Bruins Notes: David Pastrnak Still Finding Ways To Surprise Boston

BOSTON — He’s already been around for nine seasons, but David Pastrnak is still finding ways to impress (and surprise) the Bruins.

The 27-year-old put together another masterclass in Saturday’s win over the Detroit Red Wings at TD Garden. Pastrnak, as he’s become one to do, scored on a penalty shot in the third period to extend the Bruins’ lead. He then put the game away, pocketing his eighth goal of the season on an empty net.

It wasn’t totally clear at first who scored, though.

“It was Pasta that scored the empty-net goal?” Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery asked following the game. “I thought it was (Matthew) Poitras. Pasta — I bet you he doesn’t know geometry, but he probably knows it in pool halls and he definitely knows it on the ice.”

The final tally was an odd one, as Pastrnak banked the puck off the far-side boards to score the goal. It prompted similar jokes from those in the Bruins locker room.

“(Patrick) Brown asked me if I’m a good pool player and I didn’t get it,” Pastrnak said postgame. “I was like, ‘What does he mean? Is he trying to play some pool tonight?’ I told him, ‘No, I’m terrible.'”

That’s good news for the Bruins, who won’t lose their all-world goal scorer to the local billiards bars.

Here are more notes from Saturday night’s matchup between the Bruins and Red Wings:

— Pastrnak skated in his 600th game Saturday, celebrating with the aforementioned pair of goals.

His penalty-shot tally was the veteran’s second of the season, making him the first Bruins skater to score on a pair of penalty shots in one season since himself in 2019 — obviously.

— Charlie McAvoy received high praise following the game, with Montgomery saying he believes the 25-year-old has been “dominant” this season.

— Boston will soon have a decision to make on Matthew Poitras, who only has one game left before he starts the clock on his entry-level deal.

— The Bruins will host the Florida Panthers in a rematch from the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs on Monday. They’ll drop the puck from TD Garden at 7 p.m. ET, and you can watch the game, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.