A few moments after the midnight New Year rang in for everybody in Boston, David Pastrnak scored the final goal in a Boston barrage that left them with a 6-2 exclamation point road victory over the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place.
It was the first NHL goal scored in 2026 and perhaps portends better things for the Black and Gold in the New Year as they snapped a six-game losing streak with a winning effort against a juggernaut Edmonton club that was expected to demolish them on New Year’s Eve. Instead, it was a Boston effort very similar to the unexpected home win over the Colorado Avalanche that ended Boston’s other six-game losing slide this season.
Getting back to defensive basics appears to be the B’s New Year’s resolution, and they came through it in winning fashion as they turned things over to a new hockey calendar.
“It feels really good. I think everybody is sick of losing,” said Marco Sturm. “But I’m just proud of the way we played and the way we came out. I don’t think a lot of people thought we could grab two points here tonight, but we did [grab two points] and the fashion in which we did it was very good.
“There were times when we were up 1-0 and 2-0…every time they pushed, [Jeremy Swayman] had an answer. He was outstanding.”
The victory featured a Herculean effort from David Pastrnak with a pair of goals that bookended the Boston scoring in the game, and 11 total shots on net while once again playing very good hockey on a line with Marat Khusnutdinov and Fraser Minten.
David Pastrnak has scored the most goals in 2026. pic.twitter.com/vzwWf5UvVS
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) January 1, 2026
And Jeremy Swayman was just as brilliant on the other end of the ice with 34 saves in the win that included turning away both Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl on a night when both Oilers superstars (a combined 21 shot attempts) had their “A” games.
Swayman stopped McDavid cold on a breakaway in the first period that seemed to announce it was going to be a long night for the Oilers' shooters for the rest of the evening.
Jeremy Swayman reflected on 2025 following the W 🥹 ⬇️
— NESN (@NESN) January 1, 2026
"It was a year of growth. I'm so grateful for the ups and downs... looking forward to 2026."@sjurksztowicz | #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/rnijlhuLg4
It was also the second straight game when the B’s held their opponent under three goals scored after being outscored 23-10 in the previous four games during the extended losing streak, a clear indicator that poor defense was the hallmark of their slump. Edmonton got its share of Grade-A scoring chances on New Year’s Eve, to be sure, but the Bruins are getting back to playing good fundamental defense while taking three out of four points in the last two games.
That is not a coincidence.
“It was good to get out of that slump and to do it the right way,” said Swayman. “I think we can take a lot out of this game and build a lot of confidence. We know what we can do this in league and consistency is everything, so I think we can take this and move forward, and really build some momentum.”
Still, the other part of the equation is getting offense up and down the lineup as the Bruins are mostly getting back to good health with their full group. Separating a struggling Morgan Geekie and a so-so Pastrnak paid dividends for the Bruins offensively as they got goals from Pastrnak, Casey Mittelstadt and Elias Lindholm, who would attest to during the impressive team victory.
Each of the top three forward lines kicked in a goal and a pair of defensemen got on the board as well, including Jonathan Aspirot with a second-period score that helped wipe away any negative feelings about his high-sticking penalty leading to the overtime loss in Calgary 48 hours prior to New Year’s Eve.
Aspirot’s presence actually got the best out of Hampus Lindholm as well, as that pair finished with a plus-2 rating apiece and Lindholm had a multiple-point game while totally over 21 minutes of ice time in a very strong, solid performance.
It’s funny to say about a player that started the season in the AHL and is still establishing himself at the NHL level, but Aspirot’s presence seems to really stabilize Boston’s back end with his steady, strong defensive style.
“It was good to end the year in the winning column,” said Pastrnak. “Penalty kill was outstanding and [Jeremy] Swayman was amazing, so it feels good. It was a great team win so hopefully we can build on it moving forward. We have an amazing group in the room, and it’s only been a half-season but we’ve been through so much. We don’t get special groups like this every year, so we just have to build and become even tighter and become even better on the ice because we are really tight off the ice.”
“It’s easy to get motivated for games like that when you see what Connor [McDavid] is doing out there. It’s impressive for us to see as players, not only for the fans.
With road games remaining against Vancouver and Seattle with two off days in each city, it’s very feasible to see the B’s turning things around and finishing this road trip with a winning record, and making a move on a playoff spot that sits just two points ahead of them in the Eastern Conference. There has been plenty of handwringing from Bruins fans during this most recent spate of rough games, but the simple truth is the losing spell hasn’t damaged the B’s in terms of their playoff hopes.
It will be the story of the season for a Bruins group that is most likely going to continue to run very hot and cold in terms of results, and of an Eastern Conference where just about everybody has a shot to qualify for the postseason. A few simple defensive adjustments and restored energy levels will do much to get the Bruins back into their winning ways, and it appears they’ve rediscovered the formula in the last couple of days on the road after playing the holiday blues around the Christmas holiday.