BOSTON — Just when you thought the Bruins were going to throw up a clunker, they captured another win after going to their never-ending bag of tricks.
The Bruins found themselves down by a goal with just 10 minutes remaining in regulation to the Maple Leafs on Thursday. Then, they scored. Then, they locked down on the defensive end to force overtime. Then, they drew an early penalty in the extra period. THEN, they ripped Toronto’s hearts out with a one-timer to secure win No. 61.
Who scored that goal, you ask? David Pastrnak, of course.
Pastrnak’s goal came after an uncharacteristically sloppy night for the 27-year-old, for which he had a solid excuse.
“Pasta was not feeling great tonight,” Montgomery said postgame. “If you noticed, we kept his shifts really short. I can’t give him enough credit for how he willed himself to help us tonight. He was not at 100%, he was battling a stomach virus and I give him full credit for helping us win this hockey game.”
Montgomery had every right to think of sitting his leading goal scorer, with the Bruins already clinching the Presidents’ Trophy. Was that ever a thought entering the game?
“No. He felt he could play, so I’m gonna play him,” Montgomery said.
The Bruins have obviously been the beneficiary of Pastrnak’s all-world ability to score goals. The game winner against Toronto pushed his season total to 57, the fifth-most in franchise history. There’s another element to his game that Montgomery has often praised throughout the season, however.
In the Boston bench boss’ eyes, “Pasta” can do it all.
“I think he has a lot of grit,” Montgomery said. “When he wants to, he can be a power forward. He’s a skill forward because most of the time we need him to be a skill forward, but there’s a lot of times where — I’ve seen him go head-to-head with some of the elite defenseman. It’s a great battle.
“I saw it with (Cale) Makar in Denver and I’ve seen it a few times against (Morgan) Rielly here with the Maple Leafs. When he wants to take over a game he can, and he can take it over with his power or you can see him take it over with his skill.”
Here are more notes from Thursday’s Bruins-Maple Leafs game:
— Charlie McAvoy left the game during the second period and would be ruled out during the following intermission. Montgomery would confirm that the exit was just a precautionary postgame.
— The Bruins’ victory brought them within one game of the NHL single-season record of 62. The current record was set in 1995-96 by the Detroit Red Wings (who finished 62-13-7), and tied in 2018-19 by the Tampa Bay Lightning (who finished 62-16-4).
— The Bruins will cap off a short two-game homestand Saturday when they take on the New Jersey Devils. Puck drop from TD Garden is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET. You can watch the game, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.
