Geekie Scores Twice in Bruins 4-1 Win Over Utah

BOSTON –– By the time the third period came around, the Boston Bruins had the Utah Mammoth right where they wanted them – a bit tired.

Grinding teams down while maintaining energy for an offensive push has been one of the trademarks of head coach Marco Sturm’s first year behind the bench.

It worked once again as the Bruins beat the Mammoth 4-1 on Tuesday at TD Garden.

“I think as a team, I think we’ve really found an identity,” Casey Mittelstadt said. “Marco’s come in firm and strong on that. I think the way he wants to play fits the personnel we have as well.”

Boston entered the final frame with a one-goal lead and proceeded to widen the gap and keep Utah off the scoresheet in the last 20 minutes.

“We try to wear them down. The system we’re playing, when everybody is on the same page, it’s not easy to play against,” David Pastrnak said. “We just try to be patient, wait for our opportunities and sometimes it works out in the third. That’s a perfect example today.”​

Barrett Hayton put Utah ahead 1-0 with a power-play goal at 8:34 of the first period, but the B’s responded with their own tally on the man advantage to tie things before the second.

Elias Lindholm got the puck around the crease and pushed it up to Pastrnak, who swung it across the zone to Morgan Geekie by the left circle. Geekie blasted it past Mammoth netminder Vitek Vanecek to make it 1-1 at 16:01. It marked Geekie’s sixth power-play goal of the year, which ties Pastrnak for most on the team.

Geekie struck once again to give the Bruins a 2-1 lead just 23 seconds into the middle frame. Nikita Zadorov backhanded the puck from the point to Pastrnak, who launched one on net. Geekie was there to knock in the rebound for his 24th goal of the season, which is second-most in the league.

“Obviously, I take pride in [being an offensive leader] a lot. Not something that I put a lot of stress on,” Geekie said. “We’re getting goals from everybody. I think up and down the lineup, we’re kind of built like that, and we’re able to rely on different guys. But for me, just go out there, play hard on both ends of the rink and try to take advantage of special teams.”

​Tuesday was Geekie’s fifth two-goal showing of the year; the forward has not gone more than three games without scoring. Pastrnak’s two assists also pushed him to nine points in four games since returning from injury.

“It’s fun to watch. It is always so easy to cheer for as nice a guy as he is,” Pastrnak said of Geekie. “Fun to see him get better every day, and he’s been proving it the whole year this year. It’s not easy to score in this league, not easy to find open ice, and he’s done that.”

​Mittelstadt earned some breathing room for the Bruins in the third period. The forward broke into the zone with his second line and one-timed the rebound of Pavel Zacha’s initial shot home at 10:16 for the 3-1 lift. It was Mittelstadt’s third goal in five games.

​“I feel like I’m just getting open and guys are finding me,” Mittelstadt said. “I think it’s a credit to my linemates and good plays from them. I’ve got the easy job – put it in the empty net.”​

Mikey Eyssimont brought the contest to its final 4-1 scoreline with his sixth tally of the season. The forward picked the puck up in the defensive end, dashed to Utah’s net, and backhanded it in off the breakaway at 16:02. Eyssimont has two points (one goal, one assist) in his two games back since being a healthy scratch.

“He’s very hard on himself all the time, so I’m very happy for him that he got rewarded today with his big goal,” Sturm said. “He wants it really badly, and he was not happy either [to get scratched], but he said, ‘Yeah, I have to be better.’ That is the kind of response I am looking for.”

​Jeremy Swayman made 20 saves in the win.

The Bruins continue their homestand on Thursday when they host the Edmonton Oilers.