Recap: Bruins blank Rangers 4-0 for second time this season

The Boston Bruins shut out the New York Rangers, 4-0, tonight at the TD Garden, with the team’s top guys lending their hands in the production of goals.

It was the second time this season, and second time at home against them, that the Bruins blanked the Rangers by four goals.

It was another full-team effort, as contributions came from all around, including two from defensemen. Brad Marchand and David Krejci both set up two goals each, driving each play.

The Bruins also held down the front of the net and only let 15 shots through to Jeremy Swayman during the 60 minutes. Swayman earned his second shutout of the season.

The Bs capitalized on a Rangers team that likely had been emotionally drained from this week’s play and transpired events with the Washington Capitals. The Bruins kept the offense flowing as rushes and board play were strong in all zones.

The Bruins opened the scoring at 7:11 of the first period.

Marchand carried the puck below the goal line, turned around and hit Patrice Bergeron inside the right face-off circle with a pass where he put a one-timer over Igor Shesterkin’s stick. 1-0 Bruins.

Jake DeBrusk drew his second penalty of the night, giving the Bruins a chance on the man-advantage to close out the period.

The Bruins extended their lead on the power play at 18:35 of the first period.

Marchand fed Charlie McAvoy a pass in the high slot where he put a blast over Shesterkin’s stick. 2-0 Bruins.

The B’s top line, especially Marchand, was the difference maker in the first frame. Marchand drove pucks to the net and generated chances before each of the actual goals. He had four of the nine Bruins’ shots on net.

The Bruins outshot the Rangers 9-4 in the first period.

Sean Kuraly’s line had a solid first half of the game. Jake DeBrusk had been around the puck through the first 40 minutes. The third line was strong on pucks and the forecheck, winning offensive zone battles and doing the little things right. The third line kept puck possession in the offensive zone.

The Bruins extended their lead at 14:01 of the second period.

After receiving a board pass from Krejci, DeBrusk went on a breakaway and in the slot, beat Shesterkin over his stick. 3-0 Bruins.

It was DeBrusk’s first goal since April 10.

By the end of second period, the Bruins outshot the Rangers 28-7, holding New York off to a mere three shots in the middle frame. Offense was one-sided, but Charlie McAvoy did jump into the net and helped Swayman towards keep the score slanted for the Bruins.

The Bruins wasted no time and added more cushion to their lead at 1:07 of the third period.

Krejci won the face-off back to Brandon Carlo who pinched down low with the puck and took a hard-angled shot from the right that bounced off Shesterkin’s skate and in the net. 4-0 Bruins.

The goal was the reward of a productive sequence from Krejci’s line where Craig Smith found Taylor Hall for a one-timer out front and put offensive pressure early on Shesterkin to start the period.

The Bruins continued to dominate the game throughout the final frame as they were overall better in all three zones. Yes, they faced a sleepy team, but the Rangers did gain some offensive confidence in the third to challenge Swayman a bit. It just wasn’t enough in a night that the Bruins controlled.

The Bruins ended the game on the penalty kill, but held on to help earn Swayman his second shutout. The Bruins outshot the Rangers 34-15 overall.

The Bruins close out their regular season series against the Rangers on Saturday back at the TD Garden at 3 pm.