Bancroft Leads Bruins to Win Over Flyers: ‘Kind of a Surreal Moment’

PHILADELPHIA –– Dalton Bancroft doesn’t quite remember what was going through his mind as he took the ice for his first shift in an NHL preseason game on Saturday night.

“I feel like I blacked out a little bit,” Bancroft said. “It was definitely a little bit of panic setting in, but after that it felt really good.”

Bancroft quickly made an impact, scoring twice in the second period to help the Boston Bruins to a 4-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers at Xfinity Mobile Arena. The 24-year-old forward had a call to make after his productive showing.

“I will probably get on the phone with my parents right away,” Bancroft said. “I know it’s camp and everything, but it was just kind of a surreal moment.”

Bancroft was undrafted and signed a one-year, entry-level contract with the Bruins in April after three seasons with Cornell University. He played five games in the AHL with Providence to finish the year and had one goal. NHL training camp, though, has been another level.

“I’ve just kind of tried to be a sponge and learn from all the older guys and take in as much as I can,” Bancroft said. “You don’t know if you’re going to get to this point or not, so it’s just been a really cool experience.”

His first goal of the night came after Travis Sanheim and Johnny Beecher each scored in the first period for a 1-1 tie heading into the middle frame. Bancroft earned a lead for the Bruins while skating on the first power play unit with Hampus Lindholm, Mason Lohrei, Georgii Merkulov and Pavel Zacha. His wrist shot from the right circle made it 2-1 at 3:57.

The Flyers responded with a goal from Nikita Grebenkin at 7:12 to tie things 2-2. Trevor Zegras followed it up with a power-play goal to make it 3-2 at 13:04.

However, Bancroft potted his second tally for the 3-3 scoreline at 15:58. Merkulov dashed down the left wing on an odd-man rush before dishing the puck across to Bancroft, who one-timed it in.

“Those young kids, sometimes they have to understand that when they limit their mistakes, they’re going to get more and more of my trust,” head coach Marco Sturm said. “A guy like [Bancroft], he didn’t make too many mistakes, and he got opportunities, and twice in front of the net, and he used it. Good for him.”

The Bruins fought through a back-and-forth third period until Jeffrey Viel secured the 4-3 victory with a strong individual effort to the net. The forward carried the puck over to the left doorstep and lifted it in for the goal at 13:45.

“I thought we played a really good game. Good enough, I would say,” Sturm said. “These guys played more with details, more the way I want to see us play. Starting out of our end with breakouts and d-zone and our transition game – we’re getting there. It was nice to see.”

Saturday also marked Lindholm’s first game back in the lineup since Nov. 12. A fractured patella held the defenseman out for the majority of last season, but he has come into training camp feeling strong. Lindholm skated on the first pair with Henri Jokiharju and had two shots through 21:21 of ice time.

“It felt really good to be out there, skating around in a B’s jersey – it’s a special feeling every time, and obviously a little extra jitters and butterflies coming out there tonight again. Felt like it should,” Lindholm said. “It’s fun to go out there and feel this good knowing all the work that has been done on the back side of it.”

The Bruins’ next preseason game will be a rematch with the Flyers, this time on Monday at TD Garden with a 7 p.m. puck drop.