BOSTON — Shawn Thornton hadn't scored in his last 19 games.
On Tuesday, he was reunited with old running mate Brad Marchand, at least for a few shifts. The result? Thornton finally snapped his drought with his career-high ninth goal.
A coincidence? Probably, considering Marchand wasn't even on the ice when Thornton deflected in a Dennis Seidenberg point shot late in the first period for Boston's first goal in a 4-1 win over New Jersey. But a little technicality like that isn't going to prevent Marchand from taking credit for getting Thornton back on the scoresheet.
"No, but I'm going to now," Marchand said when asked if he had given Thornton any grief for needing him back on his line to start scoring again.
That won't come as a surprise to Thornton.
"I don't think he was even out there when I scored," Thornton said. "No doubt. He's taking credit for a lot of things around here lately even though he has nothing to do with them. So that doesn't surprise me in the least. I think he just likes hearing his name in the paper."
Even worse than taking credit for Thornton's rediscovering his scoring touch could be the fact that Marchand was questioning the playmaking abilities of Thornton, who has described himself as "a disher" this season for his self-professed knack for setting up his linemates for goals.
The playful jabs aside, Marchand and Thornton did enjoy their brief reunion, even if Marchand ended up spending much of the night back with Patrice Bergeron and Mark Recchi.
"I think we had one shift together, the first one," Thornton said. "We were happy to have him in warm-up, and then I think we had two shifts with him, and then his seasoning was done. He was off to the races back with Bergy, but obviously it is fun playing with him."
Marchand was equally excited about being back with Thornton and Greg Campbell for a while as he returned to the lineup after a two-game suspension.
"I knew I was starting the game with Thorny and Soup [Campbell] and we played great together," Marchand said. "I was happy to help in any way I can and contribute in any way I can. The way we play together, we just bring a lot of energy, and that's what we wanted to do. I think part-way through the second there, they switched it up. Me and Rex [Recchi] have been playing together a lot lately, so we had a bit of chemistry. It doesn’t matter who plays where as long as everyone comes hard and works hard then it's alright."
Thornton's goal was a big one for the Bruins, who had been outshot 16-2 at that point and had fallen behind 1-0 when Ilya Kovalchuk scored an early power-play goal for the Devils. Kovalchuk, New Jersey's $100-million man, now has 27 goals on the season, triple what Thornton has put up. But early in the season Kovalchuk was mired in a brutal slump while Thornton got off to a surprising start. That led to a mock scoring "race" between the two players, but Thornton had long forgotten that supposed rivalry even as he answered Kovalchuk's tally within minutes.
"That was not a thought going through my mind," Thornton said. "I didn't even know I scored. It went off my pants and in. I thought I blocked it. I was going to curse myself for getting in front of it, but I found a way. If I kept pace with him [Kovalchuk] there is something wrong with this game, but I will take it. Anytime our line can chip in with one I'm happy."
Even if Marchand wants to steal a little of the credit for it.
