Bruins' top line comes through in Game 7

BOSTON — Fair or not, Game 7 Wednesday night at the Garden was judgment day for Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak.

The trio formed the NHL’s best line for most of the regular season and combined for 20 points when the Bruins won the first two games of their opening-round Stanley Cup Playoffs series against Toronto, but they produced no points in Boston’s three defeats. So a Game 7 was necessary in a series that the Bruins had led three games to [...]

BOSTON — Fair or not, Game 7 Wednesday night at the Garden was judgment day for Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak.

The trio formed the NHL’s best line for most of the regular season and combined for 20 points when the Bruins won the first two games of their opening-round Stanley Cup Playoffs series against Toronto, but they produced no points in Boston’s three defeats. So a Game 7 was necessary in a series that the Bruins had led three games to one.

The three came through when the Bruins needed them the most and Boston knocked off the Maple Leafs, 7-4, to advance to the second round of the playoffs. The Bruins will play at Tampa Bay at 3 p.m. Saturday in Game 1 of the conference semifinals.

Bergeron had a goal and two assists and Pastrnak and Marchand each had a goal and an assist to help make up for a gaffe by Marchand that helped Toronto take a 4-3 lead entering the third period.

“That was asked this morning, ‘Are they getting frustrated?’” Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said. “I think there’s always a certain level of that when you’re used to getting production and they got it back tonight.”

“It was awesome,” Pastrnak said, “and a little relief and it was a tough series. Toronto battled the whole series with us and it just feels awesome.”

The loud, sellout crowd got the Bruins going.

“It was electric in the building tonight,” Bergeron said, “and we definitely fed off of that all along, but in the third was something really special. I’ve been here for a while now and it’s up there in one of the loudest it’s been for a game so it was great.”

“It was insane,” Marchand said. “You could barely hear yourself think out there the whole game. There might have been a little bit of a lull there after they got their fourth goal, but it was an incredible atmosphere to be a part of.”

Bergeron fed Pastrnak in front to make it 6-4 with 8:21 remaining. Marchand scored into an empty net with 50.9 seconds left.

Bergeron scored with 36.4 seconds left in the opening period to give the Bruins a 3-2 lead, but Marchand’s mistake led to Kasperi Kapanen’s shorthanded goal that put Toronto on top, 4-3, at 6:05 of the second period.

Marchand allowed the puck to get past him and out of the Leafs’ zone. Marchand and Kapanen skated toward the puck, but Kapanen won the race. Marchand fell down at the Boston blue line and Kapanen broke in alone on Tuukka Rask and scored his team’s fourth goal on only its 12th shot on goal.

“I thought he tripped me up,” Marchand said, “which was unfortunate. I’ve got to win that battle, but it’s great that we came together there and were able to overcome that.”

Torey Krug tied it at 1:10 of the third, 4-4, after Bergeron won a faceoff and Kevan Miller fed Krug for a slap shot.

Earlier, Miller purposely fired a slap shot wide right of the net and the puck bounced to Bergeron at the left side of the net and he tucked it past goaltender Frederik Andersen for his first goal of the playoffs.

Pastrnak earned an assist on the power play when rookie Jake DeBrusk tipped in his shot the first of his two goals on the night to make it 1-1 at 4:47.

The Bruins overcame deficits of 1-0, 2-1 and 4-3.

“Even after they got the lead a couple of times,” Marchand said, “we knew we had resiliency in the room to continue to come back. We’re done it all year.”

But Wednesday was the first time in the series that they won after trailing after two periods. They had been 0-3.

In the Bruins’ three victories in the series entering Game 7, Marchand, Bergeron and Pastrnak combined for 23 points and were a plus-20. In their three defeats, that trio had no points and was a minus-15.

Other Bruins struggled offensively in this series – it certainly looks as if the Bruins gave up too much to acquire Rick Nash, doesn’t it – but the top line carried the team all season and was counted on to do the same in the playoffs. Pastrnak led the team with 35 regular-season goals, followed by Marchand with 34 and Bergeron with 30 despite missing 18 games. No other Bruin scored as many as 20. David Krejci was next with 17.

Five years ago, the Bruins also needed a Game 7 against Toronto in the opening round after wasting a 3-1 series lead. As Bruins fans well know, Boston rallied from a 4-1 third-period deficit to win in overtime on a goal by Bergeron. On Wednesday, all they needed was to overcome a 4-3 deficit and they did. And the No. 1 line did its part.