Sweet 16: B's Extend Streak With Win Over Montreal

MONTREAL - There is an old hockey adage that says there is no such thing as a bad shot. Good things - they say - happen when you get the puck to the net.
David Pastrnak proved those theories right on Saturday night.
With the Bruins down by a goal late in the second, Pastrnak spotted Brad Marchand open at the backdoor and quickly whipped the puck towards the front of the net. But the puck never made it to Marchand. Instead, it clanked off of Montreal goalie Carey Price and over the goal line to tie the game.

It was just the jumpstart Boston needed, as the Bruins potted four unanswered goals to notch a 4-1 victory over the Canadiens on Saturday night at the Bell Centre. The win extended the Black & Gold's points streak to 16 games, their longest such stretch since 2014.
"It was a good dump and forecheck, good pinch by Torey [Krug]. I knew Marchy was all alone out front so I tried to get it there in a hurry," said Pastrnak, who finished the night with two goals, an assist, and a game-high eight shots on goal.
"Sometimes you need those kinds of goals to get you going. Since we got that goal, definitely in the second period we took over."
That the Bruins did.
Just 1:47 after Pastrnak's fortunate bounce, Krug (goal, two assists) struck for his seventh of the season with a snipe over the right shoulder of Price to put Boston ahead for good. Pastrnak added an insurance tally with 2:57 remaining - his 20th of the year - before Riley Nash capped things with an empty-netter with 35 seconds to go.
"The good thing about our team is it doesn't bother us," Tuukka Rask (24 saves) said of the team falling behind. "You can score once, you can score twice, we just keep going, keep plugging away and try to get back in the game and not dwell on things that happened before.
"We're getting pretty good at just focusing on the moment and moving forward. That's been a good thing. But you want to play with the lead as much as possible."

The Bruins' victory, coupled with Tampa Bay's loss to Minnesota, brought them within 3 points of the Lightning for the top spot in the Atlantic Division with a game in hand. Boston is now 12-0-4 during its 16-game points streak and 21-3-4 since Nov. 16.

"I think we're playing to our identity in terms of we're hard to play against, we're not going to give up a lot of easy chances," said Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy. "And when we do break down, which every team does, our goaltending has been excellent, both [Anton] Khudobin and Rask. I think we're getting contributions from everyone.
"Obviously our big line has been great lately…we're playing the style of game we want to."
Boston also did some serious damage to Montreal's playoff hopes, winning all three games against their archrivals over the last eight days. Eighteen points now separate the two teams in the standings, with Montreal now 9 points out of postseason position.
"We talked about doing the job against them and finding ways to push teams down and keep getting some ground and catch up to the teams above us," said Patrice Bergeron. "I thought it was a great effort again."

One downside to Boston's game of late is its slow starts, having surrendered the first goal in five straight games. But the Bruins have won four of those contests, with the one loss coming in overtime against Dallas. That poise and determination are signs of a mentally tough team.
"It's something I've noticed from this team for a long time," said Bergeron. "It's been something that the poise from the young guys all the way to the older ones, everyone stays calm, everyone kind of believes and has confidence.
"Obviously we're building that confidence by winning games and by doing it with everyone contributing and kind of chipping in. From one game to another building confidence for moving forward when you face adversity."

More observations from the Bruins' 4-1 win over Montreal:

Krug finding his groove: Krug had one of his best nights of the season, grabbing a goal and two assists while posting a plus-3 rating in 17:24. After injuries slowed the start of his season, the blue liner appears to be hitting his stride.
"In my experience with him, I think as the year goes on he gets better," said Cassidy. "This year the injuries led to that, he missed some time with his jaw, a little bit of a setback, was playing a little bit of catch-up. But now he's getting more comfortable and as the year goes one he seems to be that player that gets better."

On his goal - the eventual winner - Krug crept in from the blue line and took a drop pass from Pastrnak at the top of the left circle, where he let one rip over the shoulder of Price for a 2-1 Bruins lead with 4:04 left in the second.
"Those are big moments in game," said Krug. "We realized jumping over the boards that they were pretty tired and if we could hold onto the puck and make some plays we'd get our chance and you have to take advantage of the opportunity when you do. Luckily it went in for us and it was a big momentum boost for us."
Big night for second pairing: Overall, it was a stellar outing for Krug and partner Brandon Carlo. Both players finished a plus-3 and were on the ice with the B's top line of Bergeron, Marchand, and Pastrnak for all three goals.
"You play with them, you're pretty lucky, you're probably going to have a lot of chances to score and very few against," said Krug. "It's nice because they're so focused on shutting those three guys down that the D can get in on the attack and make something out of nothing. We were able to do that."
Top line still rolling: The Bergeron-Marchand-Pastrnak trio combined for two goals and four assists. Bergeron also had a power-play goal wiped off the board in the third after an offsides review.
"That's a handful, that line, very, very difficult to play against," said Cassidy. "They know that you have to close quick and if you get a chance to create a loose puck situation you have to get it out. They're so good on their second effort.
"People ask about Marchy, so good on his second effort, Bergy with his stick and Pasta when he's going. Not only do you have to create the loose puck, but then you have to break it out. It's not easy, that's a tough assignment for anybody."