Recap: Fourth line, Pastrnak lead Bruins to 5-3 win over Devils

The Boston Bruins defeated the New Jersey Devils, 5-3, as secondary scoring continued to play a factor tonight at the TD Garden.

The B’s are now on a three-game win streak, tied for their longest win streak this season.

They may not have been pretty tallies, but the Bruins’ bottom-six forwards persisted and carried the play to the net to account for three goals - one of which earned Oskar Steen his first NHL goal.

In particular, the Bruins’ fourth line generated three goals, including Curtis Lazar’s opener and Tomas Nosek’s assist on Brandon Carlo’s closer. The fourth line combined for seven shots on net.

“I thought they were our best line tonight,” Bruce Cassidy said of the fourth line.

The win also saw the best goal of the night from David Pastrnak who had struggled to find the back of the net the last nine games.

Pastrnak netted the game-winner and his first goal since November 30, 2021. As the Devils pressed to force overtime - where they’ve won four of their games - Pastrnak drove to the net and put in his own rebound in the final minutes of the third period.

In total, five different Bruins scored - including Brandon Carlo with 22.8 seconds left in the game - and 10 players registered at least one point for an overall team effort.

Although the Bruins had some quality chances tonight against a depleted Devils’ team, they also had some sloppy moments that gave New Jersey more looks than they should have gotten.

A few neutral zone and offensive blue line missteps led to the Devils’ goals and two breakaways.

A win is a win with all even-strength goals again. The power is still not on yet for the power play that’s now 0 for 8 in the last three games.

The Bruins have a chance to extend their win streak as they host the Minnesota Wild on Thursday January 4 at 7 pm.

Here’s a look at the goals by period!

First period:

The Bruins opened the scoring at 2:53 of the first period.

Lazar picked up a turnover in the defensive zone to end up on a 2-on-1 with Carlo. Once inside the right-wing circle, Lazar shielded the puck from Jesper Boqvist to throw a shot towards the far post and past Mackenzie Blackwood. 1-0 Bruins.

The Devils only had a handful of shots during the first period, but in the final minutes had a few breaks which Linus Ullmark responded to and kept his team in the lead. New Jersey challenged him with 2-on-1s and rebounds where because of Ullmark’s positioning, the Devils didn’t get the tying goal. In total, the Bruins outshot the Devils 10-6 in the frame.

Second period:

The Devils tied the game 57 seconds into the second period.

As Pastrnak couldn’t keep the puck in the offensive zone, Nathan Bastian poked away the puck for a breakaway down the middle. In the slot, he put a wrist shot over Ullmark’s glove. 1-1 game.

The Bruins took the lead at 1:17 of the second period.

Nick Foligno backhanded a shot that ended up in the crossbar’s netting. Steen poked the puck loose which then became loose and bounced off Blackwood’s back and into the goal. 2-1 Bruins.

The Devils answered back at 3:05 of the second period.

Jack Hughes sent a backhander towards net. Tomas Tatar found the loose puck for a quick shot past Ullmark. 2-2 game.

The Bruins regained the lead at 9:42 of the second period.

Lazar sent a pass to Trent Frederic off the end-boards. Frederic then threw a backhander towards net that bounced off Blackwood’s glove and into the net past the short-side post. 3-2 Bruins.

Third period:

The Devils tied the game at 7:36 of the third period.

Michael McLeod sent a long pass to Damon Severson coming out of the box where he ended up on a breakaway and beat Ullmark’s glove. 3-3 game.

Pastrnak carried the puck to the front of the net where he potted his own rebound and beat Blackwood top-shelf. 4-3 Bruins.

The Bruins capped off the win at 19:37 of the third period.

Nosek hit Carlo with a pass at the right point where he fired a long shot through traffic and past Blackwood’s five-hole. Final score: 5-3 Bruins.