Final: Bruins 4, Blue Jackets 2 - Korpisalo stops 36 of 38 shots, Bruins win 10th straight home game

The Boston Bruins win their 10th straight home game with a 4-2 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Before the game, Marco Sturm elected to start Joonas Korpisalo and not dress Jeremey Swayman, and that decision became a key factor in the victory. 

Five minutes into the first period, the Blue Jackets scored the first goal of the game. Boston's defense gave Columbus prime opportunities to score, and a stretch pass that Charlie McAvoy failed to intercept resulted in a power play goal by Kirill Marchenko.

The Bruins were able to respond late in the first period with a goal from Viktor Arvidsson. In the final five minutes, Arvidsson kept the puck in Boston's offensive zone and fired a shot on net through traffic which tied the game.

In the second period, a critical penalty by Columbus gave the Bruins a prime opportunity to take the lead. Miles Wood was called for a goalie interference penalty which put Boston on the power play. During the play, Korpisalo had to shortly leave the game, which resulted in Michael DiPietro getting his first career appearance in the NHL.

On the power play, Morgan Geekie fired a one-timer goal to give the Bruins their first lead of the game, which carried over into the second intermission.

In the final period, Korpisalo and the Bruins played key defense to prevent the Blue Jackets from tying the game. Midway through the period, the Bruins pushed the puck up ice to Sean Kuraly, who skated into Columbus territory with speed and extended Boston's lead with a slap shot goal that deflected off the right post and into the net.

The Blue Jackets brought the game back to a one goal difference, but an empty net goal by Arvidsson sealed the victory for the Bruins.

The Bruins were able to win this game by staying out of the penalty box and receiving strong goaltending by Korpisalo. Boston's backup goalie saved 36-38 shots, coming up big when it mattered most. DiPietro's appearance also helped the Bruins out, especially in the situation that he came in.

Boston's next game will be Saturday against the Philadelphia Flyers. Puck drop will be at 3 p.m.

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WHO: Boston Bruins (32-20-5) vs Columbus Blue Jackets (29-20-7)
WHEN: 7 p.m.
WHERE: TD Garden, Boston
TV: NESN
RADIO: 98.5-FM The Sports Hub

LIVE BOX SCORE

PROJECTED LINES

Boston

Khusnutdinov - E. Lindholm - Pastrnak

Mittelstadt - Zacha - Arvidsson

Eyssimont - Minten - Geekie

Jeannot - Kuraly - Kastelic

Aspirot - McAvoy

H. Lindholm - Lohrei

Zadorov - Peeke

Korpisalo

DiPietro

Columbus

Marchment - Fantilli - Marchenko

Voronkov - Monahan - Johnson

Sillinger - Coyle - Olivier

Lunderstrom - Jenner - Wood

Werenski - Severson

Provorov - Mateychuk

Fabbro - Gudbranson

Merzlinkins

Greaves

PREGAME NOTES

The Boston Bruins return to the ice following the 2026 Winter Olympics with a matchup against the Columbus Blue Jackets at home.

Charlie Coyle will make his return to TD Garden for the first time since being traded during last year's trade deadline.

Jeremey Swayman won't dress in tonight's game. Bruins head coach Marco Sturm wanted Swayman to "practice more" before getting into a game.