Brad Marchand sealed ‘s strong second period with a goal while they were short-handed, helping them secure a 6-4 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night.
Pavel Zacha contributed with a goal and an assist, while Jake DeBrusk, Kevin Shattenkirk, Danton Heinen, and Morgan Geekie also found the net as the Bruins reclaimed the top spot in the Atlantic Division. Linus Ullmark made 28 saves.
“We didn’t start with much energy,” noted Bruins coach Jim Montgomery. “Pittsburgh seemed very determined, and they played better than us. But in the second period, we managed to find our rhythm.”
Michael Bunting scored twice for the Penguins, with Drew O’Connor adding a goal and an assist, and Bryan Rust also scoring. However, this defeat marked the Penguins’ first regulation loss in 11 games (7-1-3). Alex Nedeljkovic was replaced by Tristan Jarry after conceding three goals on 16 shots midway through the second period.
Despite the loss, Penguins coach Mike Sullivan emphasized the team’s resilience, stating, “We knew this stretch would be challenging. Regardless of the outcome tonight, we have two more games to play.”
After O’Connor’s short-handed goal in the third period narrowed the gap to 4-3, Geekie scored his 17th goal of the season to restore the Bruins’ two-goal lead.
Heinen sealed the Bruins’ win with an empty-net goal late in the game.
Boston took control in the second period, with rebound goals from DeBrusk and Zacha quickly followed by Shattenkirk’s goal, which forced Nedeljkovic out of the game.
Marchand extended Boston’s lead to 4-1 with a short-handed goal, marking the Bruins’ dominance in the middle period.
