Bruins pull away for Game 7 win over Leafs
Jake DeBrusk's go-ahead goal with 14:35 remaining in the third period led the host Boston Bruins to a 7-4 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference first-round series Wednesday night.
DeBrusk scored two goals and David Pastrnak added one, giving them a share of the team playoff lead with five. Patrice Bergeron had a goal and two assists while Pastrnak and Brad Marchand each had a goal and an assist. Danton Heinen and Torey Krug also scored for the Bruins.
Boston, which earned its first playoff series victory since the 2013-14 season, will face the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Patrick Marleau had two goals, giving him a team-best four playoff goals. Travis Dermott and Kasperi Kapanen each scored his first of the postseason for Toronto, which forced a decisive seventh game with back-to-back wins after falling into a 3-1 series hole.
The Maple Leafs have not won a playoff series since 2003-04.
"It's always disappointing," Marleau told reporters after the game. "Obviously, you're trying to win the Cup. To fall short once again, it's heartbreaking every time."
Boston goalie Tuukka Rask finished with 20 saves and improved to 2-2 all-time in Game 7s. Frederik Andersen made 29 saves for Toronto.
DeBrusk skated end-to-end for his decisive third-period goal, finding Andersen's five-hole.
"It was a very special feeling, especially making it 5-4 at that point," DeBrusk told reporters. "I knew that as soon as we got the lead there, the next goal, we were going to be fine. It was very special."
Pastrnak made it a 6-4 game on his goal at 11:39 of the third. Marchand scored an empty-netter with 50.9 seconds left.
Marleau's first goal with 17:55 left in the first period gave Toronto a 1-0 lead before Boston tied it on DeBrusk's first goal with 15:13 to go in the first.
Marleau's second tally at 6:12 of the first made it 2-1 before Heinen (at 9:10) and Bergeron (at 19:23) scored to put the Bruins up 3-2 after one.
Dermott scored 2:07 into the second and Kapanen struck at 6:05 of the second to restore a one-goal lead for Toronto.
Krug's goal tied the game at 4 just 1:10 into the third.
Toronto's Morgan Rielly left the ice with a bloody face in the first period after being hit by a Zdeno Chara slap shot, but he returned in the second. Boston's Adam McQuaid exited in the second after spinning into the boards, but he also returned.
Leo Komarov (lower-body injury) missed his fifth straight game for the Maple Leafs.
DeBrusk said he and his teammates were thrilled to advance to the next round.
"I think that we're all just pretty excited right now to have a chance to continue playing together and take on Tampa," he said. "We're going to enjoy this one tonight, but then go back to the drawing board. I think our next game's Saturday, so we've got a couple days to regroup and get re-energized."
--Field Level Media
