The Boston Bruins fell behind early against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night, but they battled back and left TD Garden with two important points.
The B’s overcame a two-goal first-period deficit by scoring four unanswered goals. The Penguins got one back in the third period on a Patric Hornqvist goal to trim the deficit to one, but the Bruins held strong for the remainder of the game to secure a 4-3 win.
Boston’s first line did the damage offensively, led by Brad Marchand’s two goals and one from Patrice Bergeron.
The Bruins improved to 25-21-6 with the victory, while the Pens dropped to 30-13-5.
Here’s how it all went down.
BANGED UP PENS
Superstar center Evgeni Malkin and winger Matt Cullen, as well as No. 1 defenseman Kris Letang didn’t play for the Penguins because of injuries.
PENS DOMINATE FIRST PERIOD
Penguins defenseman Justin Schultz opened the scoring thanks to a lucky bounce. His shot (or centering pass?) deflected off Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo and into Boston’s net.
It didn’t take long for Pittsburgh to double its lead. Phil Kessel scored on the power play with a goal on a wide-open net. Sidney Crosby made the cross-ice pass to Kessel.
The Bruins outshot the Penguins (26-15 in overall attempts, 13-12 in attempts on goal) in the first 20 minutes but couldn’t bury their scoring chances — an ongoing theme of Boston’s season so far. Furthermore, eight of the Bruins’ 26 shot attempts missed the net and another five were blocked.
SHORTHANDED MASTER
Marchand scored his third shorthanded goal of the season just 1:38 into the second period to get the Bruins on the board. It was his 20th goal overall, a milestone he’s now reached in six of his eight pro seasons.
Marchand also is just three shorthanded goals away from tying Rick Middleton’s all-time Bruins record of 25.
AGAIN!
Marchand scored again at 6:27 of the second period to knot the game 2-2. He’s now scored twice in back-to-back games.
SECOND-PERIOD DOMINATION
The Bruins’ avalanche of goals continued with Riley Nash giving Boston its first lead of the game at 10:25 of the second period. He tipped a Torey Krug shot past Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury for his third goal of the campaign. It also was the Bruins’ third unanswered goal of the frame.
Here’s a breakdown of Boston’s advantages in the second period:
Shot attempts: 23-13 (13-7 a 5-on-5)
SOG: 16-4
Goals: 3-0
Pittsburgh was held without a 5-on-5 shot attempt for the last 8:30 of the frame. The highlight of the period, though, was B’s defenseman Colin Miller fighting Pens forward Scott Wilson. Watch it here.
POWER PLAY HEATING UP
The Bruins doubled their lead just 51 seconds into the third period with a power-play goal by Bergeron for a 4-2 advantage. The play was reviewed and ruled a goal.
It was Boston’s fourth power-play tally in the last five games.
UP NEXT
The Bruins have a few days off because All-Star Weekend is here. Boston’s next game is Tuesday in Tampa Bay against the Lightning. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.
Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images
