The Boston Bruins helped their playoff cause with a tough 2-0 victory over the Dallas Stars on Thursday at TD Garden.
Brad Marchand put the Bruins on the board first, and in turn set a new career high for goals in a season with 38. Torey Krug netted the second goal for Boston.
Tuukka Rask followed up his strong performance Tuesday against the Nashville Predators with a 27-save shutout against the Stars.
The Bruins now have won three consecutive games and continue to hold on to the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. They also remain well within striking distance of third place in the Atlantic Division, as they currently are just one point behind the Toronto Maple Leafs.
With the win, Boston improves to 41-30-6, while Dallas falls to 31-35-11.
Here’s how it all went down.
BRUINS GRAB LEAD
Marchand has powered the Bruins offense all season, so it came as no surprise when the All-Star winger gave the B’s an early 1-0 advantage. With just over four minutes remaining in the first period, Marchand cleaned up a scrum in front of the Stars net and notched his 38th goal of the season.
Jumps on the rebound and moves into a tie for second in League goals. @Bmarch63 keeps them comin'. #DALvsBOS https://t.co/PTnipbaf2C
— NHL (@NHL) March 31, 2017
Outside of Marchand’s tally, it was a relatively uneventful opening frame. Boston had its chances to make more of an impact on the scoreboard, but it only converted on one of its 10 shots on net and squandered a power-play opportunity.
B’S PAD LEAD
The Bruins failed to score on their first man-advantage chance of the night, but their second opportunity was a much different story. Less than two minutes into the second period, the Bruins extended their lead to 2-0 thanks to a power-play goal from Krug.
Krug took advantage of a perfect pass from David Pastrnak, which doubled Boston’s lead just 26 seconds into the power play.
.@ToreyKrug broke into the slot and tipped home a nice feed from @pastrnak96 🚨 pic.twitter.com/aNWB9EzZ1P
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) March 31, 2017
The Stars would also have a man-advantage chance in the period, but the Bruins’ stymied the opportunity thanks to a strong penalty kill.
BOSTON HOLDS ON
The Bruins defense turned in a terrific effort in the third period, preventing Dallas from putting anything together in hopes of mounting a comeback. With just under nine minutes remaining in the period, Kevan Miller’s high-sticking double minor put the Stars on the power play for four minutes. Boston’s penalty kill came up clutch yet again, keeping Dallas off the scoreboard. Rask turned away all 11 Stars shots on net in the final frame to preserve the shutout.
UP NEXT
The B’s return to TD Garden for a Saturday afternoon showdown with the Florida Panthers. Puck drop is set for 1:00 p.m. ET.
Thumbnail photo via Greg M. Cooper/USA TODAY Sports Images
