Two hours before the puck dropped at PNC Arena on Sunday (March 26), Boston Bruins coach Jim Montgomery informed the media that his team was going to be shorthanded on the backend of a back-to-back. Boston was missing Patrice Bergeron (illness), Brad Marchand, and Hampus Lindholm (nagging injuries) and missing two-thirds of your top line is less than ideal when you facing a Carolina Hurricanes team that has gotten the better of the Black and Gold in recent seasons.
No Bergeron, no Marchand, no Lindholm, no problem for the Bruins in 2022-23. Despite playing on a back-to-back, they went out and grinded their way tied 3-3 through 60 minutes, and went back and forth with Carolina in a scoreless overtime before getting both goals in the shootout for a 4-3 win. Here are three takeaways from the 57th win of the season for Boston, which ties a franchise record set in 1970-71.
David Pastrnak Scores 50th on Weird Goal
The countdown to David Pastrnak scoring his 50th goal of the season has been on for some time. He reached the feat in the first period against the Hurricanes and he scored in what could be considered a weird way for Pastrnak, considering how he usually scores his goals.
Pastrnak snuck behind the Carolina defense and took a pass from Charlie McAvoy to break in alone on Frederik Andersen and scored between the pads when the puck appeared to slide off of his stick. It was not the way that Pastrnak generally finishes a breakaway, but he’ll take it. In the second period, he scored on the power play when he one-timed a pass from Pavel Zacha through Andersen. All game long, the Bruins’ leading scorer had a shoot-first mentality, something that was good to see as he has been passing up shots in different situations recently.
Bruins Hodgepodge Top-Six Played Well
Without Marchand and Bergeron, Montgomery moved around the other parts of his top six that were in the lineup. Despite not playing together at all, the two trios played very well together and generated most of the Bruins’ offensive chances.
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Tyler Bertuzzi, David Krejci, and Pastrnak made up the first line and were on the ice for the first two goals, both scored by Pastrnak. Krejci and Pastrnak have been together this season on the second line, but Bertuzzi made the move a seamless one. They combined for 11 shots on the net, with Pastrnak landing seven and Bertuzzi three. They finished the game with a 48.70 xGF% which is not great, but they looked like they have been together multiple times this season.
With Krejci and Pastrnak sliding up to the top line, Zacha slid into the middle on the second line with Jake DeBrusk and Oskar Steen, an emergency call-up from the Providence Bruins in the American Hockey League (AHL), and they finished the game with an 82.75 xGF%. DeBrusk and Zacha finished with five shots on the net, and Steen two. If Steen had any puck luck, he would have scored. He had multiple opportunities with his best coming in the second period when he cut out in front of the net alone only to be robbed by Andersen with a nice glove save.
Swayman Stands Tall in Net
Without Lindholm and Boston’s second game in 24 hours, Jeremy Swayman was sure to see a lot of rubber and that’s what happened. He finished with 34 saves in 65 minutes and helped his team survive a third-period onslaught from Carolina with 10 saves, many at point-blank range. He did, however, save his best for last.
At the end of the overtime, the Hurricanes had two chances to avoid the shootout and to collect a valuable second point for them in the Metropolitan Division standings, but Swayman made his two best saves of the night. Brent Burns made his way into the Bruins’ zone, cut to the front of the net and Swayman stopped him with a pad save. The puck found its way to Jordan Staal who fired a wrist shot ticketed for the corner of the net, only to have the former University of Maine goalie grab it with one-tenth of a second left.
In the shootout, Swayman stopped both opportunities for the Hurricanes. He stopped Burns, who tried to beat him five-hole, and Teuvo Teravainen with a pad save. This was another win where the Bruins didn’t play their best third period, but thanks to Swayman, they were able to survive the push from Carolina to get the extra point.
Quick Bruins’ Takeaways
- Jakub Lauko, who left in the third period after he went into the boards with Carolina’s Jalen Chatfield and fell awkwardly, scored in the second period to give the Bruins a 3-1 lead when he ripped a wrist shot from the right circle past Andersen. It was his fourth goal of the season and he continues to impress with each game he plays.
- Charlie Coyle and DeBrusk scored in the shootout to back Swayman’s two saves. Coyle beat Andersen between the pads, before DeBrusk went top-shelf to clinch the victory. Both attempts were no-nonsense attempts as they came right down the middle and wasted no time in making their move and scoring.
Without three of their top players, the Bruins stuck together, weathered the storm from the Hurricanes and left with an impressive road win. They return home for two games before hitting the road again, but time and time again this season, they continue to not make excuses about who is or who isn’t in the lineup and they go out of North Carolina with two points against a team that has owned them in that building.