Recap: Bruins power past Red Wings, 5-1, in Marchand’s return and strong man-advantage

The Boston Bruins scored three goals in just over 90 seconds in the third period to beat the Detroit Red Wings, 5-1, tonight at the TD Garden.

The B’s are now 7-1-0 and a perfect 4-0-0 during this homestand.

Three of the Bruins’ five goals were on the power play - and two from Brad Marchand alone.

Marchand registered three points total and picked up right where he left off as he made his season debut after recovering from hip surgery.

Jeremy Swayman made 28 saves in his third start of the season.

Here are the highlights!

First period:

The Bruins opened the scoring at 13:42 of the first period.

Marchand won a battle along the boards. He got the puck loose to Derek Forbort who sent a short pass to Charlie Coyle entering the zone. Coyle exploded down the center lane, beating the Red Wings’ defense to put a wrist shot in the slot over Husso’s blocker. 1-0 Bruins.

The Bruins extended their lead at 11:53 of the second period on the power play.

Hampus Lindholm fed a pass to Marchand where inside the left-wing circle, he let a wrist shot fly top-shelf over Husso’s glove. 2-0 Bruins.

The Red Wings cut into their deficit at 18:49 of the second period.

Taylor Hall’s stick got in the way of a pass Filip Hronek was trying to make which made the puck come loose to Adam Erne who spun around and threw a shot on net. Through traffic, it beat Swayman. 2-1 game.

Third period:

The Bruins cushioned their lead at 2:55 of the third period with their second power-play goal of the night - and another one from Marchand.

David Pastrnak took a shot from the point. Jake DeBrusk battled out front for the rebound, but the loose puck came out to Marchand just above the goal line for a quick shot past Husso. 3-1 Bruins.

The Bruins further extended their lead seconds later at 3:30 of the third period.

Forbort sent a pass to Tomas Nosek who carried it towards the net, but fumbled with the puck for Craig Smith to grab it and sneak a wrist shot past Husso’s left shoulder. 4-1 Bruins.

The Bruins scored their third power-play goal of the night at 4:34 of the third period. It also capped off three goals in one minute and 39 seconds.

Patrice Bergeron fed a pass to Pastrnak at the top of the left-wing circle where he sent a one-timer past Husso. Final score: 5-1 Bruins.

Game notes:

• Marchand made his season debut a month ahead of schedule tonight. He made an impact right away with three points. We won’t say Marchand was the missing factor (but we are thinking it) in having a consistent power play, BUT he did score two on the man-advantage.
• The power play scored three goals. The man-advantage went 50% and is now 34% effective with the addition of tonight’s tallies.
• Pastrnak’s three points (one goal and two assists) in the game makes him currently the league’s leader in points with 15. He’s on a three-game point streak with three goals and four assists.
• David Krejci took a high-stick to the face in the second period and left the bench following it. He did not return in the second or for the third period. Head Coach Jim Montgomery did not have a concrete update on Krejci other than he would not be traveling to Columbus for tomorrow’s game.
• Jeremy Swayman kept things a one-goal game with strong tracking through the first 40 minutes. He had a series of back-to-back saves on in-close shots and stepped up on the occasions he needed to bail out his defensemen’s breakdowns. He also had his highest save percentage this season and since Feb. 2022 when he recorded a shutout.
• The opposite of a breakdown - Derek Forbort is having himself a season and in just seven games played. He was effective in the offensive zone again and his game is evolving from that shutdown defender to being one that’s also actively involved in offensive plays. He also made a great block on a 3-on-1 that aided Swayman out front. Not to mention he completely leveled Joe Veleno. Tonight was his first multi-point game (two assists) since the 2018-19 season.
• Trade: The Bruins announced - during the third period - that Jack Studnicka was traded to the Vancouver Canucks for Michael DiPietro and Jonathan Myrenberg.
• It’s a quick turnaround time for the Bruins who will hit the road and face the Columbus Blue Jackets tomorrow night at 7 p.m.