Bruins Wrap: Brad Marchand Leads Way As Boston Finally Beats Islanders

Finally, the Boston Bruins have defeated the New York Islanders.

The Bruins got their first win against their East Division rival this season Thursday night to the tune of a 4-1 victory at TD Garden.

Brad Marchand (two), Craig Smith and Taylor Hall had the goals for the Bruins, while Travis Zajac scored the the Islanders.

Hall came up and big and provided some insurance for the B’s in the third period for his first goal with his new team.

Tuukka Rask looked strong in his return stopping 22 pucks for his 300th career victory.

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With the win, the Bruins moved to 23-12-6, while the Islanders fell to 27-12-4.

Here’s how it all went down:

STRONG FIRST
The Bruins drew first blood just 1:59 after the puck dropped with a goal that no one really saw… except Marchand.

A shot from the point bounced off Marchand’s back and in and out of the net. A brief review confirmed the puck indeed crossed red line fully for the 1-0 lead.

Smith continued his hot streak when he one-timed the puck into the net to give the Bruins a 2-0 lead. It was his 16th point in 14 games.

It was the best start to a game the Bruins had in a while, as Boston held a commanding 23-7 shot advantage over the Islanders — and a 2-0 lead — after one.

ISLES GET ONE BACK
The Islanders cut the Bruins’ lead in half when Marchand turned the puck over to Mat Barzal who fed the puck to Zajac all alone in front of the net.

The Bruins continued to play strong hockey, and Rask made some key saves to keep it a one-goal game after two.

Boston continued to dominate in the shot column, 35-18.

HALL PROVIDES INSURANCE
Hall gave the Bruins some insurance as the winger put the Bruins up 3-1 on a breakaway three minutes into the third period. It was Hall’s first goal with his new team.

Of course, you can’t forget the celly.

Marchand added the empty-netter for good measure before time expired and the Bruins won 4-1.

UP NEXT
The two teams are back at it Friday night. Puck drop from TD Garden is set for 7 p.m. ET.