Win or lose, the one common thread with the Boston Bruins in 2015-16 is that nothing comes easy.

As a matter of fact, it looked like history would repeat itself again Monday night in Philadelphia where Wayne Simmonds scored twice to tie things at 2-2 after the Bruins scored the first two goals of the game — both on the power play — in the opening stanza.

But thanks to Brett Connolly getting the monkey off his back, and another stellar performance from Tuukka Rask, the Black and Gold escaped Philadelphia with a 3-2 win and avoided the Flyers from notching the series sweep. Here are a few things that we learned from the Wells Fargo Center as the B’s jump to third place in the Atlantic Division.

From healthy scratch to game-winner

Against the Blue Jackets on Saturday night, Connolly was listed as a healthy scratch. That marked the third time that he watched his team from high above rinkside.

The third time might be the charm for the snakebitten Connolly, who came through when it mattered most. Positioning himself in front of Flyers goaltender Michal Neuvirth, Connolly tipped Zdeno Chara’s shot from the point to get the monkey off his back and give his team the 3-2 lead with 1:54 left in regulation.

Despite the lack of production on the scoresheet, Connolly put together a string of solid performances over the past week. That production reaped the benefits in Philly when it mattered the most for the former Lightning winger.

“Obviously, it’s been a frustrating little while. Been getting lots of chances, getting some good opportunities. To see that one go in, in such a big game right before the All-Star break, it’s obviously good to see it go in,” Connolly said according to NHL.com. “It’s just a matter of sticking with it. I’ve said that for a while, got to stick with it. Things change in a hurry in this League. When you’re confident, you’re a different player. When you see a puck go in the net, it’s a good feeling. I was obviously very happy with that.”

A good feeling indeed for Connolly, who has three goals in his last 36 games.

Following his first healthy scratch in October, Connolly strung together a five-game point streak tallying four goals and an assist in that span. Perhaps another similar stretch is in order for the streaky forward.

Tuukka stands tall, again

For all the fans who think the Bruins are better off without Rask, the Finnish netminder quieted those doubters again.

Even with a 2-0 first period lead, the Bruins needed their 2014 Vezina winner to come through in the clutch, particularly when they had to kill off four penalties in a span of 10:55. Rask came up with some crucial saves in that span and made some critical stops throughout, including a sprawling save on Claude Giroux, en route to a 34-save performance.

For a guy who was a game-time decision, Rask stood tall. One more game and he’ll get nearly a week’s worth of rest. After standing on his head again, Rask’s teammates should consider buying him a steak dinner during the All-Star break.

After further review, Flyers get a break

In a pivotal moment, Claude Julien used his coaches challenge to dispute a missed offsides call that led to Simmonds’ second goal.

As Giroux entered the zone, Michael Del Zotto appeared to have his skate past the blue line with the puck behind the blue-line. After review, however, the refs upheld their call due to inconclusive video evidence.

I’m sure this isn’t the only reaction from similar situations, but this is worth asking: Should the on-ice officials be able to review a call that they missed on a tablet? Or should they be in communication with the situation room in Toronto — like they have been in the past — to discuss the play in question?

Power play back on track

With David Krejci healthy, the Bruins power play, which only lit the lamp once in their last 15 attempts coming into Monday, was looking for a little more production. Well, they got just that from both their PP units as they struck twice in the first period.

Patrice Bergeron netted his 19th at 5:04 of the first period after following through on his first shot that was blocked to break the ice. Towards the end of the period, Brad Marchand took a Zdeno Chara saucer pass and one-timed it past Neuvirth for his team-leading 20th of the season.

Bergeron’s goal marked the first time that the top man advantage unit of Bergeron, Krejci, Torey Krug, Loui Eriksson and Ryan Spooner lit the lamp since December 18th. Marchand’s tally extended his goal streak to five straight games and his point streak to six. The Bruins are 19-3-3 this season when Marchand tallies a point.