Pastrnak helps Bruins end Devils winning streak

David Pastrnak scored the go-ahead goal with 5:49 left in the third period, helping the Boston Bruins defeat the New Jersey Devils 5-3 at TD Garden in Boston on Tuesday.

Pastrnak made it 4-3 on his own rebound after driving to the net. It was his first goal in 10 games since Nov. 30.
"It felt good," Pastrnak said. "It's been a little bit of a grind lately, but we've been playing well. Every line is rolling right now, so hopefully we can keep going and competing like that. … In this league, we play good teams. They're going to come back and make their push. When that happens, it's up to us to refocus and think about the next shift, and that's what we did today."
Curtis Lazar had a goal and an assist, and Linus Ullmark made 23 saves for Boston (17-10-2), which has won three straight games.
Tomas Tatar, Nathan Bastian and Damon Severson scored for New Jersey (13-16-5), which had won three in a row. Mackenzie Blackwood made 29 saves.

The Devils were without defenseman Dougie Hamilton, who broke his jaw during a 4-3 overtime win at the Washington Capitals on Sunday and will have surgery Wednesday. They were also missing forwards Nico Hischier (lower body), Yegor Sharangovich and Pavel Zacha (each in NHL COVID-19 protocol). Tatar returned after missing three games in protocol.
"We're pretty happy with the performance," said Devils assistant Alain Nasreddine, who is coaching New Jersey with Lindy Ruff in protocol since Dec. 31. "Did we make mistakes? Yeah. But did the guys put in the work? Absolutely. The game was tied, and we ended up with a mistake that we've talked about all game: protecting our net front. That ended up costing us in the end. It's frustrating, but we're all proud of the effort we put in, especially with the situation we're in."
Lazar made it 1-0 at 2:53 of the first period, scoring from a sharp angle through Blackwood's five-hole on the rush after a New Jersey turnover.
Bastian tied it 1-1 at 57 seconds of the second period on a breakaway after forcing a turnover in the defensive zone.
Oskar Steen gave Boston a 2-1 lead with his first NHL goal 20 seconds later, poking the puck off the top of the net before it bounced off Blackwood and in at 1:17. It was Steen's ninth NHL game.
"Steen is quiet," Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said of the forward. "He works hard, plays the right way, goes to the net and finishes his checks. Especially for a guy that's not that big (5-foot-9, 199 pounds), he plays a courageous game. I think guys are rooting for him. The goal was clever. … Some guys might have tried to bat it off or push it off, instead of poking it up in the air. … It was a clever play. He showed a little composure. I'm happy for him."

Tatar tied it 2-2 at 3:05.
Trent Frederic put the Bruins back in front 3-2 at 9:42 when he banked a shot in off Blackwood at the right post from below the goal line.
Severson tied it 3-3 on a breakaway at 7:36 of the third right after leaving the penalty box. Michael McLeod stole the puck in the defensive zone and lifted a pass ahead to Severson while falling down.
After Pastrnak broke the tie, Brandon Carlo scored with 23 seconds remaining for the 5-3 final when his shot from the right point deflected in off Devils forward Dawson Mercer.
"A couple of [Boston's] goals I thought were just bad breaks and bad bounces," Blackwood said. "… I don't think I've ever had that many flukey goals go in. It was just one of those games. The thing is if you try too hard, you go the wrong way. I've got to keep trying to clean up my game a little bit and keep working hard, but you don't want to put too much pressure on it."
NOTES: New Jersey center Jack Hughes got an assist on Tatar's goal and scored his ninth point in the past four games (three goals, six assists). … Severson scored his 45th NHL goal, passing Brian Rafalski for fifth among defensemen in Devils history. … Ten Bruins scored at least one point.