Bruins Edge Canadiens with Bizarre Power-Play Goal, Eye Better Start vs. Rangers
With the game knotted at 3-3 late in the third period on Saturday night, the Bruins found themselves staring at a golden opportunity: a power play at TD Garden with just under five minutes to play. What followed was one of the strangest-and sneakiest-goals you’ll see all season.
It took only six seconds for Boston to cash in. Charlie McAvoy, quarterbacking the top unit, zipped a cross-ice feed to Morgan Geekie, who let a one-timer fly.
The puck clipped a Canadiens defenseman’s stick on its way in, then vanished. No red light.
No celebration. Not even the officials knew where the puck had gone.
They blew the whistle, assuming it had deflected out of play.
But Geekie had a feeling. So did David Pastrnak.
While most players looked around in confusion, the two Bruins forwards skated over to the net-and there it was, jammed in the back mesh. A quick review from Toronto confirmed what they already knew: it was a good goal, and it stood as the eventual game-winner.
“I honestly thought the goalie had it under his pad,” Pastrnak admitted postgame. “When he got up and didn’t have it there, I figured maybe it was up in the netting or something. But I didn’t see it.”
It marked the second time this month the Bruins scored a goal at TD Garden that left everyone scratching their heads. Earlier in January, during a 10-2 blowout of the Rangers, Pavel Zacha had a shot cleared off the goal line.
Play continued, and the period ended-only for Toronto to later confirm the puck had crossed the line. The teams were called back out to play the remaining 30 seconds of the period.
Next Up: A Trip to Madison Square Garden
Now, the Bruins shift their focus to a Monday night matchup with the Rangers in New York. While the Rangers are currently navigating some turbulence-potentially heading into a retooling phase not unlike Boston’s own reset last year-the Bruins know they can’t afford to sleepwalk through the first period the way they did against Montreal.
Boston managed just two shots in the opening frame on Saturday and found themselves trailing 1-0 early. That kind of start won’t cut it on the road, especially in a building like Madison Square Garden.
“It was not good,” said head coach Marco Sturm. “It was just flat.
For some reason, it was very quiet, no energy. We made some really bad mistakes.
Yeah, so it was a good response after that, for sure.”
Sturm has been vocal all season about the importance of strong starts, and with some lineup uncertainty-particularly surrounding defenseman Nikita Zadorov-it becomes even more critical. Playing from behind against a team like the Rangers, regardless of their current form, is a dangerous game.
The Bruins have shown they can rally, but if they want to keep stacking wins and build momentum heading into the second half of the season, they’ll need to bring the energy from puck drop-not just when the scoreboard demands it.