BSJ Game Report: Bruins 4, Ducks 2 - David Pastrnak’s 4 goals down Ducks at TD Garden

Everything you need to know from the Bruins’ 4-2 win over the Ducks in quickie form, with BSJ insight and analysis…

Box Score 

HEADLINES

David Pastrnak leads the way: Against a Ducks team that only relinquished an average of 1.20 goals per game entering Monday afternoon, the Bruins struggled to get much going offensively from three of their four forward lines throughout the matinee contest. 

But when David Pastrnak is feeling it, the dynamic winger can hand you two points on his own. The 23-year-old forward might have been the only B’s skater to light the lamp against John Gibson and the Ducks, but quality was matched by quantity on Monday — as Pastrnak lit the lamp four times in what was a 4-2 victory for Boston. 

Pastrnak is the first Bruin to accomplish the feat since Patrice Bergeron scored four against the Hurricanes back on Jan. 6, 2018 — and is the 19th player in franchise history to hit that mark in one game. 

The full list? 



Harry Oliver, Frank Fredrickson, Cooney Weiland, Roy Conacher, Herb Cain, Buzz Boll, Bill Cowley, Woody Dumart, Pit Martin, Phil Esposito, John Bucyk, Chris Oddleifson, Wayne Cashman, Barry Pederson, Vladimir Ruzicka, Adam Oates, Dave Andreychuk, Bergeron and now, Pastrnak. 

It was far from a perfect afternoon for the B’s, who dealt with injuries and were more or less put on the ropes for extended stretches in both the second and third period against a Ducks team without much of an offensive thump. Bruce Cassidy even noted that the second period was “exceptionally poor” for his club, as Anaheim outshot Boston, 16-6, during that 20-minute stretch.

But if Pastrnak continues to score at this blistering rate, the Bruins can more than stay afloat while sorting out the other issues that are preventing this club from firing on all cylinders. 

https://twitter.com/NHL/status/1183843724511584257

Injuries resurface: The Bruins were certainly holding their breath in the opening stanza, as Charlie McAvoy dropped to the ice and eventually headed down the tunnel after absorbing a strong wrister from Rickard Rakell in the slot. Thankfully for Boston, McAvoy was spotted back out on the bench just minutes later — not even missing a shift with his regular D partner in Zdeno Chara. No harm, no foul.

However, the Bruins were not quite as fortunate in their top-six unit, as David Krejci only logged 4:43 of ice time in the win. The second-line center left the game with over five minutes remaining in the opening stanza before eventually returning for the second period. However, the veteran only took part in a pair of shifts before sitting out for the remainder of the contest. 

Postgame, Cassidy said that he did not have an update yet on Krejci, and he might not have one until Wednesday morning, given that the team is off on Tuesday. Boston does have the option to turn to Par Lindholm in the bottom-six and bump up Charlie Coyle to the second line if need be, but the long-term concerns when it comes to Krejci should linger for quite some time — given that the center hasn’t looked quite right after suffering a lower-body injury during preseason play. 

THREE UP

David Pastrnak: Boston’s top sniper thrived on Monday afternoon, tallying his sixth hat trick over the last 18 months. He’ll certainly take the extra goal as well — as the winger is now up to six goals in six games played this season. 

Jaroslav Halak: While Boston was put on its heels for most of the second period, Halak did not budge in net — turning aside nine of the 10 high-danger scoring chances that Anaheim was able to generate during that stanza. Halak finished with 30 saves on 32 shots — and is now 2-1 with a .951 save percentage on the year. 

https://twitter.com/NHLBruins/status/1183853628676870149

Steven Kampfer: Stick tap for Kampfer, who more than held his own in his first taste of game action in 2019-20. Inserted into the lineup in place of Connor Clifton, Kampfer made his mark while on a third D pairing with Matt Grzelcyk — with Boston holding a 9-7 edge in shot attempts and a 4-3 advantage in shots on goal over 10:19 of 5v5 TOI. He also was more than happy to throw his weight around, as seen below:

https://twitter.com/ConorRyan_93/status/1183795069398241280

TWO DOWN

The Second Period: Another brutal showing from the Bruins in the second period, with Anaheim’s 10 5v5 high-danger shots in that 20 minutes particularly shocking. For reference, Boston surrendered nine high-danger shots or fewer during its entire games against the Avalanche, Stars, Golden Knights and Devils. 

This tripping call against David Pastrnak: I mean, what is this? Pastrnak didn’t cause too much of a ruckus in the sin bin, but Brad Marchand made his displeasure very evident, slamming on the boards with his stick while seated on the bench and pointing up to the video board above. What a call. 

https://twitter.com/ConorRyan_93/status/1183808344844308483

PLAY OF THE GAME

https://twitter.com/ConorRyan_93/status/1183811524806270976

PARTING THOUGHT

https://twitter.com/ConorRyan_93/status/1183820971167420423

LOOKING AHEAD

The Bruins will have the next two days off, but their schedule is about to go 0 to 100 in short order — starting with a matchup against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday at TD Garden. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.