Through the first two periods, the Bruins had no business coming away with two points against the Montreal Canadiens. If it weren’t for Tuukka Rask, things would’ve been a lot worse than the 1-0 deficit they faced after 40 minutes.

The Bruins got a spark in the third, however, scoring three unanswered goals and snapped a seven-game regular season losing streak to their hated rivals, defeating the Canadiens 3-1 on Wednesday night at the Bell Centre. Here are a few things that we learned from the victory.

Claude Julien’s in-game line changes are a new norm

During his tenure in Boston, Claude Julien’s lineup was pretty much set in stone for sixty minutes. Very rarely would he shake things up with his lines and d-pairings if the Bruins were in need of one during the course of a game.

With several new additions to the lineup, Julien’s philosophy regarding line changes has changed this season. More often than not, he’s shaken things up with his lineup to get a boost from his team. Sometimes, it’s worked. Other times, it hasn’t. That’s the chance any coach takes in the NHL.

Against the Canadiens, the changes worked. Following two lackluster periods where the Bruins only fired 14 shots on goal, the ninth-year Bruins coach made some changes. The most notable tweak was the trio of Ryan Spooner, Landon Ferraro and Brett Connolly, who were on the ice for Ferraro’s game-winner at 8:35 of the third — 42 seconds after Loui Eriksson tied the game with a shorthanded goal on a breakaway. Brad Marchand (tallying assist No. 7 of the year) and Patrice Bergeron (who scored his ninth this season) — welcoming Matt Beleskey to their line in the third — combined to put the dagger to the Habs on a give and go at 13:42 of the third.

A look below at how the lines looked for the first 20 minutes and Julien’s changes for the third.

Marchand-Bergeron-Connolly
Matt Beleskey-David Krejci-Eriksson
Frank Vatrano-Spooner-Hayes
Zac Rinaldo-Max Talbot-Ferraro

Marchand-Bergeron-Beleskey
Vatrano-Krejci-Eriksson
Spooner-Ferraro-Connolly
Rinaldo-Talbot-Hayes

First, second and third star honors belong to Tuukka

Every Bruin who was on the ice tonight owes Rask a steak dinner. Through two periods, the Finn faced 26 shots and stopped 25 of them. The only goal he allowed was at 8:49 of the first when he was the victim of an unlucky bounce thanks to the puck bouncing off of Zach Trotman’s hip. The goal was credited to Paul Byron, his fourth of the season.

Despite his consistent struggles in his career facing the Habs, Rask stood tall and made some crucial stops to keep the Bruins in it. The 2014 Vezina Winner, who made 32 saves on the night, now has four career wins against Montreal — all coming at the Bell Centre.

After a slow start to the year, Rask, who has allowed eight goals in his last five games, is playing with more confidence and is looking like the goalie that won the Vezina two years ago. In the process, he is also quieting his critics.

Krejci, Bruins, survive injury scare

During the second period, Krejci jammed his wrist while battling for a loose puck. Hunching over the bench in pain, he would leave the game for a short time while the Bruins training staff took a look at his hand. After holding their collective breath, B’s fans exhaled deeply when he returned a short time later.

For a team that saw Krejci plagued by injuries a year ago, the last thing the Bruins need is an injury to their leading scorer (27 points on 9 goals and 18 assists). Sure, he’s cooled down since he started his 2015-16 season having notched a point in his first nine games. But the Black and Gold are a much better team with No. 46 in the lineup than they are without him.

The next chapter of the rivalry:

There will be a rink in the middle of this field the next time the Bruins and Habs meet. pic.twitter.com/JYHv8o4a4g

— Bruins Daily (@BruinsDaily) December 10, 2015