BSJ Game Report: Bruins 6, Sabres 2 - Smith's hat trick paces B's in complete win

Everything you need to know from the Bruins’ 6-2 win over the Sabres in quickie form, with BSJ insight and analysis:

Box Score

HEADLINES

At this point in the season, the Bruins just need points — and a four-game slate against two cellar-dwellers in the Sabres and Devils granted the B's with a prime opportunity to both pull away from the Rangers and secure a playoff spot in the East and potentially leapfrog teams like the Islanders in the standings.

Well, midway through this tomato-can stretch, the Bruins are certainly making the most of this breather — as Boston completed their two-game sweep against Buffalo on Saturday afternoon with a convincing 6-2 win at the TD Garden.

Craig Smith led the way with his second career hat trick as Boston closed out its eight-game season series against the Sabres with seven wins and 14 total points. It was about as complete of an offensive performance as one could hope for, with the B's generating even-strength goals from three of their four forward lines off of tallies from Smith, Sean Kuraly, Nick Ritchie and Patrice Bergeron. And even if they didn't score, a revamped fourth line of Jake DeBrusk, Curtis Lazar and Karson Kuhlman hemmed Buffalo in their own zone on multiple occasions — with Boston holding a 9-2 edge in scoring chances when that checking unit was on the ice.

In total, the Bruins outshot the Sabres by a 43-19 margin — including an absurd 34-13 advantage in scoring chances. Jeremy Swayman stopped 17 of the 19 shots that came his way en route to his sixth career win in eight appearances up with Boston.



With the win, the Bruins are getting awfully close to shoring up a playoff spot in the East — with Boston currently moving up to third place in the East Division over the Islanders with 66 points, and another game in hand against New York.



FOUR UP

Craig Smith and Boston's second line: Yes, Krejci has been dominant and Taylor Hall has re-energized that line — but Smith has been just as crucial when it comes to turning that second line into an even-strength buzzsaw. With his three-goal salvo on Saturday, Smith stands as the first Bruin outside of the usual suspects (Bergeron, Marchand, Pastrnak and Krejci) to score a hat trick since Jimmy Hayes buried three goals waaaaaay back on Dec. 29, 2015. He wasn't on the ballot (perhaps because of his top-six promotion), but I'd have put Smith as my vote for the 7th Player Award. Once again, it was another dominant showing from that second-line trio — with Krejci adding three helpers to continue his scoring tear since the deadline.

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Third Line: While I was skeptical about just how effective a line in which Charlie Coyle was slotted to the wing and Kuraly was promoted to the third line might be — they're certainly proving me wrong over the last few games. After Coyle broke through with a much-needed goal on Thursday, this third line cashed in with another couple of tallies on Saturday — with Kuraly knocking home his first goal since Feb. 5 in the first period before Ritchie tipped home a Matt Grzelcyk blast in the opening minutes of the third period. We'll see how the pieces fall into place come the postseason, but if Boston is trying to morph that third line into a physical, puck possession unit — they've certainly got three effective options to roll with here.

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Fourth Line: Yes, they didn't get on the scoreboard, but this reshuffled fourth line was buzzing for most of the afternoon — with Kuhlman leading the B's with six shots on goal in this one. If the third line is going to serve as the puck-possession, physical line, this fourth line could cause issues for opposing bottom-six units just based on their straight-line speed. A good start, to say the least.

Brad Marchand: Yes, he only recorded one point in this one off of a secondary helper on Bergeron's goal, but Marchand still warrants a spot on this list after taking home East Division Player of the Month honors for his play in April. Marchand paced the NHL with 14 goals and 24 points in 17 outings last month — playing a key role in Boston's resurgent 11-5-1 record during April. He collected points in 11 of his 17 contests, highlighted by a trio of four-point performances: April 3 vs. PIT (3-1—4), April 6 at PHI (1-3—4) and April 18 vs. WSH (2-2—4).

ONE DOWN

Power play: We very well could have scrubbed the "down" section in our game report for this one, because it's tough to find fault with much — especially considering that the B's power play did eventually cash in off of Smith's third goal of the game. But the man advantage was knocked a bit in the opening period of action after failing to convert on two consecutive bids, while also relinquishing a shorthanded goal in the process.

PLAY OF THE GAME: The Hall-Krejci-Smith line continues to dissect defenses in the O-zone. Boston is outscoring teams by an 11-1 margin when that second line has been deployed since the deadline.

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And of course, we had to include the hatty.

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PARTING THOUGHTS

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QUOTE OF THE DAY

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LOOKING AHEAD: The Bruins will head out on the road and close out their season series with a two-game set against the Devils — starting with a matchup on Monday night down in Newark. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.