Charlie McAvoy scored in the eighth round of the shootout, and Jeremy Swayman made 43 stops as the Boston Bruins rallied for a 4-3 victory against the Dallas Stars on Monday at TD Garden.
Boston (33-12-11) got a goal and an assist from Jesper Boqvist, two assists from McAvoy, and goals from Justin Brazeau and David Pastrnak. Swayman stopped eight of nine shootout tries for the Bruins, who snapped a four-game losing streak (0-2-2).
“These are my favorite moments, baby.” “That’s why I play,” Swayman said. “It’s very remarkable. They will also be against [Stars goaltender Jake] Oettinger. We had a terrific relationship, and watching him simply hold down the fort on the other end made you realize you needed to step up. So this is one of those games that you’ll remember for a long time, and I really loved it.”
Wyatt Johnston, Ryan Suter, and Esa Lindell scored for Dallas (34-14-8), which has dropped two consecutive games (0-0-2) after winning the previous three. Oettinger made 25 saves and blocked seven of nine attempts in the shootout.
“It’s a tough, tough building to play in, even with a full lineup,” said Stars coach Peter DeBoer. “I believe we recognized this, and we came up, worked, and played the proper way. We performed a terrific job.
Dallas used 11 forwards and six defenders after center Matt Duchene suffered a lower-body injury during warmups. The Stars were also without three of their top six defensemen: Miro Heiskanen, who missed the game to attend his child’s birth, and Jani Hakanpaa (upper body) and Nils Lundqvist.
Pastrnak knotted the score 3-3 at 18:15 in the third quarter. With Swayman out as an extra attacker, McAvoy passed across the zone to Pastrnak, who scored on a one-timer from the left face-off circle.
“Something has to happen to overcome, to get out of the malaise that we were in, results-wise,” Bruins coach Jim Montgomery said. “We had a terrific effort from our goalkeeper, and then in 6-on-5, our great players produced amazing moves. “It’s time to tie the game.”
At 4:01 in the first period, Boqvist scored in front of Anthony Richard’s centering pass, giving the Bruins a 1-0 lead.
“It kind of just happened,” Boqvist said. “I don’t believe it will go in if I just touch it once, but it simply occurred. It was amazing to see that one go in, and it was also our first goal at home.”
At 11:14, Johnston diverted Thomas Harley’s attempt, tying it 1-1. Johnston is on a three-game point run, with six points (three goals and three assists).
“I think one of the things that stands out here is that everyone kind of stays level,” Dallas defender Alexander Petrovic said. “Nobody’s freaking out or going crazy. It is a hockey game. “Things happen quickly.
Suter gave the Stars a 2-1 lead at 1:04 of the second period with a shot from the left faceoff circle.
At 1:32, the Bruins knotted it 2-2 with a goal by Brazeau. It was the forward’s first NHL goal in his first game. He inked a two-year, two-way deal earlier on Monday.
“It’s a cool feeling,” Brazeau said. “This has been a long time coming for me. I worked hard to get here, so seeing that brings everything full circle. “It feels great.”
Lindell gave the Stars a 3-2 lead at 10:44 in the third period, holding the ball on a 2-on-1 rush and scored from the right side.
“Kind of disappointing,” Lindell added. “We had numerous opportunities to seal the game and go away with two points, but they didn’t come. Now, just reset and be ready for tomorrow [against the New York Rangers].”
More in Sports: https://buzzing.today/sports/
Photo Credits: https://commons.wikimedia.org/
McAvoy scores in the ninth round of the shootout, and the Bruins comeback over the Stars.
by