Nikita Zadorov didn't soften the message after Tuesday's 4-2 win in Buffalo. The Bruins defenseman made it clear what happens when someone touches Jeremy Swayman.

"When somebody slashes my goalie, it's my job to step in. They wanna keep doing it, they're gonna keep getting it."

That's not coach-speak. That's a warning shot aimed directly at the Sabres bench heading into Game 3.

Zadorov also went out of his way to praise Swayman, calling him "awesome" through the first two games of the series. The 27-year-old goaltender has earned every word of it.

Boston leveled the series 1-1 with a tight win on the road. Marco Sturm's group found the edge that was missing in Game 1 and used it as a blueprint.

The Russian blue-liner plays a particular role. At 31, with a plus-18 rating across 81 regular-season games, he's paid to make life miserable for anyone drifting near his crease.

Marco Sturm's enforcer just drew a line for Game 3

Sturm can't officially endorse that kind of quote. No coach does. But behind the scenes? This is exactly the tone he wanted from his veteran group.

Buffalo spent Game 1 poking and prodding at Swayman. Lindy Ruff's forwards treated the blue paint like a drive-thru. Tuesday night, the bill came.

Boston went 3-1 against the Sabres in the regular season, including a pair of overtime wins. This was never going to be a polite series, but it just jumped another level.

Zadorov's line of thinking is simple. Protect the goalie, punish the repeat offenders, let the message carry itself into the next game. Old-school hockey survival.

Does that logic hold up against a 109-point team with the division title on its résumé? That's the real question. Buffalo is deeper on paper and carries the better record.

The Sabres can respond two ways. Back off the goalie and focus on five-on-five, or keep poking and see if Boston takes penalties answering the bell.

Game 3 shifts to the TD Garden on Thursday. The crowd will already be hot. Zadorov just turned up the thermostat before anyone even laced up.