Bruins’ deadline additions make instant impact in Game 1

Pat Maroon is a loud player, and he only gets louder come playoff time.

Maroon notched an assist on the game's first goal and dished out six thunderclap hits, making a strong first impression for the Bruins in a decisive Game 1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs Saturday night. The veteran three-time Stanley Cup champion is nicknamed "Big Rig" for a reason, and several Leafs learned that the hard way.

But Maroon's first, and arguably most, impactful play was a simple pass from along the half boards. First, Maroon held off a pinching Joel Edmundson to gain control of the puck and slip it to a streaking Jesper Boqvist. The Leafs' Ryan Reaves made a critical mistake not to stay back and support Edmundson, allowing Boqvist to lead a 2-on-1 rush. John Beecher finished the play for his first career playoff goal and a 1-0 lead for the Bruins. But Maroon sparked the play with strong board work.

"We just played simple hockey," Maroon said after the game. "We broke out clean, we got on offense, we got pucks deep. When you do that, good things happen for us."

Maroon's game was also simple in the sense that he simply buried Leaf after Leaf in the physical department. He continued to quickly endear himself to the Garden faithful with some wrecking-ball hits, none noisier than blasting defenseman Timothy Liljegren into the B's bench.

Maroon is loud when he's on the ice, but he's also a vocal presence when he's on the bench. His leadership skills were on display Saturday night, as he played a role in the Bruins maintaining their focus amid the highs and lows.

"When there's momentum shifts in the period, you just got to calm guys down a bit, relax them a bit, because there's going to be momentum shifts throughout the period," Maroon said. "So, you got to find a way to calm guys down and try to get back on track, making some good plays, staying steady and staying composed."

Fellow trade deadline addition Andrew Peeke also made a difference for the Bruins on the back end. Peeke finished with a shot on goal and three hits, and led the team with three blocked shots. He also played heavy penalty kill minutes, including the majority of a key 3-on-4 kill to start the second period. The B's out-shot the Leafs 1-0 with Peeke on the ice during the PK.

Long way to go in the series, but Maroon and Peeke have already shown why the Bruins went and got them at the trade deadline. Their games translate well to the playoffs, and should continue to present a tough matchup for Toronto, especially Maroon.

"He has a ton of experience, which you can draw from," Brad Marchand said of Maroon. "He's very comfortable and confident talking in any situation. Obviously his physical game on the ice, and I don't think people give him the acknowledgement of his skill as well, especially down low in the offensive zone, made a great play on that first goal tonight.

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"He understands the importance of the little plays in the game that can make a difference in the outcome. He harps on that and he keeps guys accountable. It's not an easy thing to do for a guy to come in at a deadline and act like that and have that confidence in the room, but because of the experience, he does, and it makes a big difference."

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Matt Dolloff is a writer and podcaster for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Check out all of Matt's content.

The Boston Bruins throttled the Toronto Maple Leafs by a 5-1 final at TD Garden on Saturday night, taking a 1-0 lead in their first-round Stanley Cup Playoff series with the decisive win.

Jake DeBrusk scored twice for the B's in the victory, along with defenseman Brandon Carlo and rookie forward John Beecher. Trent Frederic added an empty-netter late in the third period to put the game away for good, if it wasn't already.

Goaltender Jeremy Swayman, meanwhile, stopped 34-of-35 Leafs shots (.971) in an impressive performance to kick off his playoff run.

The Bruins mostly kept Maple Leafs superstar Auston Matthews in check. Matthews finished with no points and five shots on goal, mostly matching up against Bruins center Charlie Coyle. Matthews did hit the post on a wide-open net in a golden opportunity during the second period.

Keep reading below for the top highlights from the Bruins' Game 1 win over the Leafs.

Toronto grabbed four shots on goal in the opening 90 seconds, all stopped by Swayman. Less than a minute later, it was the Bruins that struck first. Sparked by a puck battle win by Pat Maroon, Jesper Boqvist and John Beecher finished a 2-on-1 rush for Beecher's first career playoff goal in his first playoff game.

Maroon continued to instantly endear himself to Bruins fans during the first period, most notably when he buried Leafs defenseman Timothy Liljegren into the B's bench for a loud, crushing hit.

Swayman almost made a mistake he would've greatly regretted. After McAvoy fell to allow Matthews a clean lane to the net, Swayman tried to venture out and hit the puck away from danger. Instead, Matthews got it, but hit the post on the wide-open net.

Not long after a near-blunder, the Bruins doubled their lead. The play started with a strong zone entry by Coyle, then continued with tenacious forechecking by DeBrusk, who found an open Carlo at the point. Carlo one-timed the puck through Samsonov to make it 2-0 Bruins.

The Bruins grabbed a power play later in the second period, after Matthews went for high-sticking. DeBrusk made them pay with a blast from the point, similar to Carlo's, to extend the Boston lead to 3-0.

The Bruins continued to pour it on in the second period, and mainly off the stick of DeBrusk. For the Bruins' fourth goal of the night, DeBrusk whacked home a centering feed from Marchand off Samsonov and in.

Swayman could not completely shut the Leafs down. However, it would've been a tough save for him against Toronto's David Kampf, who blasted it from the slot off a slick behind-the-back feed from Connor Dewar.

The Bruins and Maple Leafs will drop the puck again for Game 2 on Monday night at TD Garden.

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Matt Dolloff is a writer and podcaster for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Check out all of Matt's content.

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