Bruins center and Vancouver native Fraser Minten had no shortage of friends and family in the stands for Saturday’s head-to-head with the Canucks.
And the 21-year-old made sure he delivered more than postgame hugs and photos in this one, as Minten scored the overtime winner in a 3-2 final for the Black and Gold.
The overtime goal was a thing of beauty, and showed a little bit of everything that’s made Minten a lineup staple for the Black and Gold this season. It all started in the defensive zone, as Minten had a smooth-as-can-be carry out of his zone before he won a board battle in the offensive zone, and then went to the net front, where he worked and worked into a wide-open look he did not miss.
The overtime goal was the second of two Minten goals in the victory, as it was Minten who opened things up for Boston with a first-period, power-play strike on Kevin Lankinen for what was his first power-play point of the season.
Sandwiched between the Minten markers was an Elias Lindholm power-play goal. The Lindholm tally, which came with assists to David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy, came at the 7:25 mark of the middle frame and was Lindholm’s seventh goal of the year.
At the other end of the rink, the Bruins’ Jeremy Swayman finished with 31 saves on 33 shots for the victory. Swayman had to be especially strong from the second period on, with the Bruins outshot by a combined 27-13 mark over the final 40 minutes of regulation. Swayman, who was downright under siege in the final five minutes of the third period, also stopped the only overtime shot faced leading up to Minten’s winner.
And after going a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty on Wednesday night, the Boston penalty kill was tested at an alarmingly high rate once more in this contest, and successfully killed off five of their six penalties against.
The Bruins will get another slight breather before they finish this road trip with a Tuesday night head-to-head with the Kraken down in Seattle.