The Bruins became the fourth team in NHL history to reach the 60-win mark with a 4-3 shootout victory at the St. Louis Blues on Sunday.
Boston joined the 2018-19 Tampa Bay Lightning (62), the 1995-96 Detroit Red Wings (62) and the 1976-77 Montreal Canadiens (60), padding their total for the most wins in franchise history.
“It is [a heck of an accomplishment],” head coach Jim Montgomery told TNT’s Darren Pang after the game. “You think about the history of this great franchise. It’s an honor to be a part of the Spoked-B, and every one of us is proud of what we’ve achieved.
The B’s jumped out to a 3-0 lead, but the Blues turned it on late to force overtime as the Bruins tried to hold on, playing the second leg of a back-to-back with travel and its 15th game in 25 days.
“We always find a way to reset and regroup,” Montgomery said. “We always talk about staying in the moment. I thought our guys did a good job of that because in the 3-on-3 [overtime], we were pretty good.”
All of it came without Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci and Charlie McAvoy.
Boston took the chance to rest the trio, particularly Bergeron (upper and lower body) and Krejci (lower body), both nursing nagging injuries ahead of the playoffs. Montgomery said Krejci “wouldn’t have been able to play today.”
Linus Ullmark stepped up when the Bruins needed him most, particularly in the shootout. Role players thrust into important positions came through. Trent Frederic put forward a strong showing in his audition as a top-nine center. Charlie Coyle did what he does in the shootout, scoring his third goal in seven attempts (43 percent) this season. Oskar Steen scored his first goal in 435 days, which proved integral insurance after the Blues’ rally.
“It’s been pretty electric, to be honest. It’s been crazy,” Jake DeBrusk told the TNT postgame panel. “It’s one of those things that there’s a lot of question marks going into our team beginning of the year. A lot of naysayers and we had some big injuries obviously. ... Hitting 60 wins tonight, that just sums up how good our team truly is. We have guys not even playing. Obviously, other teams are doing it, too, but it’s one of those things.
“I’ve never been part of a group like this. We just continue to grow and find ways to win.”
Perhaps most importantly, Boston’s penalty kill was a perfect 4-for-4 on the day without two of its key cogs in McAvoy and Bergeron. The two rank sixth (133:31) and seventh (132:18), respectively, in shorthanded ice time on the team this season.
The man-down unit was most impressive late in the third period, neutralizing a prolonged 5-on-3 while still holding on to a one-goal lead. The Blues failed to even generate a shot on goal with the lone scoring opportunity coming when a loose puck skittered through the crease.
Boston was also down Tomas Nosek for the 1:34 of 5-on-3 as the center sat for high-sticking Brayden Schenn. Nosek has logged the second-most shorthanded ice time of any Bruins forward this season (159:33). St. Louis churned out just one shot attempt during the two-man advantage.
On the remaining 4:52 of power play time, the Blues managed three shots (nine attempts) and one high-danger shot (two chances), per Natural Stat Trick. Boston had just 0.49 expected goals-against at 5-on-4.
Bruins were a perfect 4-for-4 on the kill today, now on a 28-for-28 run.
— Patrick Donnelly (@PatDonn12) April 3, 2023
Held the Blues to three shots (one high-danger). Allowed just one-attempt on a 1:34 5-on-3 in the third. pic.twitter.com/gi4zW3TXiH
Brandon Carlo played the entirety of the late 5-on-3, with 5:36 of his total 23:12 of ice time coming shorthanded on Sunday, blocking two shots. He was nearly a full two minutes clear of Dmitry Orlov (3:48; two blocks) and over three minutes ahead of Hampus Lindholm (2::27; four blocks).
It was the latest shutdown outing from a unit that is now on a 28-for-28 streak, coming off a perfect 6-for-6 and holding the Penguins’ man-advantage to seven shots on the six tries in a 4-3 win at Pittsburgh on Saturday. Boston hasn’t allowed a power-play goal in six games, giving two up in a 4-2 win over the Canadiens on March 23.
The strong run of form from the man-down unit also comes without Derek Forbort, arguably the Bruins’ top penalty-killer, logging 168:07 of shorthanded time on ice (fourth on the team) and leading with 28 blocked shots in shorthanded situations.
Since Forbort went down with injury after blocking a shot in the second period at Winnipeg on March 16, Boston is 42-for-45 on the kill (93.3 percent). Previously without Forbort, the Bruins worked at 76.5 (12-for-51), compared to 88 percent (147-for-167) with him, according to 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Ty Anderson.
While Boston’s struggling power play has picked it up with goals in three straight games, going 40 percent in that span (including 2-for-3 in Pittsburgh), the B’s NHL-leading 86.9 percent penalty kill remains the league’s most dependable special teams unit, snuffing out opposing offenses regardless of who is available.