recognize when they're not here that you have to take a step forward.”
Pastrnak posted the 12th 50-goal season in Bruins history.
“With Bergeron and Marchand back at home, you can see his leadership skills really come out,” Bruins coach Jim Montgomery said. “I think he put the team on his back and played the right way.”
Pastrnak's 50th goal of the season came 4:43 into the game, and he notched No. 1 51 midway through the second period.
It's the first time in his career that he has eclipsed 50 goals. Pastrnak's best season game in 2019-20, when he netted 48.
Charlie Coyle and Jake DeBrusk scored in the shootout in a matchup of Eastern Conference division leaders.
Jakub Lauko also scored for the Bruins, who earned their 57th victory and are five wins shy of matching the all-time NHL record with nine regular-season games to play. Charlie McAvoy had two assists and Jeremy Swayman made 34 saves.
“We've had a lot of character wins in a lot of different fashions,” Montgomery said.
Boston tied the franchise record for wins in a season. That's special in Montgomery's opinion.
“Especially when you think about all the great Bruins teams,” he said.
Jack Drury, Brady Skjei and Sebastian Aho scored for the Hurricanes, who won three of their previous four games.
AVALANCHE 4, COYOTES 3, SO >> Valeri Nichushkin scored a power-play goal in the third period and had the only goal in the shootout as Colorado moved into a tie for second place in the Central Division.
Nichushkin was the 14th player in the shootout and was the only one to score, poking the puck past Connor Ingram.
MAPLE LEAFS 3, PREDATORS 2>> John Tavares scored twice and added an assist, Joseph Woll made 22 saves and Toronto edged Nashville.
The Maple Leafs are seven points ahead of Tampa Bay for second place in the Atlantic Division, while the Predators remain five points behind Winnipeg for the Western Conference's second wildcard berth.
CANUCKS 4, BLACKHAWKS 2 >> Elias Pettersson scored twice as Vancouver won its third straight.
The Blackhawks celebrated Pride night, honoring the city's gay community, without the rainbowcolored Pride night warmup jerseys or colored stick tape used in previous seasons. On Thursday, the team announced they wouldn't wear them, citing an antigay Kremlin law that could imperil Russian athletes when they return home.