BOSTON (AP) — With the Boston Bruins’ season on the brink and the team’s top scorer mired in a scoring slump, coach Jim Montgomery didn’t hesitate to publicly challenge David Pastrnak to do more in Game 7 against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
It helped bring out some of his best hockey at the perfect moment.
Pastrnak scored on a feed from Hampus Lindholm 1:54 into overtime and the Bruins beat the Maple Leafs 2-1 in Game 7 on Saturday night to clinch their first-round series and advance in the NHL playoffs.
“He’s trying to bring the best out of every single player. He expects more,” Pastrnak said. “I admitted I needed to be better.”