BSJ Game Report: Bruins 4, Predators 3 (OT) - Hall’s OT winner ends slugfest; lifts B’s to 5th straight win

Everything you need to know from the Bruins’ 4-3 overtime win over the Predators, complete with BSJ insight and analysis:

BOX SCORE

SHORT SHIFT

In a game that featured 91 total hits and a distinct playoff-like atmosphere, it was the Bruins that landed the knockout punch — with Taylor Hall burying a puck 1:41 into overtime to lift the B’s to a 4-3 win over the Predators on Saturday afternoon at TD Garden.

Craig Smith, Mike Reilly and Brad Marchand also scored for the Bruins — who have now won five straight games and eight of their last nine matchups since the holiday break.

Linus Ullmark stopped 26 of 29 shots in the win for the Bruins, who improve to 22-11-2.

An early start didn’t seem to faze the Bruins, who put the Preds on their heels early and often thanks to crisp puck movement and efficient breakouts. 

Boston’s top line struck just 3:20 into the contest, with a sweet touch pass from Patrice Bergeron setting up Smith for a snipe from the right circle.

A little over four minutes later, the other half of the B’s top-six unit cashed in, with Erik Haula hitting Reilly in stride after the defenseman slipped past Nashville's blueliners. 

Driving to the net, Reilly waited out Juuse Saros before finally besting the Preds netminder with a slick backhand shot to double the B’s lead. 

After Colton Sissons got the visitors on the board near the closing minutes of the first, the Preds built on that momentum in the second — landing eight of the first nine shots on goal of the frame and tying the game up at 7:32 off of a hard shot from Luke Kunin from the high slot.

Marchand handed the lead back to Boston at 3:50 in the third off of a power-play snipe, but the Preds forced overtime with Roman Josi’s equalizer at 6:26 in the same frame. 

Just a few moments after Jake DeBrusk nearly ended the contest with a shot that clanged off the posts, the B’s broke through in OT — with Hall knocking one home at Saros’s doorstep to lift Boston to a hard-earned win.

FOUR UP

Bergeron Line: Ho hum, just another strong showing from the Bergeron line — headlined by Marchand’s fifth consecutive multi-point game (and a couple of crushing checks).

Yes, both Bergeron and Marchand are the primary engines that drive this line, but Smith has also been effective in his new role — with the veteran winger now up to three goals and six points in nine games since the calendar flipped to 2022. 

Mike Reilly: A lack of assertiveness — especially in the O-zone — has plagued Reilly at times this season, but the blueliner was engaged from the drop of the puck in this one. Aside from his slick backhand tally, Reilly was regularly pushing the puck up and attacking when the opportunity arose. Good to see from a guy that needs to get back to playing to his strengths. 

Urho Vaakanainen: Much like Jakub Zboril earlier this season, Vaakanainen is putting together some really promising returns since getting drawn into the lineup. The 23-year-old defenseman has now logged 20+ minutes of ice time in three straight games (including 1:55 of shorthanded TOI tonight), and is starting to show some much-needed confidence in all areas of his game. 

After taking a penalty late in the third, quite the response from the youngster to get back out there and help set up the OT winner with a smooth play through the neutral zone. Encouraging stuff. 

Charlie McAvoy: It’s been tough sledding for a couple of games for McAvoy (who’s clearly dealing with some lingering ailment). But even with a D-zone lapse here or there in the early going, McAvoy was once again a horse on Saturday — logging 27:44 of ice time and delivering six hits. 

THREE DOWN

Derek Forbort: Good to see Forbort back in the lineup, but the stay-at-home regular had some lapses at times in the D-zone, especially on the sequence in which Sissons was able to snap a shot off from the slot on his first-period goal. 

Linus Ullmark: A shaky showing from Ullmark, who — even with a few screens and bad breaks — should have corralled/closed off at least one of the three pucks that sailed past him and into twine. 

David Pastrnak: Pastrnak helped set up the OT winner, but he still gets dinged in this one for coughing up the puck that led to Josi’s equalizer in the third.

LOOSE PUCKS

A preview of playoff hockey?

The Bruins might be stringing together a number of strong performances since the start of the new year, but it’s one thing to accrue points in the dog days of the winter and another to roll with the punches during the grueling gauntlet that is the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Saturday’s foe in the Predators offered a pretty solid measuring stick for the Bruins in terms of how they stack up against physical foes — with Nashville cultivating a reputation around the league as a punishing opponent. 

The verdict? Not too bad.

Even without bruisers Trent Frederic and Nick Foligno in the lineup, the Bruins took quite a few shots and stayed engaged — punching back as the game progressed with physical retorts from guys like McAvoy and Marchand.

While the Bruins might still need to add some heft ahead of the deadline, the most encouraging aspect of today’s win has to be the Bruins' ability to win in a slugfest like this — especially against a team that’s seemingly built for playoff hockey.

PLAY OF THE GAME

What’s better - the patience from Reilly or the finish?

Sheesh. 

QUOTE OF NOTE

"It hurts to win." - Bruce Cassidy

PARTING THOUGHTS

LOOKING AHEAD

The Bruins will continue their seven-game homestand at TD Garden on Tuesday night with a matchup against the Carolina Hurricanes. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. The Bruins will retire Willie O’Ree’s No. 22 jersey ahead of the game.