Boston Bruins winger David Pastrnak isn’t scoring at the rate he did the previous two seasons. In fact, Pastrnak currently is on pace to finish with under 30 goals for the first time since the shortened 2020-21 season.
But the Bruins star served up a reminder Saturday night that he can still make a monumental offensive impact even when he’s not finding the back of the net.
Pastrnak turned in a four-point showing in Boston’s much-needed 5-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena. The 28-year-old dished out three assists and tallied a goal, too, giving the Bruins, who have been challenged offensively this season, a vital spark.
“His game is all-around,” Bruins interim head coach Joe Sacco told reporters, per team-provided audio. “We all know that. He can score, he can pass, the ability to make plays. Obviously getting him going in the right direction offensively is a huge boost for our team.”
Pastrnak set up Boston’s two first-period goals and his third helper just 1:12 into the second frame was a thing of beauty. He gathered a puck along the boards in the neutral zone and sent a perfect, backhanded lead pass to Pavel Zacha, who got behind the Canucks defense before scoring.
The three-assist night put Pastrnak into exclusive company as he became the 11th player in franchise history to notch 400 career assists. Pastrnak added a wraparound tally just seconds into the third period for good measure as he has 10 points in seven games this month.
He might not be scoring with the same regularity this season, but the three-time All-Star certainly is still making winning plays.
“He’s so talented, he’s so skilled and same thing, he works on his game more than any of us,” Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman told reporters, as seen on NESN postgame coverage. “It’s really awesome to see him get rewarded and we know he’s going to come up big every time.”
Here are more notes from Saturday’s Bruins-Canucks game:
— Brad Marchand trolled Canucks fans after he scored on the power play to give Boston a 1-0 lead just 5:12 into the contest. Canucks fans boo’d the Bruins captain whenever he touched the puck, so during his goal celebration, Marchand put his hand to his ear after he silenced the crowd.
— Sacco inserted Marc McLaughlin back into the lineup after being a healthy scratch against the Seattle Kraken and the Billerica, Mass., native came through with his first goal of the season. McLaughlin got some puck luck as his shot deflected in to beat Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko.
“It feels really good,” McLaughlin told reporters, as seen on NESN postgame coverage. “Obviously a fortuitous bounce there. But a great play by (Andrew Peeke) stepping up on the wall in their wing and just throwing it on net.”
— It was the first time playing in Vancouver for former Canucks Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov since signing long-term deals with the Bruins in the offseason. Lindholm notched an assist on Marchand’s goal and Zadorov was second among all Bruins defenseman with 23:04 of ice time. Zadorov skated alongside Charlie McAvoy on Boston’s top defensive pairing.
— Jeremy Swayman had a bounce-back performance after allowing a career-high eight goals in his last start against the Winnipeg Jets. Swayman finished with 19 saves. But the netminder’s biggest contribution might have come at the end of morning skate when he established good vibes by leading the team in a group hug.
“I wasn’t leaving the ice without a group hug,” Swayman told reporters with a smile. “It’s a perfect time for it. We all love each other in this locker room and just to show that on the ice that today’s a new day, sun rose today and we’re going to make sure that we’re all in this together, ups and downs of it all. So, we’re going to keep hugging, that’s for sure.”
— The Bruins continue their West Coast road trip Tuesday when they take on the Calgary Flames. Puck drop from Scotiabank Saddledome is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET, and you can watch the game, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.
