Bruins vs. Sharks: David Pastrnak Ties Patrice Bergeron as Boston Rallies With Four Third-Period Goals

Boston trailed 3-2 midway through the third period, and David Pastrnak had just stepped out of the penalty box. He took a feed from JJ Peterka and fired a wrist shot from the top of the right circle that fluttered past Alex Nedeljkovic to tie the game. From there, TD Garden got loud and stayed loud.

That goal started a burst of three Boston goals in 3:33, and the Bruins beat the San Jose Sharks 6-4 on Saturday night to stretch their point streak to eight games. Pastrnak's tally was No. 427, which pulled the Boston captain even with Patrice Bergeron for third on the franchise's all-time goals list.

A Back-and-Forth Grind

For two periods this felt like a game neither team could grab. Casey Mittelstadt opened the scoring at 3:08 of the first after Boston's forecheck pinned San Jose deep and Elias Lindholm chipped the puck across the crease. Mittelstadt tucked it under the arm of a lunging Nedeljkovic for the 100th goal of his NHL career, per NHL.com, with James Hagens picking up the second assist.

"Anytime you can jump on someone, especially we knew they had a long road trip and it was their last game," Mittelstadt said.

San Jose answered on the power play at 5:54. Tyler Toffoli threw the puck toward the net from the right wall, it picked up a deflection and Michael Misa tapped it in at the far post for his second goal.

Marat Khusnutdinov put Boston back in front at 8:20 of the second with a backhand, assisted by Morgan Geekie and Fraser Minten. The Sharks answered again, and this time it was a gut punch. Kiefer Sherwood picked off a Lindholm pass in the neutral zone, raced in alone and beat Jeremy Swayman high to the stick side for a shorthanded goal at 13:34. NHL.com noted San Jose leads the league with four shorthanded goals this season.

Then, at 4:03 of the third, Dmitry Orlov hammered a one-timer from the point on a power play to give San Jose its first lead of the night, 3-2. That was three special-teams goals for the Sharks, which feels like it should be enough to steal a road game.

The Bruins Flip the Switch

Should is the operative word. Pastrnak tied it at 8:27, and Nedeljkovic explained exactly why it was so tough to stop. "It went off of a D-man's stick and it just changed the whole trajectory of the play," he said. "It wasn't a pretty goal."

Just 40 seconds later, Hagens put Boston ahead from the edge of the crease, slipping the puck through Nedeljkovic's pads with Lindholm assisting. At 12:00, Minten knocked in a rebound on the power play for a 5-3 lead, with Peterka and Mittelstadt on the assists.

San Jose did not go quietly. Will Smith scored 27 seconds later with the teams playing 4-on-4, with assists from Jacob Trouba and Macklin Celebrini. But Will Borgen sealed it with an empty-netter at 19:32, and the comeback was complete.

Pastrnak, Hagens and a Deep Bruins Night

Pastrnak finished with one goal in 20:24, but it was the one that mattered most, and his seventh of the season moved him into some serious company. He also gave an honest review of the overall effort. "We know we were far from our best today, but it's OK because we ended up winning," he said. "It's hard to win in this league, so we'll take the two points, but we also know we can be much better than that."

Hagens, Mittelstadt and Minten each had a goal and an assist. Pastrnak was effusive about Hagens' work around the crease. "He's got the touch," he said, later adding, "He's very smart around the net."

Lindholm and Peterka each had two assists, and Lindholm won 15 of his 21 faceoffs. Boston won the faceoff battle 40-26 overall. Swayman made 23 saves on 27 shots, and the AP said it was his seventh victory.

For San Jose, Trouba had two assists in 23:32, Sherwood threw seven hits to go with his goal, and Celebrini played 21:38. Nedeljkovic stopped 29 of 34 shots.

Turning Point: The Penalty Box Door Swings Open

San Jose had the lead, the momentum and a Bruins sniper sitting in the box. When Pastrnak came out and scored right away, the whole night tilted. Hagens' go-ahead goal followed 40 seconds later, and the Sharks never led again.

Smith pointed to the area where the game was lost. "We've got to be better in front of our net," he said.

Stats That Matter

• 3:33: The span in which Boston scored three straight goals in the third period to turn a 3-2 deficit into a 5-3 lead.
• 427: Pastrnak's goals for Boston, tying Bergeron for third in franchise history.
• 3: Special-teams goals for San Jose (two on the power play, one shorthanded). It still was not enough.
• 35-27: Boston's edge in shots on goal.
• 40-26: Boston's edge in faceoffs, good for 60.6 percent.

What It Means

Boston improves to 9-2-1 with 19 points and 5-1-0 at home. The Bruins are 7-0-1 in their past eight and have won seven of them, and they also took the first meeting with San Jose, 6-3 on Oct. 13. They visit Carolina on Tuesday.

San Jose falls to 6-5-1 with 13 points and closes a six-game road trip at 3-2-1, snapping a two-game winning streak in the process. "If you look at it on paper, not too bad," Nedeljkovic said of the trip. Coach Ryan Warsofsky put it plainly. "We got some results, but we still have a long way to go," he said, adding that his team needs to "start scoring 5-on-5." The Sharks host Buffalo on Tuesday.

Boston's Comeback Habit

Pastrnak summed it up best. "We were down by a goal (in the third period) and then we retake the lead and stay calm," he said.

That calm is the scariest thing about these Bruins. They looked shaky for long stretches, trailed in the third and still won by two. A team that can play its B game and still pull a four-goal third period out of thin air is a team nobody wants to see on the schedule. San Jose found that out the hard way, twice in less than two weeks.

Stats from the official box score via ESPN. Game details from the Associated Press and NHL.com; postgame quotes as reported by NHL.com.