BOSTON – It took a full team effort, and more, for the Boston Bruins to bounce back into the win column on Tuesday night.
The Bruins (31-20-3) needed overtime to beat the Nashville Predators (24-23-5), 3-2, at the TD Garden. They bounced back from an overtime loss on Monday and, because of the weather, faced a long travel day before Tuesday night’s game. Although it looked similar to Monday night’s performance, especially in the third period, the Bruins trusted their game, and the hot hands continued to produce.
The Bruins jumped out to a 2-0 lead just three minutes into the second period. Hampus Lindholm, who was just named to Team Sweden, scored on a shot from the point.
“Of course you’re excited, and you want to show yourself off from the best side,” Lindholm said about getting a jump from the phone call he received earlier in the day. “Like I said, great honor just to be put on that team and hopefully go there and make a difference and try to win something for Sweden.”
Lindholm’s goal came on Team Finland goaltender Juuse Saros. Lindholm laughed when Matt Vautour mentioned in the postgame; he did not realize it.
Morgan Geekie scored his fifth goal in the last five games, and in the process, he extended his point streak (5-2–7). He took David Pastrnak’s feed and placed it up high.
“I think he’s enjoying the game again,” Marco Sturm said about Geekie. “I think that’s the biggest thing. When you don’t score, he’s getting frustrated with what is normal. It’s almost like he doesn’t enjoy the game anymore. Now, he’s a happy camper.”
Momentum swung, though, much like Monday in New York.
Image Courtesy of NaturalStatTrick
After the Bruins scored, the Predators put up a fight.
The Predators piled shot attempts on after Geekie’s goal, finishing with 50 attempts, 30 on target. Jeremy Swayman made 28 saves.
The first Predators goal came with 35 seconds to play in the second period; the tying goal came with seven minutes left in the third.
“We just have to stay calm at certain times,” Marco Sturm said of the late tying goal. “They pressed pretty good after that, but I felt a calmness in front of me on our bench. So I knew we just had to finish here, the 60 minutes, just to get the point, and I felt pretty good going into OT.”
As he has been doing in overtime all season, Mark Kastelic won the overtime draw, and much like a lacrosse FOGO, Kastelic hopped off the ice.
Marat Khusnutdinov, Charlie McAvoy, and David Pastrnak moved the puck around the zone before McAvoy delivered a cross-ice feed to Pastrnak that he tapped in. It only took 15 seconds.
The goal marks Pastrnak’s first overtime tally of the season, and the 13th of his career.
“We responded well, good to get it quick,” Pastrnak said about the goal. “Sometimes that’s the way it works. It’s a great play, great faceoff win, start with possession.”
The Bruins got an assist from Head Equipment Manager, Keith Robinson, as well.
“I don’t know if everybody saw, but (Keith Robinson) made a great play to get [Khusnutdinov]’s steel on right before he hopped out there to make the play,” Geekie said about the overtime goal.
Robinson was not the only other Bruins’ staff member to come in clutch on Tuesday.
After a game in New York City on Monday night, the Bruins took a bus home to Boston. Geekie told the sea of reporters that the team got in at 1:30 PM.
“Johnny Mac (John MacLean), our skills coach, he was nice enough to go and shovel everybody’s car off so we could get home,” Geekie said. “And then our chefs came out to the airport as well, to give us some pregame.”
Marco Sturm added that “it was a full team effort from everyone.”
On Monday, Marco Sturm mentioned that the Bruins played their opposition’s game. On Tuesday, the Bruins nearly fell into the same scenario, but they prevailed in overtime.
“I think today was more about us,” Sturm said. “Again, it goes back to the travel and no excuse. We have to find our game; yesterday we didn’t, but we should have won the game.”
“We can’t be perfect every night, and I will never critique a win.”
Although they might not have played perfect, the Bruins are a perfect 8-0-0 at home in January. They will play their final home game of the month on Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers (24-18-9).