The Boston Bruins will look to extend their recent success after the NHL’s three-day holiday break when they face the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday to start a home-and-home series.
Boston’s 4-1 win over the Washington Capitals on Monday gave them momentum, marking a five-game points streak (4-0-1) for the first time this season.
Although not all of the games have gone perfectly, Bruins interim head coach Joe Sacco is happy with what he’s seen from a team that holds a top-three spot in the Atlantic Division.
“It’s trending in the right direction,” Sacco said. “We have a process we go through every night, and they’re checking most of the boxes. There’s going to be games when you’re not at your best, but we’ve shown lately, too, when we’re not at our best we can find ways to win.”
The Bruins played well in their most recent game, holding Washington to just 11 shots on goaltender Jeremy Swayman and scoring three goals in the third period to secure the win.
Elias Lindholm sparked Boston’s comeback with the game-winning goal, and 36-year-old captain Brad Marchand (one goal, two assists) became the oldest Bruins player to record points in 10 consecutive games.
“We haven’t been great in the third period all year, and to play like that against a team like Washington, that’s all we have to do every night,” Marchand said.
Despite the strong performance, Boston has scored the fewest goals in the final period in the NHL this season, with only 27.
Marchand has been a key contributor, scoring seven of his team-leading 15 goals in December alone.
The Bruins will also hope for good news about David Pastrnak, who left Monday’s game with an upper-body injury in the second period and did not return.
The Blue Jackets have won only two of their last eight games (2-3-3), with both victories coming in the last three games. Their latest win was a 5-4 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Monday, with Kirill Marchenko scoring the game-winner and finishing with three points (one goal, two assists) in a career-high 23:17 of ice time.
Marchenko has been a standout player for Columbus, leading the team with 13 goals and 37 points this season. He is on a six-game points streak (three goals, seven assists) and has been developing strong chemistry with Dmitri Voronkov and Sean Monahan on the top line.
“(Marchenko) has competed his (butt) off,” said Columbus coach Dean Evason. “We were talking (about) how hard he’s competed, and that’s what we’ve asked him to do — win your battles, win your puck races, win your one-on-one confrontations, and he’s done that.”
The game also marked the NHL debut of Blue Jackets defenseman Denton Mateychuk, one of the team’s top prospects. Even though he didn’t score, the 2022 first-round pick played 18:36 of ice time and was featured on the second power-play unit.
“It’s awesome to be trusted with (a special-teams role), but now you’ve got to perform and be able to take that situation and make the most of it,” Mateychuk said. “I was trying to go out there and do my thing.”
Columbus has a strong record of 11-5-4 when scoring first this season.
In the previous meeting between the teams, three first-period goals, including one from former Bruin James van Riemsdyk, helped the Blue Jackets win 5-1 in Boston on Nov. 18.
