Bruins keep rolling with 5-1 win over Devils
In what’s a sign of a mentally focused team, the Boston Bruins are winning the games they should win.
That included Thursday’s head-to-head with the woeful New Jersey Devils, of course, a game that never appeared in much doubt for the Bruins, who left Newark with a 5-1 victory to their name.
This one featured the return of a Boston staple, too, as the Brad Marchand- Patrice Bergeron- David Pastrnak line accounted for three of the Black and Gold’s five strikes by the night’s end.
Bergeron opened things up with a nice dish from Pastrnak at the 18:34 mark of the first period, while Pastrnak finished off a set play off a faceoff win the second period to extend the Boston edge to two in the middle frame.
The top-line chemistry is still there.#NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/44kY4Pulb0
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) March 22, 2019
Bergeron would add an empty-netter in the third period to secure his second straight 30-goal season.
David Backes even got on the board for the Bruins with his sixth goal of the season.
David Backes tips in one more for good measure. 5-1 Boston. pic.twitter.com/OMvVyrUbMM
— Bruins (Guy Boston Sports) (@Bruins_GBos) March 22, 2019
And after holding the Islanders 13 shots in Tuesday’s shutout win, the Bruins once again stuck with a defense-first gameplan that saw New Jersey throw just 22 shots on Tuukka Rask. Rask would have likely secured his second straight shutout had it not been for a Jake DeBrusk d-zone turnover that allowed Drew Stafford to score Jersey’s lone goal of the contest.
The Bruins were dealt a bit of bad news, though, as Sean Kuraly took a puck off the hand and did not return. Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy didn’t have much on Kuraly’s status moving forward, but said it’s never good when a player does not return.
The Bruins are back in action Saturday night in Florida.