Pastrnak Passed Bergeron With Goal No. 428, but the Bruins Only Won Because Michael DiPietro Stopped 37 Shots and Geekie Scored With 12 Seconds Left
Boston rallied from 4-2 down in the final seven minutes and won 5-4 on Elias Lindholm's overtime goal. The Bruins were outshot 28-13 through two periods.
The milestone will get the headline, and it should. David Pastrnak's first-period breakaway goal Saturday at TD Garden was the 428th of his career, moving him past Patrice Bergeron into sole possession of third on the Bruins' all-time list, behind only Johnny Bucyk (545) and Phil Esposito (459), according to NHL.com.
But read the box score and this game was a rescue job. The Bruins were outshot 28-13 through two periods, Sportsnet reported. They trailed 4-2 with under eight minutes left. They won 5-4 when Elias Lindholm fended off two defenders and tucked a forehand past Arvid Soderblom at 2:32 of overtime.
Michael DiPietro made 37 saves, coming off the first shutout of his NHL career. He stopped Connor Bedard from the slot late in the first and made a point-blank save on Patrick Kane midway through the second to keep it a one-goal game, according to Sportsnet.
"That was a crazy third," DiPietro said. "That shows the character of the group, and the resiliency not only down two, but down two with less than 10 minutes left." His .929 save percentage is among the league leaders, Vegas's team site noted Monday.
How it got away, and how it came back
Chicago came in with the NHL's worst power play, 4-for-40, and 0-for-11 on the road. It took Anton Frondell 11 seconds of a Will Borgen delay-of-game penalty to score, Sportsnet reported. Frondell scored again early in the second on a redirect. Pastrnak tied it 1-1 after Pavel Zacha's backhand stretch pass sent him in alone, and Casey Mittelstadt tied it 2-2 after James Hagens stole the puck at the blue line.
Then Ryan Greene finished a 3-on-1 at 9:38 of the third and Bedard made it 4-2 at 12:20. Mason Lohrei answered at 13:06. With the goalie pulled, Morgan Geekie, scoreless in his previous nine games, buried a one-timer with 12 seconds left. "We really didn't have our game for two-and-a-half periods," Geekie said.
Charlie McAvoy and JJ Peterka had two assists apiece.
Pastrnak, named captain on Sept. 27, credited his former linemate. "He's having his (Hall of Fame) night next week," Pastrnak said. "He's the reason I've passed him because he was a big part of it and I'm blessed I got to know him and learn from him." Coach Marco Sturm said, "It's pretty amazing and he's still not done yet. That's the nice part of being 30 years old."
Kane picked up his 900th NHL assist on Frondell's first goal, the 21st player and first U.S.-born player to reach that mark, NHL.com reported. Bedard called it Chicago's "best game of the year." The Blackhawks fell to 4-9-1 and 0-5-1 on the road.
The win snapped a two-game losing streak, made it five straight home wins and put the Bruins at 10-4-1, 6-1-0 at home and first in the Atlantic Division. Pastrnak leads the team with 19 points.
My read: you cannot live on 13 shots in two periods. Boston did it because the goalie was elite and the late push was real. Against a better team, that first 40 minutes is a loss. Which is exactly the test tonight, when Vegas comes to the Garden.
