When Sean Kuraly leaped into the glass in celebration of his eventual game-winning goal with 9:41 remaining in the final period of the 2019 Winter Classic, he, along with the rest of the Bruins, soared to new heights on the national stage.
It might have been the turning point of the season.
Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand did what they always do and carried the team and kept them in contention. The Bruins received late-game heroics from all four lines to seal the deal on New Year’s Day.
While the Bruins and fans alike rejoiced in their triumph of the Blackhawks at Notre Dame Stadium, a candid Bruce Cassidy emphasized the need to turn around quickly and focus on the road ahead.
The Bruins will have their hands full Thursday night against the Western Conference-leading Calgary Flames (54 points) at TD Garden. Johnny Gaudreau and company are coming off a two-game stretch where they netted 13 goals — including an eight-spot against a tough San Jose Sharks squad.
“Let’s hope we do build off it, we have a tough game coming up. We got Calgary, we don’t really have much time to breathe,” Cassidy said following the 4-2 win over Chicago. “They just popped in eight goals against a pretty good defensive team so we have to get back to work in a hurry. We’ll enjoy it for 24 hours and then move on.”
The Bruins need every point they can get. They sit tied with the Sabres for third place in the Atlantic Division with 48 points but have the tiebreaker based on regulation and overtime wins (21 to Buffalo’s 18). The two squads meet again Saturday night on Causeway Street for their fourth and final regular-season matchup this season.
David Pastrnak knows the Bruins need a consistent effort from all four lines — like they put out against Chicago — to keep pace with their division rivals and the rest of the Eastern Conference.
“We would love to get on a little winning streak but we have to take it game by game,” said Pastrnak, who earned his first All-Star game nomination on Wednesday. “This was great teamwork, great effort and we got a great goal by Sean [Kuraly]. That line was awesome. We need everyone just like today and just need to bring it every night.”
The Bruins are riding high off of their New Year’s Day victory and certainly want to keep that momentum going and do what no team has ever done before; win both the Winter Classic and Stanley Cup in the same season.
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