Bruins Tie It Late, Fall to Toronto in Overtime

TORONTO - David Pastrnak notched his ninth goal of the season with 4:26 remaining to tie the game, but the Bruins fell to the Maple Leafs, 4-3, on Morgan Rielly's overtime winner Saturday night at Scotiabank Arena. Boston overcame a two-goal, first-period deficit to force extra time for the second straight contest, giving them points in seven of eight games this season.
"I thought we played well enough to get two points tonight," said Jaroslav Halak, who made 25 saves on 29 shots. "One of those games that we get some chances, they got some bounces their way and they won a game. Happy for the point obviously, disappointed at the same time. It is what it is. We have to turn the page and get ready for the next one."
Here are some notes and observations from the overtime loss in Toronto:

Pastrnak Pots Another: The Bruins earned a point thanks to the winger's ninth goal of the season, a rocket one-timer off a feed from Brad Marchand late in the third period. Pastrnak also upped his point streak to six games (9-6-15) when he assisted on Danton Heinen's power-play goal early in the third.
"I think last year he was on track for that," Cassidy said when asked if Pastrnak is becoming one of the league's elite scorers. "I think he would've been a guy that was bumping up against 50 if he had kept his production up…I think some of it has to do with his linemates staying healthy and him healthy. Yes, I think he was close last year and this year it looks like he's on the same path."
Marchand (4-8-12) and Patrice Bergeron (2-6-8) - who also assisted on Pastrnak's goal - both extended their point streaks to seven games.

DeBrusk Gets on the Board: There was no one on the Bruins roster that needed a goal more than Jake DeBrusk. And on Saturday night, the winger finally cashed in. With the Bruins down, 2-0, late in the first period, DeBrusk tapped home a backhanded feed from Charlie Coyle to pull Boston within a goal with just 21 seconds to play in the opening frame.
"Obviously it felt good to get on the board, but didn't get the result that we wanted today and you always want to produce when you're team is winning," said DeBrusk, who also had a golden power-play opportunity from the doorstep in the second period.
"Definitely a monkey off my back though…felt like I was playing a lot too. Even though I scored late in the first there, I think that definitely helps my game, definitely helps relax certain things. I think I had a breakaway on one of my first shifts and missed it. Just tried to stick with it."

B's Find A Second Wind: DeBrusk's goal late in the first spurred the Bruins to their best second period of the season. After struggling mightily during the middle frame for much of the first seven games, Boston dominated on Saturday night, outshooting Toronto, 15-3.
The Bruins did not cash in on their multitude of chances, but given their second-period struggles it was an encouraging 20 minutes for the Black & Gold.
"I think second periods are big for us," said Charlie McAvoy. "For every team it's a chance to play fast, play with transition. I thought we changed well in the second, we really didn't give up much at all. But especially on our changes, we changed well, we transitioned fast, put pressure on them.
"That was a good period for us. Was good to have some zone time, some possession and then to see guys playing with creativity."
While the Bruins failed to score in the second, they drew a late penalty thanks to a dominating shift in the offensive zone. Boston opened up the final frame with 1:38 remaining on the man advantage and cashed in when Heinen took a Brett Ritchie feed and ripped a wrister over Leafs goalie Frederik Andersen with two seconds left on the PP, tying the game at 2.
"It's just kind of the culture of the group," McAvoy said of battling back from the two-goal deficit. "It's something we're really good at and last year we did it a ton. We had some really exciting games last year and it's good to see when we're down. We come back, we give up the lead…that's something we'll have to look at and make sure we're not doing too often."
Toronto went on to score just 1:01 after Heinen's marker, regaining the lead when Alexander Kerfoot - tangled up with Coyle at the top of the crease - managed to reach through the center and whack a bouncing puck by Halak.

Secondary Scoring Comes Through: Given their dependence on the top line through seven games, the Bruins were quite encouraged to receive goals from DeBrusk and Heinen. Coyle, Ritchie, and Chris Wagner also picked up assists.
"We need it," said Cassidy. "Helped us get a point tonight and an opportunity for two. I know Pasta got the big goal late, but still. Those guys contributed and had some good looks. It wasn't just the two that went in.
"I thought Charlie and Jake [had chances], a little bit on the power play too - Jake was around the puck a lot, could've had more than one if he had any luck."