David Pastrnak scores game winner to end drought, but Bruins still need more

Yes, David Pastrnak scored a sweet goal, and it proved to be the game-winner to help the Bruins to a 4-3 victory over the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins Friday afternoon at TD Garden, but he needs to be better in every aspect of the game.

Prior to his goal, a breakaway tally that he should score, Pastrnak went five games without a goal and had only one assist in that span. Even coach Bruce Cassidy admitted earlier in the week that there was some concern with the forward’s lack of production.



When Pastrnak’s not producing during long stretches, which is uncommon, his game goes completely in the opposite direction. It’s no coincidence the Bruins lost four straight during his recent lull. Even though Pastrnak didn’t produce a full 60-minute effort against the Penguins, Cassidy saw improvements that prove the forward’s game is coming around.

“Yeah, he’s had a little tougher time,” Cassidy said. “David would acknowledge it. When he’s scoring goes a little bit, he plays more on the outside relying more on his shot, where maybe you have to get inside.”

On Sean Kuraly’s goal at 10:51 of the first period, Pastrnak was stationed at the top of the crease.

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“Good things happen for David when he’s around the net,” Cassidy said. “His game gets better if he’s in there. He’s never going to be a guy that lives in there. He’s never going to be (Flyers’) Wayne Simmonds, but he needs to be around the net at times. I was happy for him. He had his legs today. You could tell he came to play and it was a big goal for us.”

It was Pastrnak’s 11th goal of the season and maybe it’s a case now that they’ll start to come in bunches because the Bruins could use an offensive surge from the elite scorer.

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“It’s been slow the last couple of games offensively, but those games are going to come,” he said. “I’m not worried about it. Goals are going to come and offensive play too.”

There was a stretch earlier in the season when Cassidy criticized Pastrnak for his lack of defense and lack of focus. He took it to heart but was too focused on his defense. He needs to find a balance between the two and he admits it’s been a work in progress.

“Every year you’re going to go through these kinds of stretches, you just need to learn to stay focused on your game because when you’re on top of your game, I’m getting the goals,” he said. “When stuff's going bad for me defensively, all my focus was to play defense instead of offense. I need to get (offense and defense) going together. My strength is offense, I always need to do my job in the D-zone, but I should be able to do my offensive stuff every game.”

Since the Bruins have dealt with injuries to key offensive players this season, including Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci and David Backes, Pastrnak needed to carry the offense. It’s unlike him to go through a scoreless stretch, but when he does it’s noticeable.

Last season, he went 17 games without a goal and the Bruins went 6-8-3 during that stretch. It’s no secret the Bruins have success when he scores, which was evident on Friday against the Penguins. He just needs to produce more moving forward.