BSJ Game Report: Bruins 3, Hurricanes 2 (OT) - Bruins rally back against Carolina; set NHL record for consecutive home wins to start season

Everything you need to know from the Bruins’ 3-2 overtime win over the Hurricanes, with BSJ insight and analysis:

BOX SCORE

HEADLINES

Bruins set new NHL record with 12th straight win at TD Garden: Most Bruins fans might have been settling for leftover turkey sandwiches on Friday afternoon, but Boston continued its home cooking out on the ice at TD Garden.

Trailing 2-0 to a Hurricanes squad that ended their season back in May, the Bruins did not fold against a desperate Carolina squad - with David Krejci forcing overtime with a pair of tallies in regulation before David Pastrnak ended things with a one-time bomb at 3:19 in the extra frame. 

With the win, the Bruins have now won 12 straight games at TD Garden to open the 2022-23 season — a new NHL record for most consecutive home victories to open a year.

"We talked about it after the second, going into the third,” Jim Montgomery said of the record. “There's been a lot of great teams in this league and you're able to set a precedent and break a record? It's pretty special. And it doesn't happen if those guys don't believe in themselves like they do.”

Yes, the Hurricanes might be in the midst of an 0-1-4 lull and are still missing key cogs like Max Pacioretty and Frederik Andersen.

But Carolina is still a well-coached, deep squad that is built to protect multi-goal leads — especially against a team they dominated last season in Boston.

After a disappointing regulation loss against Florida on Wednesday, this was quite the response in front of a raucous Garden crowd. No tryptophan to report from this crowd.

Ullmark exits with injury: Unfortunately, the Bruins’ comeback and record-setting victory was marred by the roster once again getting bit by the injury bug — as Linus Ullmark exited the game in the third period due to an upper-body injury.

It was a freak play for all involved, with Ullmark (who turned aside 28 of 30 shots) getting banged up after Connor Clifton fell on top of him in the midst of a netfront scramble.

Craig Smith also exited the game due to an upper-body injury, with the forward not returning for the start of the third period.  

“(Ullmark) and Smitty are both upper body,” Montgomery said. ''We think both will be day-to-day, but they got to get it looked at. … I think (Ullmark) has a little concern because it's something he hasn't dealt with before. But he has the range of motion already. So we're pretty confident he's okay."

Jeremy Swayman stood tall in relief (six saves on six shots) and helped keep Boston in this one, but losing Ullmark (an early Vezina contender) for any stretch of time would be a major hit for a Bruins team in the midst of their toughest gauntlet of the year — with matchups against the Lightning, Avalanche and Golden Knights up next during this homestand. 

“He’ll be ok. He’s a big Swedish Viking,” Swayman said of Ullmark.

THREE UP 

David Krejci and the Czeching Line: After a sluggish first 39 minutes of action, the Bruins finally received a spark from their all-Czech line — with Krejci scoring a pair of tallies to keep Boston in the fight. Stick tap to Pavel Zacha for doing most of the dirty work by forcing a turnover along the boards on Boston’s first tally of the evening. 

After a slow start in his return from an upper-body injury, Krejci has now posted eight points (including six goals) over his five games. 

Goaltending: Whether it be Ullmark standing tall before his injury and turning aside a number of Canes’ shots (30 shots in total) or Swayman stepping in cold and keeping momentum on Boston’s side in the third, the B’s goalie corps did its job in this one against a dynamic Carolina club. 

Also, Ullmark deserves some praise just for this completely chaotic play. 

Charlie McAvoy: McAvoy was a horse in this one, finishing with 28:13 of ice time — including 5:23 of power-play reps and 4:59 of work on the penalty kill. And even though McAvoy didn’t record a point in this one, Montgomery credited his top blueliner for changing the course of the game with a huge open-ice hit on Jesperi Kotkaniemi midway through the second period. 

THREE DOWN 

Penalty kill: Who would have thought that Derek Forbort would be the injured skater that the B’s would miss the most during his absence? Whether it be simple clears or some more structural integrity down low, the B’s need to shore things up on their shorthanded unit — with a 30th-ranked Carolina power play scoring twice against Boston in this one.

Tomas Nosek: Boston’s collective PK grouping has left a lot to be desired over the last few weeks, but Nosek will get singled out in this one for a lazy clear that led to Stefan Noesen’s opening tally just seconds later. 

Brad Marchand: Yes, he did set up Pastrnak’s game winner – but this was a bit of a rough game for Marchand, who was knocked for a few giveaways and generally fought the puck a good deal in this one.

PLAY OF THE GAME

LOOSE PUCKS

LOOKING AHEAD

The Bruins will continue their four-game homestand on Tuesday when they host the Lightning at TD Garden. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.