Boston Bruins' Morgan Geekie is stopped by Calgary Flames goalie Jacob Markstrom during second period NHL hockey action in Calgary, Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Larry MacDougal
CALGARY – Nazem Kadri scored the game-winning goal 3:56 into overtime leading the Calgary Flames to a 3-2 win over the Boston Bruins on Thursday night.
Kadri took the puck up ice on a 3-on-1 and fired a shot into the far corner past Linus Ullmark just seconds after Jakob Markstrom stopped a David Pastrnak shot on the other end.
Oliver Kylington and Martin Pospisil also scored for Calgary (27-25-5), which swept the season series against the Bruins, also having beaten them 4-1 on Feb. 6.
Markstrom made 32 saves for the Flames, who have won two in a row on the heels of a three-game losing skid.
Charlie Coyle scored both goals for Boston (34-12-12), which extended its road point streak to 11 games (7-0-4). Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy each had their five-game point streaks snapped.
Ullmark stopped 27 shots.
Trailing 2-1 entering the third, it took the Bruins just 2:33 to tie it.
From in front of his own net, Anthony Richard banked the puck high off the side glass and down the ice where Coyle raced past a flat-footed MacKenzie Weegar to corral it, then swooped in alone on Markstrom and scored on a backhand-to-forehand move.
Calgary outplayed Boston in the opening 20 minutes, taking a 2-1 lead and outshooting the visitors 16-8.
Kylington opened the scoring at 12:55 when he scored for the second straight game, taking a pass from Andrei Kuzmenko and whipping a shot under Ullmark’s arm.
Coyle tied it for the visitors at 18:41, capitalizing on a blunder by Markstrom.
After racing out of his net to clear a puck, he whiffed on it with Coyle the beneficiary. Before Markstrom could get set, Coyle fired in his 19th goal of the season.
But 42 seconds later, Calgary retook the lead on Pospisil’s fifth goal. Kadri and Connor Zary combined to get the puck in front, but after Ullmark made the initial stop, Pospisil was there to poke the loose puck in.
Boston carried the play in the second period outshooting Calgary 11-5, but neither team could score with both goaltenders making big stops.
After a stretch of sustained pressure, Kuzmenko got a good look from the top of the faceoff circle, but Ullmark made a glove save.
Shortly after, and with the Bruins on the power play, Pavel Zacha was stopped twice in succession, first on his deflection of McAvoy’s point shot, then on the rebound.
Later that same power play, Markstrom sprawled across to block Pastrnak’s dangerous chance at the side of the net.
The Flames veteran goaltender wasn’t done. A little later, rookie winger Jakub Lauko broke in all alone, but Markstrom kicked out a pad to turn him aside.
BLUE LINE SHUFFLE
With defenceman Matt Grzelcyk (foot) out, Boston inserted veteran defenceman Kevin Shattenkirk into the lineup, while calling up defenceman Ian Mitchell from the American Hockey League’s Providence Bruins.
NEARING A RETURN
Flames rookie left-winger Jakob Pelletier (shoulder) returned to practice on Thursday, having missed the past four games. He had only been back for four games when he got hurt a second time. He missed the first half of the season after a pre-season shoulder injury required surgery.
UP NEXT
Bruins: Road trip continues on Saturday against the Vancouver Canucks.
Flames: Travel to Edmonton to take on the Oilers on Saturday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 22, 2024.
