BOSTON — Starting any best-of-seven playoff series with a Game 1 victory is great.
But in reality, how much do they really matter if you don’t follow up with another win in Game 2?
After claiming a 5-1 win over the Maple Leafs Saturday night to in their series opener, the Bruins need to follow that up with a better performance Monday night in Game 2 (7 p.m.) back at TD Garden.
“You take this game as a positive,” said defenseman Brandon Carlo, whose second period goal wound up being the game-winner. “But it’s one game. We’re here to complete a mission, nothing short of that.”
Taking a two-game advantage across the 49th parallel for Games 3 and 4 is a hell of a lot more advantageous that splitting the first two contests on home ice, then facing Toronto at Scotiabank Arena in front of their rabid hockey denizens, each of whom are thirsting to defeat Boston in a postseason series for the first time in 65 years.
So Saturday was a good start, the first of what the Bruins hope is 16 spring triumphs.
Jeremy Swayman, getting his first-ever Game 1 nod between the pipes and responding with 35 saves, had a huge smile on his face during the National Anthem and admitted afterwards it never left his face.
“It was a dream come true,” he said. “It’s such a privilege to play in this league and for this city. Taking that first lap and seeing the fans waving those towels … pretty emotional feeling.”
Head coach Jim Montgomery would not show his cards as to whether he’d go back to the Alaskan for Game 2 (“It’d be hard to go away from Sway,” he said) or continue the season-long rotation in net and pivot towards Linus Ullmark.
The score might suggest Boston won rather handily, but that’s not exactly the case. They were certainly the more opportunistic club with the much better goaltending (Toronto’s Ilya Samsonov made just 19 saves), but there were areas that need improvement as the series moves on.
Stretches of play, such as late in the first period and into the second when the Buds went on the power play and pelted Swayman looking for the equalizer, showed Toronto as the clear aggressor. Prior to that Boston couldn’t cash in on some early chances, holding a 1-goal lead after 20 minutes when it could’ve been three.
Then there was Auston Matthews nearly burning them after Swayman came too far out of his crease to play a puck, got beat to it by 69-goal sniper, then breathed a giant sigh of relief when Matthews’ shot on an empty Boston cage went off the post.
“That was huge. I thought it was 1-1 there,” Montgomery admitted.
But for the most part, the breaks went Boston’s way. Just 77 seconds after Matthews hit iron instead of knotless nylon, Carlo slapped home a puck from the top of the right circle for a 2-0 lead.
It was essentially a 2-goal swing in the hosts’ favor, and it set the stage for a three-goal splurge in the middle stanza.
Two Jake DeBrusk power play goals put the Bruins up 4-0 after 40 minutes, essentially ensuring victory. First, he circled the Toronto net, taking it up his off-wing boards and curling at the top of the circle before snapping a shot home through traffic. That was followed by putting in his own rebound deep in the crease after taking a Charlie McAvoy feed.
It marked just the third time in 43 games, dating back to early January, that Boston had produced multiple power play goals in the same contest — and obviously, it couldn’t have come at a better time.
What happened Saturday isn’t likely to have much bearing on what transpires Monday, however.
The Bruins aren’t likely to see their fourth line score on the team’s first shot, with Johnny Beecher converting a 2-on-1 with Jesper Boqvist for his first ever playoff tally. “The best game he’s ever played as a Bruin,” Montgomery said of Beecher.
Trade acquisition Pat Maroon, the aptly named Big Rig and owner of three Stanley Cup rings, will certainly deliver more punishing blows, but he’s not likely to dump Toronto’s Timothy Liljegren into the Bruins bench and have the Garden crowd howling with delight. He also had the secondary assist on Beecher’s lamplighter.
Boston may not get gift power plays, as they did when Max Domi foolishly slashed captain Brad Marchand on the arm in plain view of the officials with his team trailing by three. “Undisciplined penalty,” surmised Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe. “I understand what he’s trying to do there, but he crossed a line.”
They have to find a way to keep Matthews, and to a lesser extent John Tavares (6 SOG) in check. The dangerous William Nylander could conceivably be back in Toronto’s lineup after missing Game 1 with an undisclosed injury.
One win is nice to start things off is nice … and that’s about it.
Keeping it going Monday is now of paramount importance.
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Phil Stacey, the Executive Sports Editor of The Salem News, covers the Boston Bruins for CNHI Sports Boston. Contact him at pstacey@salemnews.com and follow him on X @PhilStacey_SN