Bruins Notes: Game Of Milestones Propels Boston Past Devils

A slew of milestones sparked the Boston Bruins in a season-high eruption of seven goals Tuesday night against the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center.

Led by David Pastrnak, who recorded a goal and two assists to reach 100 points for the third consecutive season, the Bruins routed the Devils 7-2.

“For me, obviously, I’m an offensive player, that’s what I’m supposed to do, so obviously very honored, it’s not easy in this league,” Pastrnak told Adam Pellerin on NESN’s postgame coverage. “At the same time, I feel like that’s my job, and obviously, I wish it was under better circumstances.”

Pastrnak’s 41st tally in the first period opened the scoring for Boston, and the Bruins never looked back in snapping New Jersey’s three-game winning streak.

Michael Callahan potted his first NHL goal with just 36 seconds remaining in the first period to give Boston a 2-0 lead heading into intermission.

“It’s just a dream. The past couple of months have been so awesome for me to get a shot at the big club,” Callahan told reporters in New Jersey. “I just try to keep coming in every day and work as hard as I can to help the team in any way. The win toghit and contribute to the win, too: it feels good.”

Jacob Lauko added to the Black and Gold’s lead early in the second by scoring his first goal since rejoining the Bruins at the trade deadline. Fabian Lysell recorded his first NHL point with a primary assist on Casey Mittelstadt’s 15th goal of the season and Fraser Minten lit the lamp for the first time donning the Spoked-B.

“It was nice. I think, especially in the third period, you could sit back and take a deep breath of air when the guys were playing. A bit more confidence, a little bit more loser,” Bruins head coach Joe Sacco said after the game. “When I say looser, I mean, they were making good decisions. They were playing the right way. And you get rewarded in this game when you play hard and you play the right way and you do things.”

Another milestone was Morgan Geekie reaching the 30-goal mark for the first time in his career. It was fitting that Geekie would light the lamp on a beautiful pass from Pastrnak in the third period.

“I like to go backdoor early, and he knows we’ve been playing together for a while,” Pastrnak said of his pass. “Righty-to-righty, I know that if I’m not on the left side for a one-timer, he’s there. A lot of that has to do with chemistry. It’s better for me than just throwing it at the net. So, I look for his one-timer, and the chemistry is a big part of it.”

Here are more notes from Tuesday night’s Bruins-Devils game:

— With the regulation win, the Bruins prevented the Devils, who needed just one point, from clinching a playoff berth.

— Pastrnak figured in on the Bruins’ first two goals of the game, extending his streak to 13 consecutive. He also extended his point streak to seven games with seven goals and nine assists for 16 points in that span.

— Jeremy Swayman made 20 saves on 22 shots, including four while shorthanded, for his 22nd win of the season.

— The Bruins will look to build on the win when they host the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night. Puck drop from TD Garden is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET, with coverage beginning on NESN at 6.