Bruins thwart Maple Leafs again, 4-2
B’s respond to bad loss against Islanders
The issues facing the Bruins cannot be solved in a single game. But for one night at least, the sight of Maple Leaf blue made everything in the B’s world all good.
The B’s, who experienced one of their worst losses of the season on Saturday on Long Island, jumped out to three-goal lead in the second period and cruised to a 4-1 win over Toronto at Scotiabank Arena. It was the B’s sixth straight win over Toronto, including all three meetings this year.
The Leafs, who had won nine of their prior 10 games, had closed the gap between them and the previously sinking B’s to six points. With another game in Boston on Thursday, Toronto had a chance to slice it to a mere two points this week. But the B’s pushed the cushion back to eight points in the battle for home ice in a potential first-round matchup. More importantly, they demonstrated what they’re capable of when they have their checking game in order. The B’s snapped an 11-game streak of allowing three or more goals and went 4-for-4 against the Leafs’ potent power play.
“Defensively, we were getting back above pucks, we were winning goal line races to our own end and it led to a lot of transition and a lot of O-zone time,” said coach Jim Montgomery, whose team was able to shut down Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. “They were still dangerous. They’re good offensive hockey players and stars in the league like them, they’re going to get their opportunities. But I do think we were on top of them and we weren’t giving them second and third opportunities.”
Asked if he thought he did a better job of getting his message across, something he said earlier in the day was the case against the Islanders, Montgomery deferred.
“I think our leaders did the job,” said Montgomery.
Indeed they did. Key to the win was the performance of the top six, who had been struggling. David Pastrnak led the way with three assists, Pavel Zacha had a pair of goals, Jake DeBrusk had a goal and an assist and each member of the top six had at least a point. Jeremy Swayman nailed down the win with 32 saves.
“We finally put up a good 60 minutes,” said Pastrnak, who has tied a career high with 52 assists. “We did have a little hiccup, but every period we were focusing on putting a good 60 minutes and I think we did it for a good 58 and half minutes, which is a huge step forward. It’s a big win for our team.”
It was as good a response to Saturday by the B’s as you could have hoped for. Putting Saturday’s disaster on Long Island behind them in the first period on Monday, the B’s took a 2-0 lead on the Leafs in the opening 20. But the good things didn’t happen till they did one they they didn’t want to do — take a penalty.
But after Kevin Shattenkirk took a high-sticking penalty, the B’s had one of their best penalty kills since they scored a pair of shorthanded goals against Vancouver back on Feb. 8. They didn’t score on the multiple chances on the kill but they kept up the pressure when the play went back to even strength. From the left wing, Pastrnak sent a perfect pass down to Morgan
Geekie at the top of the crease and Geekie deflected home his 14th of the year over goalie Joseph Woll at 9:43.
The B’s doubled their lead at 12:42 on the power play. Jake DeBrusk sent a puck to Pastrnak behind the net and Pastrnak in turn found Pavel Zacha in the slot. Zacha, who was a question mark heading into the game after having to leave the 5-1 loss to the Islanders with a lower body injury, ripped a wrist shot over Woll’s blocker for the 2-0 lead.
“I saw Pav the whole time. I was actually screaming my lungs out to JD to give me the puck,” said Pastrnak. “JD did a heck of a job bringing it to the net with two or three guys on him….I saw Pav was wide open and with his shot heavy like that, it was a big goal.”
The B’s had a 13-10 shot advantage in the first, but the Leafs started to gain momentum late in the period and, after Brandon Carlo clipped Mitch Marner with a high stick with 38 second left in the period, Toronto’s power play looked much crisper than their first chance but Jeremy Swayman was able to take the 2-0 lead into the first intermission.
The bell that ended the first period allowed the B’s regain their equilibrium and kill the rest of the penalty. Then they took a 3-0 lead at 5:07. Bobby McMann had a clean look from the right wing that Swayman got a glove on. It rimmed around and Shattenkirk absorbed a hit to send the B’s off on a 3-on-2 that was executed flawlessly. Brad Marchand gave the puck back to Charlie Coyle on the right wing at the Toronto blue line and Coyle fed DeBrusk on the left side of the slot. The snakebitten DeBrusk sniped a wrist shot under the bar. It was DeBrusk’s 14th of the year and just his second in 16 games.
After the DeBrusk goal, the B’s started spending too much time in their own zone and paid for it with a Mason Lohrei hooking penalty. It was a hairy kill that saw Brandon Carlo sweep a puck off the goal line and then Swayman making an awkward glove save on an Auston Matthews changeup, but the B’s survived another Toronto PP.
The B’s had a great chance to put the hammer down early in the third when Marchand stole a puck behind the net and set up Coyle, who was stoned by Woll.
Then, after the B’s became content to dump it out, the Leafs finally got on a board when the Leafs reloaded in the neutral zone and John Tavares simply beat Swayman over the blocker with a wrist shot over the blocker at 3:52.
But at 10:35, the B’s got their three-goal lead back. Pastrnak picked up his own rebound, went behind the net and tried a wraparound that Woll stopped. Zacha, however, was at the other post to sneak the rebound home on the shortside.
That took the life out of both the arena and the Leafs. After the B’s face the high-flying Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday, the Leafs have one more crack to leave an impression at the B’s on Thursday before what seems like an inevitable playoff showdown.