Bruins’ David Pastrnak continues his reign as Maple Leafs mulcher
David Pastrnak has now recorded 54 points in 41 career games against the Maple Leafs.
David Pastrnak tried to keep things simple on Monday night.
After landing just four total shots on goal in Boston’s previous two games, the Bruins’ star winger made a concerted effort to put more pucks on net at Scotiabank Arena.
The results reflected on the stat sheet, with Pastrnak landing seven shots on goal against Toronto goalie Joseph Woll — marking the 14th time this season that the forward put at least seven pucks on net in a single game.
Of those seven shots, zero of them sailed past Woll and into twine.
But against a team like Toronto, Pastrnak still found a way to dole out plenty of damage.
In what has become a regular trend over the years, Pastrnak shredded the Leafs defense on Monday — recording three primary assists in Boston’s 4-1 win over Toronto.
Pastrnak has been a thorn in the side of the Maple Leafs ever since he made the jump up to the NHL ranks.
With his three-point night on Monday, Pastrnak has now posted 35 points in 27 regular-season games against Toronto. When you factor in playoff stats, Pastrnak has recorded a whopping 54 points in 41 games against Boston’s Original Six foe.
Monday’s win was a much-needed result for the Bruins, who entered the game mired in a 4-4-5 slump since returning from the All-Star Break.
“It’s definitely frustrating when you’re in that situation and you try to find solutions,” Pastrnak said postgame of Boston’s recent slide. “It can eat you alive sometimes — you’re looking at it the wrong way or just overthinking it.
“So it’s no fun, but I’ve been here for some years now. Every year is the same, you go through these a couple of times a year. … You gotta go through it. It’s just you have to refocus and find a way to get back [to] the right way to play.”
The odds weren’t exactly in Boston’s favor on Monday up in Toronto, given both the Bruins’ inconsistent play and a matchup against a Leafs club that won nine out of its last 10 games.
But Pastrnak and the Bruins jumped out to an early lead and did not look back — with a pair of feeds from Pastrnak leading to tallies from Morgan Geekie and Pavel Zacha at 9:43 and 12:42 in the first period, respectively.
Another goal from Jake DeBrusk on a rush sequence (his first tally in six games) gave Boston a three-goal cushion going into the final 20 minutes of play.
Boston’s lackluster play as of late has been littered with instances of the Bruins relinquishing third-period leads.
But in a refreshing change of pace, the Bruins took care of business in the final period of play — with Pastrnak setting up Zacha’s second goal of the evening at 10:35 to give Boston some much-needed breathing room.
Even though he wasn’t able to light the lamp, Pastrnak had no qualms with Monday’s performance — especially with his linemate Zacha getting on a roll with two goals. Entering Monday night, Zacha recorded just three points (zero goals) in his last 11 games.
“Was one of those days,” Pastrnak said of his playmaking. “Pav was burying them. … That was my mindset coming into the game today — was definitely being a shooter. It didn’t work out, but maybe for [the] better.”
Even though Pastrnak has established himself as one of the top snipers in the NHL over the years, the 27-year-old forward has augmented his approach on the ice this season. He’s already scored 38 goals in 63 games in 2023-24, but Pastrnak has also taken on more of a playmaking approach in order to counter defenses focused on taking away his shooting lanes.
With his three assists on Monday, Pastrnak now has 52 assists this season — tying his previous career high for helpers in a single campaign. And with 19 games still left on the schedule, the winger will be in line to further pad his playmaking stats moving forward.
Pastrnak — now up to 90 points this season — could come in handy if the current standings in the Eastern Conference hold and Boston battles Toronto in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
But with more than six weeks remaining on the regular-season docket, Pastrnak isn’t dwelling on what might await in late April.
“I wouldn’t say necessarily,” Pastrnak said of any additional emphasis on a matchup against a potential playoff opponent. “But for sure, with every divisional team, you definitely give it a little bigger focus because those are points and they’re almost worth four, especially in the same division. So those games that you definitely give it more focus. But playoffs are still 20 games or so away. So I don’t look that far.”
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com