When facing a rebuilder of the highest order — which is exactly what the Sharks are in this very moment and who the Bruins took on Thursday night in San Jose — it doesn’t take much to land a knockout punch. It can be a bad break that goes against ’em, an ugly shift that has them gassed and backing off when they need to do the complete opposite, or really just about anything that leaves a player looking skyward in frustration, disbelief, and agony.
Or, as all three of the B’s goals last night confirmed, it can be a combination of all of the above.
Trading pushes for the first 18 minutes of their head-to-head last night, a Brad Marchand snipe opened things up for the Bruins and opened the door for the Bruins to double their lead just 21 seconds later, and a ping-pong styled goal from David Pastrnak in the second period was a straight-up soul-crushing marker for San Jose to surrender.
The hole was dug so deep that not even an Anthony Duclair goal off Hampus Lindholm and through Linus Ullmark could be enough to bring the Sharks back to life in what finished as a 3-1 victory for the Bruins.
As noted, it took what felt like a staggering 18 minutes and six seconds for the Bruins to finally beat the Sharks’ Kaapo Kahkonen.
On the board with that beautiful Marchand snap through Kahkonen, it would be a net-front melee led by Trent Frederic and James van Riemsdyk that ultimately helped the Bruins jump out to their two-goal edge, with van Riemsdyk credited with his third goal of the year with a net-front shovel under and through Kahkonen.
Marchand’s goal was good for both his first goal since becoming the Black and Gold’s captain as well as the first point of Johnny Beecher’s NHL career. And for JVR, the goal saw him hit the three-goal marker in a fraction of the time it took him with the Flyers in what was a forgettable 2022-23 campaign with the club.
James van Riemsdyk has three goals in 28:05 with the Bruins. Last year, he played 130+ minutes before scoring his third goal of the season.
— Ty Anderson (@_TyAnderson) October 20, 2023
The Bruins then built off that two-goal opening frame with a relatively mediocre middle frame that still saw them push their lead out to three with Pastrnak's straight-up bizarre goal.
Just how David Pastrnak drew it up.
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) October 20, 2023
Make it four goals in three games for Pastrnak.
3-0 Bruins. pic.twitter.com/bXPYC6aVHN
In Boston's net, Linus Ullmark was good when he needed to be in this contest, too, and finished with 26 saves on 27 shots faced.
And, sure, the season is still extremely young, but it’s most certainly a good sign that the only goals that have beaten Ullmark this year have been from 2023 No. 1 overall pick Connor Bedard and friendly fire from Lindholm. Ullmark’s ability to hold his own in his net was also noteworthy considering that this was his first game action in over a week given the B’s downright horrific schedule out of the gate this season.
The big story for the Bruins in this one was almost certainly the defensive activation put forth by the Boston blue line. (Listen, any time Derek Forbort decides to go full Bobby Orr in hunt of offensive production, it’s going to be mentioned in this here space.) But Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery’s new lines — both ones established before this game and changes made in-game Thursday night — came to the table in this one.
For starters, if first impressions mean anything, the Bruins may have something cooking with van Riemsdyk to the left of Charlie Coyle and Trent Frederic. Per NaturalStatTrick, the van Riemsdyk-Coyle-Frederic line was together for 10:21 of five-on-five action, and finished the night with a 12-3 advantage in shot attempts, 10-2 edge in shots, and 1-0 scoring advantage.
Boston’s new-look line with Jake DeBrusk to the left of Pavel Zacha and David Pastrnak also had a strong showing, with a 16-8 edge in shot attempts and 10-2 edge in shots at five-on-five play.
With the win, the Bruins have now won six straight contests in San Jose. That’s the longest road unbeaten streak in the history of the Bruins-Sharks franchise head-to-head.
It was also Boston’s 12th straight victory over the Sharks overall. It’s now just one win behind matching the Wild and their 13 straight victories over the Ducks as the NHL’s longest active winning streak against one franchise. The Bruins will have a chance to make it 13 in a row when the Sharks come to town on Nov. 30.
The Bruins will now head to Los Angeles ahead of a Saturday night showdown with the Kings.
Ty Anderson is a writer and columnist for 985TheSportsHub.com. He has been covering the Bruins since 2010, and has been a member of the Boston chapter of the PHWA since 2013. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, HockeyBuzz.com or any subsidiaries. Yell at him on Twitter/X: @_TyAnderson.