Linus Ullmark made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season, and the Boston Bruins scored three goals in the final seven minutes of the third period en route to a 3-0 win over the host Nashville Predators on Tuesday night.
The game was scoreless until Charlie Coyle scored a short-handed goal with 6:42 left, lifting Boston (44-17-15, 103 points) to its second consecutive win.
David Pastrnak and Pavel Zacha rounded out Boston’s scoring with a goal and an assist each.
Danton Heinen also dished out two assists and Ullmark picked up one assist on Coyle’s goal.
Nashville (43-28-4, 90 points) has now lost three straight since an 18-game points streak that is the longest in the NHL this season.
Juuse Saros stopped 29 shots in the Predators’ net.
The teams were a combined 0-for-6 on the power play. Nashville had four of those chances.
The tiebreaking goal saw Coyle slip down the slot after taking a Brad Marchand feed from along the left wall.
Zacha doubled the Boston lead exactly four minutes later. After Pastrnak went coast-to-coast and dished to Heinen across the ice at the left post, Heinen slipped the puck back to Zacha for the tap-in finish.
Pastrnak added further insurance on an empty-net goal from center ice with 1:24 left.
Boston controlled the first period to the tune of an 10-5 shot advantage, but Saros stood up to every test — including four Pastrnak triggers.
The ice tilted back in the home team’s direction in the second as evidenced by a 12-6 count in shots.
The Predators had golden opportunities to break the scoreless tie late in the second, including Roman Josi hitting the post of a wide-open net – Nashville’s second shot off iron in the game — after taking a cross-ice pass from Luke Evangelista.
In the final minute before the second intermission, Cole Smith had an open shot coming down the right side turned aside by Ullmark.
Boston forward Justin Brazeau (upper-body) did not return after being injured on a hit by Nashville’s Luke Schenn that drew a roughing penalty with 2:50 left in the opening period.
–Field Level Media
