BOSTON — The Bruins became the fastest team to reach 50 wins, and it was thanks to the efforts of their fourth line.
Boston needed 64 games to accomplish the milestone, but it certainly didn’t come easy.
The Detroit Red Wings took a 2-0 lead after the first period, and it looked as if the B’s weren’t going to recover from their Thursday loss to the Edmonton Oilers. But Patrice Bergeron calmed the team down during a TV timeout in the first period, and the Black and Gold rallied to score three unanswered goals, including a game-winner from recent addition Garnet Hathaway, to secure a 3-2 verdict at TD Garden.
“Really deserving. I thought they were our best line all (afternoon) long,” Montgomery said. “Right from the first shift of the game where I thought they got us going. They had a lot of good looks and spent a lot of time in the O-zone, despite the fact I expect them in the D-zone a lot of the times.”
“He brought us together,” Hathaway said of Bergeron. “He’s a great leader. We lean on him a lot. I think it’s a huge testament to his character. You look around this room and you see guys of high character and guys working for each other so hard.”
Hathaway said Bergeron told the team to relax and take a breath, and it paid off at the 13:54 mark in the third period with the fourth line connecting on a goal. It was Hathaway’s 10th of the season and his first in a Bruins uniform.
“Getting the goal for the line was just kind of the cherry on top for us,” Hathaway said. “The building was going crazy. There were a lot of emotions, but I think we got better as we played. That first period didn’t go as planned. We came back, and we regrouped. We said, ‘Hey, what do we have to do to get better?’ The second period, we came out and tied it, and then, how do we win this game?
“This team’s been pulling it together all year long, so even if we score, it wouldn’t have mattered if we weren’t in the position that we were.”
Here are more notes from Saturday’s Bruins-Red Wings:
— Bergeron’s power-play goal in the second period was his 130th of his career. It puts him ahead of Cam Neely for fourth in franchise history for most power-play goals behind Ray Bourque, Johnny Bucyk and Phil Esposito, who the captain trails by 20.
— The last time the Bruins faced a 2-0 deficit was back on Dec. 22 against the Jets. Winnipeg scored the first two goals of the game in the first period, the Bruins evened up in the second and won the game in the third.
— Montgomery has begun experimenting with different lines and pairings — the Bruins plan on bringing in new faces during their road trip next week. Tyler Bertuzzi moved up to the second line, and Pavel Zacha joined Charlie Coyle and Trent Frederic on the third line.
“It was good at times,” Montgomery said of the second line. “They spent a little too much time in the D-zone for my liking. That’s not Bertuzzi’s issue, just kind of more of a line and puck management issue.”
— A.J. Greer picked up an assist on Hathaway’s goal after his shot was stopped by Red Wings goalie Magnus Hellberg. It was Greer’s sixth assist of the season. He brought the physicality to the Red Wings and has become a player the Bruins can rely on.
“I was happy for A.J. and pleased with him,” Montgomery said. “He was making plays, strong plays, using his speed. Playing physical and hanging on the pucks. When A.J. Greer’s hanging on the pucks. That’s when I know he’s on top of his game, especially in the offense zone.”
“It’s amazing. I love playing for this team,” Greer said. “I love wearing the Bruins logo, especially with the results. It’s been an amazing journey so far, but we’re not really focused on anything right now besides for playing the right way for 60 minutes every night and making sure that each and every guy is pushing each other to play to do our best and stay collective with the intent of playing Bruins hockey.”
— Boston and Detroit will face off again for a rematch Sunday. Puck drop is scheduled at 1:30 p.m. ET, and you can catch the game on NESN, along with an hour of pregame coverage.
