BOSTON — The Bruins caught up to history on Saturday night at TD Garden and, on Sunday in Philadelphia, they have a chance to make some of their own.
The Bruins notched their 62nd win with a 2-1 victory over the New Jersey Devils, tying the 1995-96 Red Wings and 2018-19 Lightning for most wins in the regular season.
It was thoroughly entertaining possible preview of an Eastern Conference final. Late in the game, Bruins fans even mustered a “We Want The Cup” chant.
While both teams were safely ensconced in the playoffs, there was a whiff of playoff hockey in the air. The Devils had a chance to leapfrog the Carolina Hurricanes for first place in the Metropolitan Division and thus avoid a tough first round matchup with with cross-Hudson rival Rangers. The Bruins, meanwhile were trying to tie the records for wins in a season.
And the Bruins came out flying, taking a 2-1 lead in a first period in which they had a 22-10 shot advantage.
They got it going after Brad Marchand forced Ryan Graves to hold him on a dump-in, putting the Bruins on an early power play. This time, they didn’t fiddle around with the puck, creating numerous chances before former Devil Pavel Zacha tipped home a Hampus Lindholm shot at 2:00.
The Bruins kept the pressure up and took a 2-0 lead just 2:44 later. Zacha set up David Pastrnak for a one-timer but it went over the net and bounced out to the right side. Goalie Mackenzie Blackwood was all spun around from the originally shot when Zacha backhanded his 20th goal of the season off the netminder’s pads.
But as well as the Bruins played in the first, the Devils showed off their quick strike capability to draw within a goal. The Devils transitioned quickly off a blocked Pastrnak shot and the Bruins got caught deep in the offensive zone. On a 2-on-1, Jack Hughes was able to get his pass past Charlie McAvoy and spring Jesper Bratt for a breakaway. Bratt made a pretty deke to his forehand and tucked it past Linus Ullmark’s outstretched right pad at 6:21.
The Devils came close to tying it up early in the second but an incredible sequence from Ullmark kept it a one-goal game. Hughes, one those most creative young players in the league, had a clean breakaway. Ullmark stopped Hughes’ first shot, his follow-up and Yegor Sharangovich’s third try.
Blackwood answered when Brandon Carlo sent Pastrnak off on a clean breakaway of his own and Jersey netminder stopped both the initial shot and the rebound attempt.
The second period was more even – shots were 10-10 – but it went to third at 2-1.
The Bruins had to kill off 3:45 of a McAvoy high-sticking penalty and they were able to do that and then grind out the rest of the third to tie the record.
