David Pastrnak had a goal and two assists to reach the 100-point mark for the third consecutive season, leading the Boston Bruins to a 7-2 win over the host New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night in Newark, N.J.
Pastrnak scored and assisted on the first two goals — the 12th and 13th straight Bruins goals to which he contributed, a franchise record — before the Bruins (32-38-9, 73 points) finalized a season-high offensive output on only 25 shots.
Michael Callahan scored his first NHL goal while Jakub Lauko and Fraser Minten posted their first since being acquired at last month’s trade deadline.
Casey Mittelstadt, Morgan Geekie and Cole Koepke also scored for the Bruins, while Jeremy Swayman made 19 saves.
Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier scored goals for New Jersey (41-30-7, 89 points), which had a three-game win streak snapped.
The Devils’ Jacob Markstrom allowed seven goals on 23 shots before Jake Allen was called upon in relief late.
The Bruins killed a penalty early in the first, and 1:14 later, Pastrnak intercepted a puck at the blue line and stepped into the zone for a wrist-shot goal from the left side to make it a 1-0 game at 9:38.
Callahan extended the Boston advantage with 35.3 seconds left in the first. After Pastrnak and Parker Wotherspoon exchanged passes that led to Callahan at the top of the left circle, the defenseman fired a wrister high blocker-side.
Lauko upped the score 3:45 into the second, stripping Devils defenseman Luke Hughes and racing the other way to net a top-shelf shot from the right dot.
The hosts clawed back with two goals in a 19-second span later in the second.
An extended shift on a delayed penalty allowed Noesen to bury New Jersey’s first goal at 13:51, scoring Daniel Sprong’s turnaround pass at the net front. Nico Hischier created the play, driving to the bottom of the left circle.
At 14:10, Erik Haula was the beneficiary of a turnover in the slot and took a shot that Meier deflected in to bring the Devils within 3-2.
Late in the second, though, Mittelstadt spun around for a shot near the left point that was deflected in through traffic as Boston took a 4-2 lead into intermission.
Three of Boston’s first four third-period shots found twine, beginning with Geekie receiving an incredible pass from a double-teamed Pastrnak along the right side and banging it home at 4:58.
Minten made it 6-2 when he turned around to bury the rebound of an Andrew Peeke point shot at 6:55.
Koepke contributed a great individual effort to split two defenders and snap in a goal at 10:50.
–Field Level Media
