Winless Streak Stetches to 5 | GAME STORY

BOSTON, MA - Timo Meier broke the New Jersey Devils' shutout streak, but a single goal wasn't going to cut it against the Boston Bruins on Saturday night.

The Bruins defeated the Devils 4-1, extending the Devils' winless streak to five games.

"Obviously, we couldn’t put enough away, the chances were there, so it’s important for us to understand the longevity of the season and not get too low and really build off a performance like that because I think that was our best game in the last bit, for sure,” Connor Brown said.

"It’s a crappy feeling and there’s no one that wants to get out of this more than us," Brenden Dillon said. "It just seems like the mistakes, when we make them, just feel like boom, they end up in our net and we’re not able to get a bounce the other way. We want to win so bad, and if we play like that most nights, we’re going to get the bounces going our way.

Meier tied the game at 1-1 late in the first period, before the Bruins came back and scored the game-winner just 1:12 into the second.

The second-period goal was a turnover that landed on the stick of Elias Lindholm, who fed Morgan Geekie, wide open to Jake Allen’s right. That snapshot was the difference maker, as New Jersey’s winless streak stretches to five games after a 4-1 loss in Boston.

The Bruins first two goals came off of the Devils own defensive errors, New Jersey beating themselves in those moments.

"They’re bang-bang plays that every team in this league can score and puck management," Dillon added. "I think, on those two is just one breakdown and we’re giving up that Grade-A. We eliminate those and it’s a different game."

"Their two goals came off breakdowns by us," Brown said. "They really didn’t have any time and space and didn’t sustain much. We were right on top of them, we weren’t back out, playing conservative, we were attacking the game. I think that’s a recipe for success in a long season."

The Bruins extended their lead to 3-1 late in the third with a goal by Casey Mittekstadt, before Andre Peeke scored into the empty net.

Here are some observations from the game:

• Timo Meier played shutout buster and ended the Devils' shutout streak. After going two consecutive games without scoring a goal, New Jersey finally broke through with Meier potting a puck past Jeremy Swayman. The goal ended New Jersey's shutout streak at 146:48.

But more importantly, it was a response goal. The Devils had been playing a very strong first period and getting their chances but the puck wouldn't drop where they needed it to. It was the Bruins who opened up the scoring, not long before Meier's goal, with less than three minutes remaining in the first period.

To be able to have a response shift and make it count, New Jersey was able to go into the first period tied, instead of down a goal.

• Sheldon Keefe often went back to the line of Meier-Hischier-Bratt for offensive zone draws; in fact, that was the combination that broke the shutout streak at the end of the first period.

• Timo Meier is now the Devils team-leader in goals, scoring his 11th of the season.

• New Jersey had outshot the Bruins 20-9 after 40 minutes, holding the Bruins to just five and four shots respectively in the opening two periods and 30-21 by the game's end.

“I thought we controlled play, the shot clock was indicative of that,” head coach Sheldon Keefe said. “Obviously, we made some mistakes on some breakout turnovers; they got back with a quick-strike offense. They got the goals that they needed so that ultimately ends up being the difference."

• Dennis Cholowski re-entered the lineup in place of Colton White. He was paired with Simon Nemec.

• The game was predominantly played at 5-on-5, with the only two penalties called.

The Devils only power play came in the second period when Nikita Zadorov sent Nico Hischier into the boards, headfirst, with a dangerous boarding play. Although New Jersey controlled most of their power play, they only managed to get one shot through on Swayman.

The power play has struggled of late, but a difference between the games against Boston and Vegas is that there wasn't the same type of deflation from the team. Sheldon Keefe spoke at length about how you could feel the deflation after the unsuccessful, disjointed power play against the Golden Knights, but that certainly wasn't the case against the Bruins, with New Jersey continuing to press.