Matt Grzelcyk scored with 1:16 left in the third period to lift the host Boston Bruins past the Atlantic Division rival Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 on Saturday night.
Grzelcyk scored his second goal of the season and first since Oct. 28, firing a bomb from above the left circle with David Krejci screening Maple Leafs goaltender Matt Murray.
Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak and A.J. Greer also scored for the Bruins, who got an 18-save effort from goaltender Linus Ullmark.
Michael Bunting had a goal and an assist to lead the Maple Leafs in a second straight loss.
Pierre Engvall and Auston Matthews also scored for Toronto, and Mitchell Marner had a pair of assists.
Murray made 30 saves as Boston held a 34-21 shot advantage.
A busy start included Murray making a highlight glove save on Brad Marchand breaking in and a center-ice fight between Boston’s Nick Foligno and Toronto’s Wayne Simmons before the visitors took a lead at 4:45.
Bunting scored the power-play tally, taking a John Tavares feed in the slot and beating Ullmark upstairs. Marner also assisted, marking the NHL-leading 15th time he has factored into a game-opening goal.
Boston dominated to the tune of a 15-5 advantage in shots in the first, but it was just 1-1 at the intermission after Bergeron tapped in a Marchand feed in the crease with 4:58 remaining.
Toronto reclaimed the lead 2:43 into the second period as Engvall completed a rush from his own zone by letting go a snap shot from between the circles.
Pastrnak scored his 10th goal in a five-game span at 5:52, intercepting a pass at the blue line and beating Murray five-hole for an unassisted breakaway goal.
Just after Ullmark made a sprawling blocker save on Mark Giordano, the Bruins took a 3-2 lead at the other end of the rink at 10:33. Greer got the puck in the high slot and snapped home his first goal since Oct. 18.
The Leafs needed just 3:17 of third-period time to knot the score again. Matthews took Bunting’s feed and slipped in a backhander after sliding around the right circle.
It remained a tie game into the late stages after Bunting shot a breakaway just wide of Ullmark’s cage with 11:03 left.
–Field Level Media