The Boston Bruins used a three-goal third period to take down the league-leading Tampa Bay Lightning at home on Thursday night. All three goals in the third period came in the span of 1:28 for the B’s.

Scoring summary

The game-winning goal for the Bruins came off a steal along the half wall. Noel Acciari, who lost a few teeth against the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday, took the puck from potential MVP Nikita Kucherov before dishing it to Chris Wagner. Wagner took a shot that bounced right onto Acciari’s stick who netted it.

An insurance goal for the Bruins came 45 seconds later. Danton Heinen carried the puck into the attacking zone, drawing three Lightning defenders. He then found center Patrice Bergeron in the slot who ripped a quick shot through the legs of the Lightning netminder.

The last goal for the black and gold came on a Brad Marchand breakaway. Marchand got in behind the Lightning defense before going five-hole for the score. Lightning goaltender Louis Domingue then proceeded to shatter his stick against the goal post in disgust.

Jake DeBrusk also continued his hot play of late. He opened the scoring on a power play goal that deflected off a Lightning defender before entering the net.

Tuukka Rask turned in another strong performance for the Bruins in arguably their biggest game of the season so far. He made 20 saves on 21 shots. Rask has now earned points in 16 consecutive games, posting a 13-0-3 record in that timespan. I think it’s safe to say he’ll be the starting goalie for the Bruins come playoff time.

The Bruins had their seven-game win streak snapped on Saturday against the St. Louis Blues. However, they quickly followed up that defeat with victories over the Sharks and now Lightning.

Potential playoff preview

The Lightning are far and away the best team in the NHL in terms of point total. They sit atop the league standings with 102 points. The next closest team is the Calgary Flames with 89. Chances are the Bruins won’t catch the Lightning in the standings. That being said, the Bruins and Lightning meet two more times this season. It will be a good test for both teams to see where they stand against each other heading into the playoffs. Similar to last year, if the playoffs were to start today and the Bruins and Lightning each advanced to the conference semifinals, they would face each other for the second year in a row.

Looking ahead

The win for the Bruins increased their point streak to 15 games, while simultaneously ending the Lightning’s franchise long winning streak at 10 games. The Bruins will look to make it 16 games in a row with a point when they take on the New Jersey Devils at home on Saturday at 7 p.m.

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