Pavel Zacha scored twice last night as the Bruins routed the Penguins 6-2 in Pittsburgh for their third straight win.
Boston is now 12-4-1, second in the NHL and first in the Atlantic, with a +24 goal differential. Pittsburgh has lost four straight and sits 29th in the league.
The damage started with the Peterka-Zacha-Pastrnak line. Zacha had the two goals and finished +2 in 18:37 of ice time. David Pastrnak set up two goals and put four shots on net, and John-Jason Peterka added two assists of his own.
Jack Studley wrote that the first line was "buzzing" after Zacha's second of the night made it 4-2, and he singled out the feed from Peterka.
This is the same trio that was at the center of questions about Marco Sturm leaning on David Pastrnak's line not long ago. Last night, nobody was asking about workload. Sturm should leave this group exactly where it is.
Boston Hockey Now put the night in one line: Zacha scored twice and the Bruins rolled over the Penguins for a third straight win.
How Geekie and Elias Lindholm made it a rout
The game winner came from a steal. Elias Lindholm took the puck off Erik Karlsson and scored his sixth goal of the season, his third game-winner. Karlsson finished the night at -4.
Morgan Geekie kept his run going too. Studley noted that Geekie has three goals in the last three games after he made it 5-2 with 3:03 left in the second period.
Geekie also had an assist, so he left Pittsburgh with two points and a +2 rating in under 14 minutes.
Zacha and Geekie have both been part of Boston's recent run.
Behind the forwards, Hampus Lindholm quietly owned the night. Conor Ryan called him a monster, and the numbers back it up: +4 in 20:13 with an assist.
One cloud hangs over the win. James Hagens left the game in the third period after a crosscheck from Samuel Girard, and Marco Sturm had no update on Hagens afterward.
Next up is Florida on Sunday. Studley points out the Bruins have beaten the Panthers three straight times, and Boston will want to see whether the first line can keep this pace against a team that sits 11th in the league.
