Bruins Wrap: Dominant Second Period Fuels Victory Over Devils

BOSTON — The Bruins evened their season series with the New Jersey Devils on Saturday, capturing a 5-2 victory at TD Garden. It’s the Black and Gold’s second consecutive victory coming out of the NHL’s holiday break.

The B’s improved to 21-7-6 on the season, while the Devils fell to 19-14-2.

Check out the full box score here.

ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
If you’ve ever talked hockey with your grandfather, you’ve surely heard him spew a few clichés about how the key to success is getting pucks on net and dominating the dirty areas.

It appears he’s right.

The Bruins entered their matchup with the Devils following your grandfather’s orders, doing their best to muck things up for Devils goaltender Vitek Vanecek. They did that, and though it was a struggle to get anything behind him throughout the first period, they exploded in the second.

Boston scored four in the middle frame, with David Pastrnak (x2), Jake DeBrusk and Kevin Shattenkirk all recording goals in an onslaught on New Jersey’s defense. It was the style of hockey the Bruins will need to play if they hope for continued success this season.

STARS OF THE GAME
— Pastrnak is being greedy at this point, scoring multiple goals in a game for the fifth time this season. He also recorded six shots on goal, jumpstarting Boston’s offense.

— DeBrusk’s scoring touch might be back, as he’s registered multiple points in back-to-back games for the Bruins. The 27-year-old opened the scoring for Boston, adding an assist later on.

— Shattenkirk never scores two goals in a game, so he gets his flowers here. The 34-year-old’s second-period tally was the 100th of his NHL career.

WAGER WATCH
Shattenkirk isn’t much of a goal scorer these days, but he found a way to put a couple in the back of the net on Saturday. If you saw it coming, he also could have put some money in your pocket. DraftKings Sportsbook gave him +950 odds to score, which would have netted $100 bettors a $1,050 payout.

UP NEXT ON NESN
The Bruins are back in action Sunday, as they’ll take on the Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena. Boston and Detroit will drop the puck at 5 p.m. ET, following an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.