The Bruins didn’t exactly coast through this one, but when the third period opened up, they made sure the Sharks felt it.
Boston finished off San Jose 6-4 on Thursday to complete a season sweep, improving to 9-2-1 in the process. It was the second meeting between the clubs in 10 days, with the Bruins also taking the first matchup in Northern California, 6-3.
San Jose came in looking for payback. Instead, the game turned into a final-20-minute track meet that Boston controlled.
The early story was a little messier for the Bruins. They spent stretches pinned in their own zone in the first period and leaned on Jeremy Swayman to survive it.
That hold didn’t last forever. On San Jose’s first power play, Boston couldn’t get the puck out, and the Sharks cashed in.
A clearing attempt struck Tanner Jeannot in the back and stayed alive in the zone, then the puck found Michael Misa alone at the left post for the easy finish into an open net.
Boston’s penalty kill has done its job this season, but that sequence was the kind of mistake that can swing a game in a hurry.
The Bruins also kept feeding the Sharks opportunities with the puck on their sticks. Their power play continued to be more frustration than weapon, with the group once again drifting into overpassing and trying to force the puck to David Pastrnak.
Pastrnak had a few bad passes in the mix, and the bigger issue came when Elias Lindholm turned the puck over at the defensive blue line. Kiefer Sherwood pounced, broke in on a long pass, and beat Swayman.
That kind of giveaway was costly in a game Boston should have been able to control. The Bruins had two power plays late in the second period while up 2-1, but they didn’t build on the lead, and San Jose eventually pulled level. Both of the Sharks’ first two goals were avoidable ones for Boston, which made the middle of the game far more competitive than it needed to be.
Still, once the third period arrived, the Bruins looked like the team that had been thriving in closing time all season. They entered the final frame with a plus-16 goal differential in third periods, compared with San Jose’s minus-7, and they played to that edge.
The Sharks briefly grabbed a 3-2 lead on Dmitry Orlov’s power-play goal, but Boston answered with a burst that put the game away. David Pastrnak got involved, then James Hagens and Fraser Minten added goals of their own. Will Borgen finished it off with an empty-netter - the second time this season he’s scored one against the Sharks.
Minten’s power-play goal in the third period was a useful one, but Boston still has plenty to clean up in that department. Even so, the Bruins got the two points they needed before heading out for a two-game road trip against the Carolina Hurricanes and St. Louis Blues.
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Bruins Wild Rally Put One Big Question Back On The Table
The Bruins 6-4 win over the Sharks had the kind of back-and-forth feel that can make a midseason night matter a little more than the standings say it should. Boston had to answer multiple swings before finally taking control, with Jeremy Swayman stopping 21 shots and David Pastrnak dragging the game level in the third period while also adding another milestone to his already historic Bruins rsum.
Fraser Minten then delivered the goal that put Boston ahead for good, giving the Bruins a timely jolt in a game that asked plenty of their depth and their finish. It also left one familiar conversation hanging in the air afterward, because when Pastrnak keeps climbing the franchises record books, the next question is no longer whether he belongs in that company, but how much higher he can go. [Read more 🡒]
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Former Bruins Depth Pieces Just Hit An Uncomfortable Crossroads
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For Bruins followers, it is the kind of transaction that barely registers in the standings but still carries some interest because of how often these players cycle through the same development tracks. Merkulovs path now points toward Colorados AHL affiliate if he goes unclaimed, while Ahcans situation in Nashville comes after a brief run at the NHL level, leaving both players at an uneasy point where the next move depends on whether another team decides to step in. [Read more 🡒]