By: Ryan Bosworth | Follow me on Twitter/X @RyanJBosworth
The Boston Bruins were back on TD Garden ice after a quick trip out to Buffalo, as they hosted the Minnesota Wild for their 73rd game of the season. With just ten games to go, every point is crucial for their playoff point, and tonight was no exception.
A Minnesota team that’s had a strong year wasn’t going to go down easy — but neither was Boston. Boston came into tonight’s game with a record of 40-24-8, their best record since 2023-24. With 88 points, they sit in fourth place in the Atlantic Division.
Minnesota came into tonight’s game with a record of 41-20-12. With 94 points, they sit in third place in a very strong Central Division, trailing the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars. With a win tonight, Minnesota can clinch a postseason berth. So, needless to say, tonight is important for both teams.
The Bruins came out of the gate flying, owning possession for the first 61 seconds before an Andrew Peeke snipe would put the Bruins up 1-0 over the Wild at just 18:59 of the first period.
They wouldn’t stop there, as the Bruins’ second line would be the next to cash in, thanks to an impressive outlet pass by Casey Mittelstadt, who fed Viktor Arvidsson, who slid it to Pavel Zacha for the one-timer cash-in, putting the Bruins up 2-0 in the first. Against a tough Minnesota team, this was as good a start as the Bruins could’ve asked for.
The Bruins’ would have an equally strong second period, despite squandering a goal from Kirill Kaprizov. Before that, though, Boston would go up 3-0, thanks to none other than Viktor Arvidsson — who scored his 21st of the season and second point of the evening — off a feed from David Pastrnak, who fed it cross-slot for a one-timer that went rifling past Filip Gustavsson.
The MVP of the second period was easily Jeremy Swayman, who was incredibly sharp despite a ton of traffic in front of his net. He made a flurry of saves that had TD Garden singing his praises. Somehow, he was able to stop all but one of Minnesota’s shots, and it took them until shot #23 to get past the Bruins netminder.
Elias Lindholm would score the Bruins’ fourth goals of the game — and his third in four games — increasing the Bruins’ lead to three. This was a bit of a fall-off point for Boston, as things would get sloppy and Minnesota would creep back in, as they allowed the Wild to score two unanswered goals, cutting their lead to just a goal, with a score of 4-3.
Who else but Pavel Zacha and the Bruins’ second line to add another to their lead, increasing it to two. Assisted by Casey Mittelstadt — his second of the game — the Bruins, once again, had some breathing room.
Elias Lindholm would get the insurance marker, scoring an empty net goal to put the Bruins up 6-3, which would prove to be the final score. Casey Mittelstadt assisted once again on a Bruins goal, making it three assists on the evening for #11.
A very strong game for the Black and Gold, and a very important two points were secured, as they now sit in the first wild card spot in the East with a three point lead over the Columbus Blue Jackets, who they face tomorrow at 5:00 p.m. EST.
The Bruins improve to 41-24-8 with tonight’s victory.
Tonight’s Takeaways:
- Zacha (two goals), Mittelstadt (three assists), and Arvidsson (goal, assist) combined for six points. The Bruins’ second line also combined for a plus/minus rating of +10.
- David Pastrnak (two assists) extended his point streak to 12 games, and he has 20 points in that stretch (7-13-20).
- Jeremy Swayman stopped 31 of 34 shots, recording a save percentage of .912. Tonight’s win marked a career-high 29 wins through 48 starts.
- Pavel Zacha brought himself within two points of 400 career points with his two goals tonight.
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