Eight games is a long time for the reigning Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy-winner to go without scoring a goal.
But that’s exactly the boat David Pastrnak was in before Friday night.
The Bruins winger scored the first goal of the game with three seconds left in the first period of Boston’s eventual 3-0 win over the New York Islanders at TD Garden.
It was a situation Pastrnak wasn’t too familiar with, but he never let the frustration get the better of him.
“I think I played pretty good the last couple games. Getting chances, obviously, the puck wouldn’t go in for me,” he said after the game. “But the last couple games the chances were there. It’s frustrating sometimes when you don’t for many games. … I just stuck with it, showed up to the rink every single morning, work your butt off and get ready for the next game, and don’t try to let the frustration get in your head too much.”
The goal itself sure was pretty thanks to a slick pass from Mike Reilly, who the Bruins acquired before Monday’s trade deadline. The defenseman has been a nice fit, and even got himself a new nickname.
Allow Pastrnak to explain:
“It was kind of funny. Obviously, we’ve got a couple new guys, a couple new nicknames, right?,” Pastrnak said. “And (Mike Reilly’s is) Reills. And Reills is kind of tough to pronounce for me. So I didn’t even finish pronouncing his nickname calling for puck, it was already on my blade. Obviously great pass by Reills, and it was a good goal for us.”
Now we’ll see if this jumpstarts a hot streak for Pastrnak.
