In a game that had all the makings of a late-season thriller, David Pastrnak wasted no time putting the finishing touch on a hard-fought Bruins win. Just 15 seconds into overtime, Pastrnak redirected a slick feed from Charlie McAvoy past Juuse Saros, lifting Boston to a 3-2 victory over the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night.
That goal-Pastrnak’s 22nd of the season-capped off another standout performance from the Bruins’ star winger, who also added an assist to stretch his point streak to eight games. Just one night after hitting the 900-point milestone, Pastrnak reminded everyone why he’s the engine of this Bruins offense. He now has 10 assists in his last six games, and right now, he’s seeing the ice like it’s in slow motion.
Boston jumped out to a 2-0 lead behind goals from Morgan Geekie and Hampus Lindholm. Geekie continued his breakout campaign with his 30th of the season-yes, you read that right-and Lindholm found the back of the net on the same day he got the nod to join Sweden’s Olympic roster. Not a bad 24 hours for the veteran defenseman.
But Nashville didn’t go quietly. Roman Josi got the Predators on the board, and Nick Blankenburg knotted things up at 2-2 with a goal at 13:17 of the third, forcing overtime.
It was the kind of pushback you want to see from a team trying to claw its way out of a rough stretch. The Preds have now dropped four of their last five, but they showed some grit after falling behind early.
Steven Stamkos chipped in with an assist for Nashville, and Saros held his own with 25 saves. But it wasn’t enough to outduel Jeremy Swayman, who was sharp between the pipes for Boston, turning away 28 shots and giving his team a chance to regroup after a tough overtime loss to the Rangers just 24 hours earlier.
Back-to-backs can be brutal, especially when you’re coming off an emotional loss, but the Bruins improved to 5-2-0 in the second leg of those games this season. That’s the kind of resilience you need in the grind of an NHL schedule, and it’s a big reason they’re now 8-1-1 in their last 10.
One tough moment came late in the first period when Nashville’s Fedor Svechkov took a heavy hit from Lindholm and stayed down for a few minutes before slowly making his way off the ice. He didn’t return, and the Predators later ruled it an upper-body injury. Lindholm was called for interference on the play.
Next up, the Predators head to New Jersey to face the Devils on Thursday, looking to get back in the win column. The Bruins, meanwhile, will return home to host the Flyers as they continue to build momentum heading into the stretch run.