The Boston Bruins battled with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday evening. The game between the two Original Six rivals meant a lot for the Eastern Conference playoff picture as the winner would hold possession of second place in the Atlantic Division. That result didn’t turn out in the Bruins’ favor as Toronto went on to win 6-4.
The Maple Leafs took a resounding advantage in the first period, scoring the first goal and then the final two goals of the period. Colin Blackwell scored his ninth goal about five minutes into the period. Jason Spezza delivered a snappy cross-crease pass to Blackwell who buried the one-timer. Shortly after, David Pastrnak tied up the game with his 38th goal and 14th power-play goal.
That tie didn’t last for long, though. Morgan Reilly put the Leafs back up around halfway through the period, then Alexander Kerfoot made it a 3-1 Toronto lead late in the period.
The second period showed Toronto extend their lead and continue to dominate the Bruins. Mitch Marner scored his 28th goal of the season on a slick pass from Auston Matthews. Later in the period, Matthews scored his NHL-leading 49th goal, tapping in a power-play goal.
David Kampf scored less than a minute after Matthews to increase the Toronto score to six. Though they had a long way to come back, Jake DeBrusk scored his 17th goal of the year to cut the deficit to four goals. Toronto led 6-2 after two.
The third period went and nothing much changed as Toronto secured the victory. Curtis Lazar scored his seventh goal of the year 13 minutes into the period which cut the lead to three. Taylor Hall also slipped the puck past Erik Kallgren for his 15th of the year, but it still wasn’t enough. Toronto held on to win 6-4.
Jeremy Swayman started the game but didn’t have a good performance. Swayman saved 19-of-25 shots for a .760 save percentage. Linus Ullmark relieved Swayman for the third period and made seven saves to finish the game.
Kallgren had an impressive performance in his sixth start until the third period. He posted a .885 save percentage, letting in three goals on 26 shots. The 25-year-old goaltender has been playing for the Leafs since Jack Campbell has been injured.
The Bruins will hope to bounce back on Thursday back at home as they take on the New Jersey Devils. Puck drop will take place at 7 p.m. ET at TD Garden.