Bruins Wrap: Patrice Bergeron Scores Four Goals As B's Crush 'Canes 7-1

It didn’t take long for the Boston Bruins to take control of Saturday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes at TD Garden.

The Bruins scored five goals in the first 15 minutes, led by Patrice Bergeron’s two goals and one assist. Bergeron added two more goals in the second period, making him the first Bruins player to score four times in a single game since 1999.

Boston cruised to a 7-1 win as a result.

Bruins backup goalie Anton Khudobin was solid as well. He made 27 saves on 28 shots for his ninth victory of the season.

The B’s improve to 23-10-6 with the win, while the Hurricanes drop to 19-14-8.

Here’s how it all went down.

FIRST STRIKE
The Bruins took an early 1-0 lead thanks to the remarkable penalty killing of Bergeron. With the ‘Canes on the power play, the veteran center scored a shorthanded goal on a wrist shot from inside the faceoff circle.

DOUBLE UP
Riley Nash doubled Boston’s lead to 2-0 with his fifth goal of the season. David Backes and Kevan Miller assisted on the goal.

The tally resulted in Carolina coach Bill Peters pulling Ward from the net and inserting Scott Darling. Ward gave up two goals on two shots in 5:43 of ice time. He should’ve saved both attempts.

Riley Nash snipes one and Cam Ward’s night in Boston is over, 2-0 #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/XExY4hj2X4

— Marina Molnar (@mkmolnar) January 7, 2018

DROUGHT OVER
The Hurricanes got on the board with a power-play goal by Jordan Staal to make it 2-1 Bruins, but it took just 115 seconds for the Original Six club to get back its two-goal advantage.

B’s winger David Pastrnak ended his 10-game goalless drought with a power-play tally. Bergeron made the pass, giving him a goal and an assist in the first period. Danton Heinen also picked up a helper on Pastrnak’s goal.

Bergeron feeds Pastrnak on the PP, 3-1 #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/OH5AIPRNpN

— Marina Molnar (@mkmolnar) January 7, 2018

POURING IT ON
The Bruins ended a dominant first period with a 5-1 edge after goals from Ryan Spooner and Bergeron. Bergeron’s second goal of the frame gave him three points in the first 14:43. His second goal also was the 700th point of his NHL career.

Here’s a cool stat that explains Boston’s scoring prowess in the first period.

#Bruins score 5 goals in the first period for first time since January 2, 1994 (vs Washington)

— Sportsnet Stats (@SNstats) January 7, 2018

HAT TRICK AND MORE
Bergeron wasn’t done scoring. He added two more goals in the second period, completing his second career hat trick and making him Boston’s first four-goal scorer since Dave Andreychuk on Oct. 28, 1999.

The teams went scoreless in the third period. The B’s outshot the Hurricanes 30-28 and earned a 36-22 advantage in the faceoff circle.

UP NEXT
The Bruins take on the defending Stanley Cup champion Penguins in Pittsburgh on Sunday. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.