The Boston Bruins and the Vegas Golden Knights went down to the wire in the desert Wednesday, with the B’s earning their seventh straight win with a 3-2 shootout victory.
Boston extended its point streak to 12 games and moves to a perfect 4-for-4 on its current five-game road trip.
Jake DeBrusk netted his fifth goal in as many games for the Bruins, while Brad Marchand also scored. David Krejci, Karson Kuhlman, Charlie McAvoy and Danton Heinen picked up assists for the visitors. Reilly Smith and Nate Schmidt scored for Vegas.
Jaroslav Halak finished with 31 saves for the Bruins. Marc-Andre Fleury countered with 25 stops in the Vegas net.
The Bruins climbed to 36-17-8 with the win, while the Golden Knights fell to 32-25-5 with the loss.
Here’s how it all went down:
DEBRUSK STAYS HOT IN EVEN FIRST
In a physical, high-paced first period, both teams were able to get on the board, heading to the locker rooms tied 1-1 with Vegas taking a 10-6 shot advantage through the first 20 minutes.
After the Bruins were unable to capitalize on an early power play chance at the 4:58 mark, Boston kept plugging away, and it was the second line that finally put the B’s on the board.
Continuing his torrid pace, DeBrusk gave the Bruins a 1-0 lead at 11:17. Krejci fed a centering pass from the boards to DeBrusk in the slot. The young winger was able to receive the pass behind his body, spin, and fire off a shot that beat Fleury.
It seemed like Boston’s period until former Bruin Reilly Smith tied the game with 1:36 to play in the period, burying a juicy rebound that Halak had little chance to corral.
HALAK COMES UP HUGE
The score remained even through the second period, thanks to Halak’s effort in net, as the netminder made 21 saves through the first 40 minutes of play and sent the Bruins into the third tied 1-1.
The Bruins continued to struggle on the power play, going 0-for-2 in the period, the second of which Vegas outshot the visitors, with Halak coming up with a big save on a two-on-one rush.
The Golden Knights outshot the Bruins 12-8 in the second.
REGULATION NOT ENOUGH
It didn’t take long for things to spice up in the third period.
Just 1:36 into the final period, Marchand made it a 2-1 game, ripping a high-slot one-timer off a feed from Heinen. The play was started by McAvoy, who darted through the neutral zone, evading a hit before dishing a pass to Heinen at the blue line. Heinen then found Marchand in the middle for the one-timer.
The lead did not last long, however, as Schmidt diced up the Bruins’ defense just 27 seconds later to even the game at two.
The teams locked down on defense for the next 10 minutes, but play opened up in the final six of the period, with both teams ringing the post 15 seconds apart from each other. Neither team was able to pull ahead, however.
HEADING TO A SHOOTOUT
The five-minute extra period was not enough to decide a winner, as the Golden Knights could not capitalize on a golden chance.
The Bruins got called for a too many men on the ice with 2:46 left in the extra stanza when Torey Krug could not get off the ice quick enough on a change. But Halak came up massive on the kill, making four saves during the 4-on-3 stretch.
BACKES GIVES BRUINS W
Round 1: Brandon Pirri tried to go five-hole but was stoned by Halak. DeBrusk beat Fleury with a shot that rang off the post and went in.
Round 2: William Karlsson beats Halak with a snipe. Patrice Bergeron gets stopped by Fleury.
Round 3: Alex Tuch gets shut down by a patient Halak, who kept his leg extended to make the stop. Marchand was unable to beat Fleury with a backhand.
Round 4: Jonathan Marchessault gets stoned. Heinen gets stopped by a sprawling stop from Fleury.
Round 5: Shea Theodore went with a nifty fake shot, backhand effort, but Halak got a piece. Krug could not beat Fleury glove side.
Round 6: Oscar Lindberg gets stopped. David Backes wrists a shot past Fleury to give the Bruins the win.
UP NEXT
The Bruins complete their five-game road trip Saturday against the St. Louis Blues. Puck drop from Enterprise Center is scheduled for 4 p.m. ET.
This Bruins Wrap is presented by Plainridge Park Casino.
