Geekie Scores Twice in Bruins 4-3 Win Over Montreal

BOSTON –– Morgan Geekie stopped along the boards during warmups at TD Garden on Saturday night.

The forward was getting ready to face the Montreal Canadiens, but first, had to say hello to his family. His wife, Emma, was there with their older daughter, Gabby, and newborn son, Max.​

It was Max’s first game, and he soon watched his dad score two power-play goals in the Boston Bruins’ comeback 4-3 win over the Canadiens. It was their eighth win in the last nine games.

It was a night that carried the weight of an Original Six rivalry and divisional standings. But the Geekies will remember it for more than the points earned.

“It was nice to share that with [Max],” Geekie said. “It will always be something we remember. It’s always good to see some familiar faces on the glass. It always means a little more when you go out there.”

Geekie saved two pucks for his kids and passed them along to his daughter.

“I don’t know if Gabby got the memo to give [Max] the other one, but we’ll find out when we get home,” Geekie said.

After getting out to a hot offensive start for the B’s, Geekie went scoreless for 12 games. He now has three goals in the last three games and earned the game-winning tally on Saturday.

​“I thought he had a good jump today,” head coach Marco Sturm said. “He was skating today, he wanted the puck, and it was a good game for him.”​

Before Geekie secured the victory for the Bruins, Cole Caufield put Montreal ahead 1-0 with a snapshot at 6:36 of the first period, but Boston got on the board with two power-play goals in the middle frame.

The first came from Viktor Arvidsson. The forward was stationed at his regular post – in front of the net – and whacked in the rebound of his own shot that Fraser Minten set up with a pass from the left circle. Arvidsson’s 12th of the season – and third in five games – made it 1-1 at 1:45 of the second.

The Canadiens responded with another goal from Caufield, also on the power play, at 7:37. Boston tied it once again when it returned to the man advantage after Sean Kuraly got high-sticked.

This time, it was Geekie. David Pastrnak powered into the zone with the puck, flipped it over a Canadien’s stick and got it over to Geekie on the left doorstep to send soaring past Montreal netminder Samuel Montembeault for the 2-2 equalizer at 9:46.

​“Every player is going to go through this sometimes. That’s just part of the experience. I’ve been through it many times in my career,” Pastrnak said of Geekie. “Came up big for us. It is good to see.”

Caufield completed his hat trick at 13:29 with a sharp-angled wrist shot while the B’s were shorthanded. It gave the Canadiens a 3-2 lead at 13:29.

And then, the Bruins came into the third period on a mission. A backhander from Minten knotted things 3-3 at 13:55; it was his 13th goal of the season and second point of the night.

“Huge. Especially a comeback win in the third, I don’t think we’ve been able to do that yet this year,” Minten said. “Good feeling. Huge points for our team, and to do it on a big stage Saturday night like that, it’s awesome.”

The B’s were put on the man advantage at 14:03, and the first unit seized the opportunity.

“At that point, the confidence was really high,” Pastrnak said. “When the momentum is there, the power play can come big. We did it today.”

Charlie McAvoy pushed the puck over to Geekie by the left point, where he ripped it home for the final 4-3 scoreline at 14:07, and his 28th tally of the year, which is a team-high. It also marked Geekie’s 100th career goal and gave him the lead for most PPG on the Bruins with 10.

“It’s an excellent character win. The way we came back and had life in the third when it mattered is really important for our group,” said Jeremy Swayman, who made 22 saves. “We knew that it was an important win. We weren’t going to let these 20 minutes slip. Obviously, we gave it our all and it shifted in our favor.”

The Bruins return to action on Monday when they face the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.