BOSTON — Patrice Bergeron wears many hats for the Boston Bruins: Playmaker, penalty killer, face-off ace and so on.
So, while scoring goals is part of his game, it’s far from his only responsibility. For that reason, the seven-game goal drought he was on to begin the campaign hardly was bogging him down. He knew there were many other things he could do to contribute.
Bergeron snapped that streak in a big way Thursday night, scoring four goals in a 5-1 thumping of the Detroit Red Wings at TD Garden. Three of Bergeron’s goals came on the power-play, another area that needed improvement for Boston.
“Honestly, I think it’s one of those things where I’ve been in the league long enough to know that it’s going to come back, right?” Bergeron said after the game. “So, I have the experience that I can rely on. I think it’s about making sure you don’t force plays or try to think about the end result, but really go back to the details and making sure we play the right way, put yourself in a good position and eventually it’s going to come your way.”
For the troubles Bergeron had putting the puck in the back of the net, it’s not as though his line with Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak had been lifeless. They were getting a lot of attention from other teams’ top units and creating chances, even if they weren’t always rewarded on the scoresheet.
Last week was a tough week for the Bruins in that they played against some really good teams in the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes. That saw the top line get away from their game a little bit, but suffice to say it snapped back on track, with Bergeron reaping the benefits.
“Maybe the last three games it was a little bit more to the outside, we were a little too spread out as a line,” Bergeron said. “Before that I thought we were creating a lot, maybe I wasn’t getting the goals but we were still creating some things and getting some wins as well. You’ve got to remember, that’s why I’m playing the game, you know what I mean? Sometimes, when you take a step back and take a look back at — my game is not just about scoring goals. And I think you always have to go back to what you want to do to help your team win and do those things and worry about details. The rest falls in place.”
Bergeron stayed the course and kept perspective, something we’ve become used to during his time in Boston. And as it always seems to do, things, to borrow his term, fell into place.
