BOSTON — The Bruins didn’t need a spark, but they got one anyway.
The Black and Gold had a four-goal lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning when Trent Frederic dropped the gloves with Emil Lilleberg at 7:37 of the second period Tuesday night at TD Garden.
Frederic certainly won the bought, going over and under with his right hand, landing more than 10 punches in the tilt.
One can only assume the tilt was a way for Lilleberg to answer for his nasty cross-check to Bruins forward Mark Kastelic in last week’s contest between the two clubs.
Kastelic and Lilleberg dropped the gloves in the final seconds of Boston’s sixth straight loss. The Tampa Bay defenseman also received a major penalty and a game misconduct for cross-checking.
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Frederic is on a Gordie Howe hat trick watch. The feisty forward tallied his seventh goal of the season on a perfect feed from Matthew Poitras to open the scoring in the first period. With his fight against Lilleberg, Frederic needs an assist to complete the feat.
It’s the second fight for Frederic in his last three games. The Bruins forward pummeled Edmonton Oilers veteran Corey Perry in Boston’s shutout loss to the defending Western Conference champions last week.
Featured image via Brian Fluharty/Imagn Images
