Mark Kastelic scored two of the Bruins’ four first-period goals as Boston wrapped up the first Eastern Conference wild card with a 4-0 win over the visiting New Jersey Devils on Tuesday.
Boston’s Jeremy Swayman made 21 saves in the regular-season finale for both teams.
Morgan Geekie and Viktor Arvidsson also lit the lamp for Boston (45-27-10, 100 points), which enters its return to the Stanley Cup playoffs on a two-game win streak. The Bruins will meet the Buffalo Sabres in the first round of the postseason.
Sean Kuraly notched two assists, and David Pastrnak had one on Geekie’s opening goal, securing his fourth consecutive 100-point season.
Arvidsson became the first Bruin since Jarome Iginla in 2013-14 to reach the 25-goal plateau in his initial season with the team.
Swayman, who logged his second shutout of the season, made 10 of his saves in the opening period.
Nico Daws, in his second straight start for New Jersey (42-37-3, 87 points), stopped 24 shots.
The Bruins opened the scoring just 53 seconds into the opening frame. Pastrnak assisted Geekie with his milestone point, sending a diagonal pass out of the corner to the open winger for a wrist-shot goal in the low slot.
Kastelic slotted home the second Boston goal at 6:14, sliding in from the wing to put home a Tanner Jeannot pass from behind the net.
At 17:42, Kastelic made it a 3-0 game. After Mason Lohrei kept the puck in at the blue line, he started a tic-tac-toe sequence with Kuraly, who slid the puck from the left circle back into the slot, and Katstelic put a wrister top-shelf.
Arvidsson made it a four-goal first period for the Bruins with eight seconds left. Following a faceoff win, Hampus Lindholm took a shot from the top of the circle, Kuraly grabbed a rebound in front and dished a pass to an open Arvidsson in front to tap past Daws.
Michael Eyssimont nearly upped Boston’s lead to 5-0 on a rebound of a Lohrei shot with 8:15 left in regulation, but New Jersey’s challenge for offside was successful.
–Field Level Media
