BOSTON -- It took some last-second heroics, but the Boston Bruins came out on top over the Washington Capitals on Thursday night, 4-3.
It was the David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy show at TD Garden and the win even featured a couple New England Patriots in the stands.
With the big win the Bruins improve to 23-12-2, while the Capitals fall to 22-10-9.
You can check out the full box score here.
ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
The Bruins fought until the very end Thursday night. Boston was the superior on the ice all night, but it didn't always show up on the scoreboard. The Bruins outshot Washington 33-17, but will 45 seconds left in the game were staring at a tie game and potential overtime period on the way.
Even with this being said and all of the chippiness that went on throughout the night, the Bruins continued to fight and arguably put together one of their best efforts of the season against a very difficult opponent.
Especially after the shellacking they took at the hands of the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday, this was one of their most complete games of the season.
STARS OF THE GAME
-- Pastrnak's red-hot streak continued Thursday night in a huge way. The Bruins right winger netted two goals in the x to bring his season total to 18. To put it into context how hot he is at the moment, he has scored 10 of his 18 goals over the last nine games.
-- McAvoy was the last-second hero for Boston on Thursday night. The Bruins defenseman took in a feed from Jake DeBrusk with just 45 seconds remaining in the contest and wristed it past Capitals goaltender Vitek Vanecek to secure the two points for Boston.
-- Patrice Bergeron was responsible for the Bruins' other goal in the win and it couldn't have come at a more important time. He gave Boston a very short 3-2 lead before the Capitals tied it up, setting the stage for the McAvoy game-winner.
WAGER WATCH
Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom entered Thursday's tilt still looking for his first goal of the season and if you predicted he would get it, it would've paid off for you. According to DraftKings Sportsbook, Backstrom's odds of lighting the lamp were set at +350 so if you placed a $100 bet down, you would've walked away with $350 in profit.
UP NEXT ON NESN
The Bruins are off Friday, but will hop back onto the ice Saturday as they welcome the Winnipeg Jets to TD Garden for a 3 p.m. ET matinee. All coverage can be found right here on NESN with pregame action beginning at 2 p.m. ET.
