BOSTON — The Boston Bruins enjoyed a faultless homecoming after a near-perfect road swing.
The Bruins swept a half dozen points from California and added another in an overtime loss at Dallas. The raging roadsters, made rich on out-of-town points, returned to the TD Garden on Thursday night and rolled the Nashville Predators, 6-0, before a packed house of 17,850.
The Bruins had a heroes’ hat trick in the win. Bruins captain David Pastrnak led the attack with two goals and two assists while defenseman Charlie McAvoy, who was suspended for the first six games, recorded four helpers. Backup goalie Michael DiPietro made 28 saves to record his first NHL shutout and second win.
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The Bruins improved to 8-2-1, retained their hold on first place in the Atlantic Division and will host the San Jose Sharks on Saturday night at 7 p.m.
“It is always tough after a long trip, especially California and coming back on a trip that feels way longer than it actually is,” said Pastrnak, who has 426 career goals and 523 assists. “We wanted to get a good start and we were lucky to get the lead early and kind of extend it for a huge win.
“Coming back from a long road trip and getting our legs pretty quick is a good sign. I think we have already been through quite a lot in such a short time.”
The Bruins took the ice with an attitude, peppering Nashville goalie Justus Annunen with four quality shots before right wing Casey Mittelstadt lit the lamp at 3:49 of the first period. McAvoy set the play in motion with a feed to Pastrnak on the right flank. Pastrnak connected with Mittelstadt, who fired a wrist shot from the top of the left circle that beat Annunen top shelf of the stick side for his third of the season.
Nashville defenseman Nicolas Hague had just settled into the penalty box for holding when Elias Lindholm made it 2-0 on Boston’s ninth power play goal of the season. Lindholm tipped home McAvoy’s slapper from the right point for his fourth of the season at 16:38. The Bruins exited the frame with a 12-8 advantage in shots on goal.
“We had a focus this morning and someone brought it up about getting a good start in the pregame skate,” said McAvoy. “Just go out and get what we need but be good about it, be pros and make sure you are ready to go and everybody did a good job taking on the challenge. We started on time and just played a really great team game.”
After an uneventful first period, DiPietro had his moments of duress four minutes into the second period and again near the midway point. DiPietro was at his best during the final three minutes when Nashville was battling frantically to avoid being shutout.
“This is like a dream come true for me every day and I don’t want to wish the days away,” said DiPietro. “I am just kind of enjoying each moment whether it be practice or game day and stay grounded.
“It (shutout) starts creeping into your head and you are on an island out there for a long time. You have a lot of thoughts in your head and it’s kind of acknowledging it and moving on from it and staying as present as possible and not getting ahead of yourself.”
The Bruins regrouped and made it 3-0 on Pastrnak’s fifth of the season at 9:46. Pavel Zacha circled the cage and flipped the puck to McAvoy on the right point. McAvoy unleashed a slapper that Pastrnak redirected through a crowd of skaters at the crease. McAvoy was credited with his third assist and second primary.
“We’ve been addressing it a lot and not just with Charlie but also with our forwards to try and connect a little bit better,” said Bruins coach Marco Sturm. “As a defenseman, he gives our forwards a chance to tip those pucks and it is a little bit of a combo of everything.
“Charlie is definitely one of the better shooters on our backend and usually when he shoots, good things happen.
Boston went up 4-0 when J.J. Peterka potted his own rebound at 17:21. Peterka scored his fourth of the season while Pastrnak was credited with his second primary assist.
Boston went up 5-0 when Mark Kastelic backhanded a rebound off the end boards between Annunen’s pads for his second of the season at 6:50 of the third. Pastrnak netted his second at 15:00.
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