Zacha's second goal lifts Devils past Bruins in OT

NEWARK, N.J. -- Pavel Zacha scored his second goal of the game with 2:18 remaining in overtime to give the New Jersey Devils a 4-3 win against the Boston Bruins at Prudential Center on Tuesday.

Zacha scored his ninth game-winning goal in the NHL on a backhand during a delayed penalty on the Bruins.
"I saw they were kind of focusing on [Jack] Hughes with the puck, and when it went to [Will Butcher], I kind of saw that I was beating the guy to the net so when [Hughes] passed to me I knew that I could just skate right in," Zacha said. "I just tried to go backhand; it worked out."
Taylor Hall scored against his former team, and David Pastrnak and Matt Grzelcyk each had two assists for the Bruins (31-14-7), whose four-game winning streak ended.
Boston is third in the eight-team MassMutual East Division, two points behind the second-place Washington Capitals and one ahead of the fourth-place New York Islanders, who lost 4-3 in a shootout to the Buffalo Sabres on Monday. The Pittsburgh Penguins, Capitals, Bruins and Islanders have clinched the four Stanley Cup Playoff berths from the division.
"I don't think it was our best night from our back end in terms of defending the middle of the ice and being good 1-on-1," Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said. "... Even in overtime ... it's 4-on-3 in our zone and guys are tired. They made a play, but we need to close out better, plain and simple. Stuff we typically do better, we didn't tonight."
Jaroslav Halak made 17 saves in his first start since April 3 for Boston.
Hughes and Damon Severson each had two assists, and Mackenzie Blackwood made 33 saves for the Devils (18-28-7), who lost 3-0 to the Bruins on Monday.
"It's been a tough year for us, we let it slide a little bit in the middle, but our fans should be excited," Hughes said. "We've got a good young team. Now we've got to take the next step, these next few games. Heading into next year, it's got to be no more, 'young and developing.'
"We've got to start to win and learn how to win."
Zacha scored a power-play goal to give the Devils a 1-0 lead at 8:42 of the first period. His two goals gave him an NHL career-high 15 and 33 points in his fifth season.
"I just want to get better every year," Zacha said. "I just try to take the chance and every time I get on the ice, I have to do something. So getting confidence and playing a lot helps a lot in scoring goals."
Patrice Bergeron made it 1-1 with a power-play goal on a shot from the left face-off circle at 4:36 of the second period.
Hall gave the Bruins a 2-1 lead when a shot from the right circle by Grzelcyk hit his body in the slot and changed direction past Blackwood at 14:02.
The Devils challenged for goalie interference on Hall, but the goal was upheld. It was Hall's first goal against New Jersey in eight games since the forward was traded by the Devils to the Arizona Coyotes on Dec. 16, 2019. Hall signed a one-year contract with the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 11 and was traded to the Bruins on April 12.

Jesper Boqvist tied it 2-2 on a snap shot from the slot for the Devils at 9:10 of the third period.
Sean Kuraly gave the Bruins a 3-2 lead on a tip-in from the slot at 10:42.
Yegor Sharangovich scored on a wrist shot from the right circle to tie it 3-3 at 12:41.
"It's a good win for our fans; it's our last home game," Hughes said. "It leaves them with a good taste in their mouths, so we're happy we could do that in our last home game."
NOTES:Bruins forward Charlie Coyle left the game at 2:16 of the third period with an undisclosed injury. There was no update afterward. ... Devils forward Miles Wood left the game at 13:18 of the third with an undisclosed injury. There was no update. ... Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo had three shots on goal in 20:51 in his return after missing 18 games with an upper-body injury.