Boston Bruins

Bruins Postgame Takeaways: A Centennial Win Against The Canadiens

Published

1 month ago

December 1, 2024

AP Photo/Mary Schwalm

BOSTON — The Boston Bruins defeated the Montreal Canadiens by a final score of 6-3 on Sunday afternoon at TD Garden as they celebrated their centennial anniversary.

Charlie McAvoy and Charlie Coyle each had two goals for the Bruins, while David Pastrnak and Cole Koepke added ones of their own, all in support of a 26-save effort by Jeremy Swayman.

Cole Caulfield scored twice, and Emil Heineman had a goal as well for Montreal in front of Cayden Primeau, who made 24 saves on 29 shots

But that’s just the box score. Here are the key takeaways from the 100-year celebration on Causeway.

Holding On Against The Habs:

The Bruins seemed to have a win all but locked up with a 5-1 lead early in the third period. But after a pair of goals from Emil Heineman and Cole Caulfield, the entire tone of the game suddenly changed.

The Canadiens nearly brought themselves to within a goal when Mike Matheson rang a shot off the post on the power play while Brad Marchand sat in the box, serving a minor penalty for slashing, but somehow the puck stayed out.

Montreal maintained the pressure, pulling its goalie down two late in the game, but all that did was leave an empty net for Cole Koepke to seal a Bruins victory.

A Couple For The Chucks:

Charlie McAvoy and Charlie Coyle each had two goals in the win, making it the second time this season a pair of Bruins each scored twice in a single game.

McAvoy scored at 11:45 of the first period when he wrapped around the back of the net and tucked the puck between the post and right foot of Cayden Primeau to put the Bruins on the board first.

He found twine for the second time with a shorthanded score just 39 seconds into the second period for his fifth goal of the season.

7️⃣3️⃣ SHORTY 🚨 pic.twitter.com/kcxKKaP409

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) December 1, 2024

Coyle wrote his name on the scoresheet at 12:55 of the first period by roofing a backhand shot from the low slot and later added another tally to Boston’s total 21 seconds into the third period, scoring off the rush for his seventh goal of the season.

CC DOUBLES UP ✌️ pic.twitter.com/EfOqzrLgQ2

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) December 1, 2024

First Period Scoring Frenzy:

Despite all the pomp and circumstance surrounding the pregame festivities, there wasn’t much action after the puck was dropped.

That was until McAvoy, David Pastrnak, and Charlie Coyle broke the game wide open for the Bruins by scoring three goals in the span of 1:10.

After McAvoy got the Bruins on the board, Pastrnak followed up with his ninth goal of the season and first in seven games by going top shelf with a quick one-timer off a feed from Pavel Zacha.

CENTENNIAL SPAGHETTI. pic.twitter.com/iIWcZaTFys

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) December 1, 2024

Fifteen seconds following Pastrnak’s goal, the Bruins struck again with Coyle’s first of the night.

It was the third time this season the Bruins tallied three even-strength goals in a single period, with the other being in the third period at St. Louis on Nov. 12 and on Oct. 10 against Montreal.

Bruins Lines:

Geekie – Zacha – Pastrnak

Marchand – E. Lindholm – Brazeau

Frederic – Coyle – Kastelic

Koepke – Beecher – McLaughlin

Oesterle – McAvoy

Zadorov – Carlo

Lohrei – Peeke

Swayman

Korpisalo

Up Next:

The win for Boston was its fourth under interim head coach Joe Sacco and improved the team’s overall record to 12-11-3. The Bruins will play a back-to-back set starting on Tuesday night when they host the Detroit Red Wings before making a trip to visit the Chicago Blackhawks the following night.