bruins_041418

BOSTON -- David Pastrnak had a hat trick and three assists for the Boston Bruins in a 7-3 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference First Round at TD Garden on Saturday.
"I played with great players in a great team (this season) and we're playing well now," Pastrnak said after becoming the youngest player to score six points in a Stanley Cup Playoff game. "It's very easy for me to follow up the team. ... We have a lot of guys who want it and they know what it takes."

The 21-year-old has four goals and five assists in the series, which ties the NHL record for most points by a player in the first two games of the playoffs (Phil Esposito, Bruins, 1969).
WATCH: [All Maple Leafs vs. Bruins highlights | Complete Bruins vs. Maple Leafs series coverage]
Linemates Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron each had four assists, and Tuukka Rask made 30 saves for the Bruins.
Boston leads the best-of-7 series 2-0. Game 3 is at Toronto on Monday.
"We are playing great as a line and we've been together for a while," Pastrnak said. "We've faced it every game this season and we want to get better every game. We don't think about the other team; we try to do our best and play simple and play pretty fast. I think we don't think about what's going to happen, just what we can do and what we can control."

Frederik Andersen started for the Maple Leafs but was pulled after allowing three goals on five shots in the first period. Curtis McElhinney replaced him and made 19 saves.
"They got four goals on six shots, that was pretty much it," Toronto coach Mike Babcock said. "I actually thought we were really jumping. I thought we looked good, I thought we had energy and I thought, at times in the game, we tried to push back. The bottom line is, you've got to keep it out of your net. They've done a good job of getting to the paint. Their skill guys have done a good job."
Pastrnak gave the Bruins a 1-0 lead 5:26 into the first period, scoring on a backhand after gathering a loose puck in the slot. Jake DeBrusk extended the lead to 2-0 with a power-play goal at 9:46. Kevan Miller made it 3-0 at 12:13, scoring on a wrist shot that deflected off Andersen's stick and Nikita Zaitsev into the net. Rick Nash scored a power-play goal on a rebound at 15:00 to make it 4-0.

"The first period, we finished well in front of their net," Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said. "We have a plan in place how we think we can score and I think we executed well again, for the most part. And off we went."
Mitchell Marner scored on a 2-on-1 following a turnover to cut it to 4-1 at 1:22 of the second period. David Krejci scored to make it 5-1 at 3:46. Tyler Bozak made it 5-2 at 9:02 on a one-timer in the slot.
Pastrnak scored at 12:34 of the third period to give Boston a 6-2 lead. James van Riemsdyk scored a power-play goal at 14:53 to make it 6-3.

Pastrnak completed the hat trick by putting the puck between his legs then scoring with a backhand at 18:24 to make it 7-3.
"Hell of a night," Marchand said. "You know he is an awesome player. He has been great for us all year. You know he's progressing, continually working on his game, trying to play the right way. I think that is what has been most impressive about the last couple of games isn't so much the scoring. ... that's great, but it's the way he's playing."

Goal of the game

Pastrnak's goal at 5:26 of the first period.

Save of the game

Rask's save on Auston Matthews at 4:34 of the third period.

Highlight of the game

Pastrnak's goal at 18:24 of the third period.

They said it

"We were outplayed for two games. I think, certainly if you add it up, 12-4 or whatever it is in six periods, we deserve every bit of criticism far and wide. The good news is, the story isn't totally written yet. We've got some work to do tomorrow to look after what happened here tonight and continue to improve. We can try to change the story come Monday night." -- Maple Leafs defenseman Ron Hainsey
"Yeah, we had some good looks in the first two games, but we can't stop there. We had the proof in the second period when we were up for four goals, we got away from it a bit. So I think it's about keep getting better, keep improving, keep putting games behind us and looking forward and staying in the moment. " -- Bruins center Patrice Bergeron

Need to know

Pastrnak (21 years, 324 days) is younger than Wayne Gretzky (22 years, 81 days) was when he had seven points against the Calgary Flames in Game 3 of the 1983 Division Finals. … It was the 19th time a player scored six points in an NHL playoff game, the first since Claude Giroux had three goals and three assists for the Philadelphia Flyers against the Pittsburgh Penguins on April 13, 2012. The record is eight points, held by Mario Lemieux (five goals, three assists for Penguins against Flyers in 1989) and Patrik Sundstrom (three goals, five assists for New Jersey Devils against Washington Capitals in 1988). Gretzky is the only player to score seven points in a game; he did so three times for the Edmonton Oilers (1983 against Calgary (4, 3); 1985 against Winnipeg Jets (3, 4); and 1987 against Los Angeles Kings (1, 6)). Two Bruins have scored six: Esposito (4, 2 against Maple Leafs in 1969) and Rick Middleton (2, 4 against Buffalo Sabres in 1983). ... Maple Leafs forward Leo Komarov left in the second period because of a lower-body injury. There was no update after the game.

What's next

Game 3 of Eastern Conference First Round at Air Canada Centre on Monday (7 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, TVAS, NESN)