Recap: Bruins power up in 5-3 win over Maple Leafs

The Boston Bruins scored three power-play goals to defeat the Toronto Maple Leafs, 5-3, for the second time in two games by the same score to extend their win streak to seven games at the TD Garden Tuesday night.

David Pastrnak had a two-goal game to hit 400 career goals while Alex Steeves netted his first as a Bruin.

The Bruins outplayed the Leafs for most of the game, retaining a cushion lead through two periods. Despite Toronto battling back from being down by three, Pastrnak’s second of the night — the Bruins three power-play tally of the game — secured the win.

With the win, the Bruins are now tied for first in the Atlantic Division.

Here are the highlights!

First period:

The first period saw three goals scored on three Bruins’ power plays, but only two in favor of the Black and Gold.

On an early power play, Pavel Zacha redirected David Pastrnak’s shot off his skate and past Anthony Stolarz to give the Bruins the lead. 1-0 Bruins.

But on their next man advantage, steven Lorentz forced a turnover as Charlie McAvoy couldn’t get the puck out of the defensive zone and ended up sending a wrist shot over Jeremy Swayman’s block for a shorthanded goal. 1-1 game.

The Bruins capitalized on another power play. Mason Lohrei slid a pass to Hampus Lindholm who, with screens out front, beat Stolarz glove side. 2-1 Bruins.

Alex Steeves then got his first goal as a Bruin on a play he created. Steeves battled for the puck along the end boards. Lindholm sent a pass to Steeves for him to put a five-hole shot past Stolarz. 3-1 Bruins.

Second period:

David Pastrnak netted career goal No. 400 just 49 seconds the second period to further cushion the Bruins lead. Morgan Geekie forwarded a pass to Pastrnak who in close, dragged the puck on his forehand to backhand then back to forehand for a low goal past Dennis Hildeby skate. 4-1 Bruins.

Toronto cut into their deficit with their own power-play goal to end the period after losing Austin Matthews. Bobby McMann threw a backhander past Swayman to make it a two-goal game. 4-2 game.

Third period:

Along the boards, Nick Robertson got the puck to Oliver Ekman-Larsson who threw a long snap shot at net that traveled past Swayman’s blocker. 4-3 game.

Mark Kastelic found Pastrnak low in the left-wing circle where he collected the puck from his skates for a wrist shot under the crossbar. Final score: 5-3 Bruins.

Game notes

• Well, it finally happened! Pastrnak hit No. 400 AND No. 401 AND nearly added an empty netter. It was nice seeing the team’s reaction to clear the bench and congratulate him on the milestone. He is now only one of six Bruins to hit that number.
• And Morgan Geekie continues just to be a force, springing Pastrnak on No. 400.
• It was another big win for the Bruins, and a dominant performance over the Leafs for most of the 60 minutes. The Leafs did outshoot the Bruins in the second and third, but Swayman made some important saves, including a helmet-losing blast.
• The B’s power play continues to be a huge asset for them, going 3 for 6 tonight.
• Matthews didn’t return for Toronto after leaving the second-period with what Toronto announced as a lower-body injury. The Maple Leafs went after Nikita Zadorov in the third because of it and things got chippy, obviously. Notably Max Domi took an awful roughing penalty for his team as Zadorov kept his gloves on and the Bruins came out of it with the advantage.
• Stolarz also left the game with an upper-body injury after the first.
• These two teams won’t see each other again until the end of March after meeting twice in a few days.
• The Bruins will hit the road to face the Ottawa Senators at 7 p.m. Thursday.