Strong Third Paces Bruins to Seventh Straight Victory

NEW YORK- Charlie Coyle, Trent Frederic, Jake DeBrusk, and Hampus Lindholm scored in the third period as the Bruins posted a four-goal final frame en route to a 5-2 victory over the New York Rangers on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden. The win was Boston's seventh straight and improved the Black & Gold to 10-1-0, establishing a new club record for fewest games to reach 10 wins.
"Everyone's bought in. We're having fun at the rink," said Frederic, whose tally at 6:04 of the third proved to be the game winner. "[Coach Jim Montgomery's] been great to everyone and he's made it a fun environment. It's just a great time to be on the Boston Bruins right now."
Notes and numbers from the B's win over the Blue Shirts at MSG:

A Big Third for the Third

The Bruins' third line of Coyle, Frederic, and Nick Foligno - the latter of whom was filling in for A.J. Greer, who was in the box following a 10-minute misconduct - went to work in the third period to propel Boston to victory. Coyle started it off just 2:56 into the final frame when he buried a feed from Lindholm (goal, assist, plus-3 in 23:00) on the doorstep with Jacob Trouba draped all over his back.
"You want to gain position - I don't even know if I had that great of position, but [Lindholm] just put it on a tee for me. It was just a great play," said Coyle, who has now scored in four consecutive games, matching a career-high. "Started with battles. I'm just on the end of it, barely doing anything but those other guys worked and Hampus has been such a force for us. He's got the points to show it too. But it's so beyond that too. Just making those plays has been pretty fun to watch."
After Adam Fox tied the game, 2-2, just 48 seconds after Coyle's marker, it was the trio of Coyle, Foligno, and Frederic that struck again - this time for the eventual winner. Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin kicked out a rebound of Connor Clifton's wrister from the side wall into the left-wing circle where Foligno tracked down the loose puck.
Foligno then delivered a subtle backhand feed to Frederic, who one-timed a snapshot by Shesterkin with Coyle planted in front for a screen. The tally gave Boston a 3-2 lead at 6:04 of the third and was the first of three unanswered goals.
"It was a timely goal. It was a great play by Nick - and Charlie to screen. Felt really good to contribute," said Frederic, who received some strong praise from his centerman for his efforts.
"I love Freddy. As a person, player, I love playing with him," said Coyle. "He brings every element you can ask for as a player. He can play a hard game, he can play a skill game. I love working with him on it. We help each other out. For him to do that and step up and get rewarded at the end and score a big goal for us, that's huge. Says a lot.
"Gives him confidence, gives you confidence moving forward. It's nice when you do the little things like that. It's not all the time but when you do it kind of jives you pretty good. He's definitely a guy who's deserving of that. There's a lot of guys like that, but he's definitely one of them."

Foligno Stays Hot

Another one of those guys is Foligno, who assisted on both Coyle and Frederic's goals and now has seven points (three goals, four assists) in 11 games after notching 13 in 64 contests last season.
"I had to go out and do it. I felt confident that I could. Last year is last year. I put that behind me," said Foligno. "I know what I can do in this league when I'm feeling good and confident, especially the role that I've been given, the conversations we've had here. And this group - you find a group that comes together the way this group does, and it gives you an extra boost as a player especially the way I play.
"You put your heart in every game - and this group makes it fun to come to the rink every day and try to get better. You can see that. Every single night's it's somebody different making a contribution. It's fun to be a part of."
Montgomery was so pleased with Foligno's effort on Thursday night that he bumped him up to fill Greer's spot, a move that paid off swimmingly for the B's bench boss.
"I thought Nick Foligno was our best forward for the first 30 minutes, so I just wanted to get him more ice time," said Foligno. "I reward players for playing the right way. He's just making things happen out there."
Foligno's linemates - Coyle and Frederic - during the second half of the game were thrilled to see him get rewarded on the scoresheet.
"It doesn't really surprise any of us," said Frederic. "Just from watching him practice and his habits and stuff like that. I guess you guys just get to see more of it now. He's awesome to have - and when he's playing like that, he makes our team that much better."
"Winning board battles, making plays, taking the puck to the net," added Coyle. "It was only deserving that he got rewarded there with a couple points towards the end. It's not all about that, and he'll tell you that firsthand, but he deserves them for the way he's been playing."

Putting Up A Fight

While the four-goal third was what secured the game for the Black & Gold, Montgomery and the players that spoke postgame pointed to a sequence in the second period that may have been the most important.
After Frederic was buried along the boards on heavy hit from Rangers defenseman Braden Schneider midway through the period, Greer stepped in to express his displeasure and dropped the gloves. Frederic, meanwhile, tangled with New York forward Barclay Goodrow, creating as close to a line brawl as you'll see in the modern NHL.
"There was no hesitation there by them," said Coyle. "That's huge, a big hit like that can sway them. Freddy gets right up and goes at it. Greer jumps in, takes a guy. That says a lot about them and what they're willing to do, what we're willing to do for each other. That's good stuff. We'll kill it off every day."
And that the Bruins did, as Greer was assessed an extra two minutes for instigating and the attached 10-minute misconduct, in addition to his five-minute major for fighting.
"That shows the commitment to the team," said Foligno. "Our guy gets hit. We don't like it. They obviously were targeting a few guys tonight. That's the way they're gonna play, we're gonna play the same way…not take out their best players but eliminate them and make it hard on them. You stand up for one another. That's the Bruin way, that's the culture that's been built here.
"I think every guy appreciates what A.J. did and I think a lot of guys would do the same for anybody in that moment. Says a lot about him and I think it's another big reason why we clawed back in this game and find a way to win. You win those ones when you see guys battling for one another. It really gives a boost to everybody."

Adding Some Insurance

Jake DeBrusk provided some insurance when he finished a stellar sequence off the rush with Taylor Hall and Pavel Zacha. After Hall charged up the wing, he dished over to Zacha in the slot where the centerman found DeBrusk in the right circle. DeBrusk one-timed the feed by Shesterkin to give the Bruins a 4-2 advantage with 9:41 remaining.
"What's neat about our group, and what Monty's brought in, is that we're so process-focused. I think that allows us to flush a bad play out or a goal out and get ready for the next one. You get right back in," Foligno said of the Bruins righting the ship after New York tied the game in the third. "That's kind of what we said. It's a goal, it happens, and then boom we come back with a heavy shift. That's what good teams have and what good teams do. It's a credit to the guys to understand the process that we're trying to build here and use to win games."

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