david-krejcidavid-pastrnakbrad-marchand-b2a657215aeb5365Photo Credit: AP Photo/Winslow Townson

By: Garrett Haydon | Follow Me On Twitter @thesportsguy97

Pre-Game Notes

Arena: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Home: Toronto Maple Leafs (16-8-0)

Away: Boston Bruins (13-6-4)

Toronto’s Lineup

Forwards

Hyman-Tavares-Marner

Marleau-Kadri-Kapanen

Johnsson-Lindholm-Brown

Ennis-Gauthier-Leivo

Defense

Rielly-Hainsey

Gardiner-Zaitsev

Dermott-Ozhiganov

Goalies

Andersen

Sparks

Boston’s Lineup

Forwards

Marchand-Forsbacka Karlsson-Pastrnak

Heinen-Krejci-DeBrusk

Bjork-Nordstrom-Acciari

Wagner-Cave-Backes

Defense

Moore-Miller

Krug-Clifton

Lauzon-Grzelcyk

Goalies

Halak

Rask

First Period

Neither team got any good scoring chances in the first few minutes as the division rivals seemed to be feeling each other out. Jaroslav Halak was busy early, having to freeze a few pucks around the goal. The Bruins seemed to find their legs in the early going after a couple of good shifts. The Leafs attempts to use speed through the neutral zone were slowed down by some good defensive efforts.

The Bruins caught a break when Nazem Kadri hit the post on a breakaway after a great pass by Travis Dermott. Moments later, Colby Cave rang the iron which nearly gave the Bruins the lead. Halak was very busy towards the end of the period but did an outstanding job withstanding the Toronto onslaught.

The Leafs continued to skate very well and got a few chances towards the end of the period. Dermott capitalized and fired a wrist shot through traffic in front of the Boston net to give the Leafs the late first period lead.

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Score: 1-0 Leafs

Second Period

The Leafs went to the penalty box early on in the period as Par Lindholm went off as the Bruins looked to tie the game. After a persistent shift, David Pastrnak scored his 18th goal of the year off a beautiful feed from Brad Marchand to tie it up.

The Bruins continued to play well in the early stages of the period, putting a ton of rubber on Frederick Andersen. In the first six minutes of the period, the Bruins were outshooting the Leafs 9-0. The Leafs responded with a few good shifts but weren’t able to solve Halak. The Bruins would go back to the power play as the Leafs were called for too many men. The Bruins got countless chances but were unable to take the lead as the Leafs killed the penalty. Igor Ozhiganov scored his first career goal soon after as the Leafs retook the lead.

Pastrnak answered for the Bruins just 1:16 later as Torey Krug made an unbelievable pass through traffic as Number 88 scored his second goal of the night.

The Leafs would get their first power play of the game late in the period as Anders Bjork went off for tripping. Josh Leivo scored off of a rebound in the slot to give the Leafs the lead yet again with about a minute and a half still to go in the period.

Score: 3-2 Leafs

Third Period

The Bruins had some good early shifts in the final period, pushing for another tying goal. Danton Heinen nearly got the tying marker but his wrist shot hit the glove side post and bounced out, making it three posts for the Bruins in the game. Both teams were flying in the first seven minutes of the period as a few sequences went from end to end.

The Bruins had solid breakouts in the period but were unable to solve Andersen for a third time as the period went on. The Leafs seemed to not be satisfied with a one goal lead as they pushed hard to extend the lead a few times in the period. Halak was huge in the final period, keeping the Bruins in the game.

The Bruins pulled the goalie with two and a half minutes to go trying desperately to tie the game. Zach Hyman put the finishing touches on the game with an empty net goal with just 1:35 to play.

 

Final Score: 4-2 Leafs

Three Stars of the Game

Third Star: Andersen. The Leafs goalie had a solid night against everyone not named David Pastrnak but made a few important stops in the final period to preserve the victory.

Second Star: Mitchell Marner. The Leafs forward was a problem for the Boston defense as he totaled three assists.

First Star: Pastrnak. After a slow last few games, Pasta was at the top of his game and was a huge reason for the Bruins staying in the game in the second and third periods.

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