John Beecher and Mason Lohrei score first NHL goals as Bruins beat Stars
By STEPHEN HAWKINS AP Sports Writer
DALLAS - Boston rookies John Beecher and Mason Lohrei scored their first NHL goals less than four minutes apart in the first period, putting the Bruins ahead to stay in a 3-2 victory over the Dallas Stars on Monday night.
Brad Marchand added a power-play goal in the third period, and Jeremy Swayman stopped 34 shots for the Eastern Conference-leading Bruins (10-1-1), who rebounded from their first regulation loss two nights earlier at Detroit. It was the sixth goal this season for Marchand, the first-year Boston captain.
The Stars had their net empty with an extra skater when Joe Pavelski scored his fifth goal with 27 seconds left. They then had a power play for the final 5.7 seconds after a tripping penalty by Hampus Lindholm. Miro Heiskanen got off a shot that appeared to get by Swayman, but then bounced off the post as time expired.
Wyatt Johnston, the 20-year-old Stars center who was one of the NHL's top rookies last season, scored his fourth goal with his deflection in front of the net after Esa Lindell's shot from just inside the blue line about five minutes into the third period.
Beecher, the 22-year-old center who was Boston's first-round pick in the 2019 NHL draft and has played in every game, got a hard ricochet off the board behind the net, then skated around and into the right circle for a wrister past Jake Oettinger with 9:39 left in the first period.
Lohrei made it 2-0 from the top the slot on a pass from Danton Heinen with 5:51 left in the first. The 22-year-old defenseman, a second-round pick in 2020, had an assist in his NHL debut Thursday and was playing only his third game.
It was the first time two Boston rookies scored their first NHL goals in one game since Jake DeBrusk and Charlie McAvoy against Nashville in a season opener Oct. 5, 2017.
McAvoy was still out of the Bruins lineup Monday, serving the third of his four-game suspension from the NHL for an illegal check to the head of Florida's Oliver Ekman-Larsson on Oct. 30.
Oettinger had 26 saves for the Stars, who played with 11 forwards and seven defensemen because forwards Radek Faksa and Matt Duchene were both out with upper body injuries.
UP NEXT
Bruins: Host the New York Islanders, one of only three home games for Boston in their next nine until the end of November
Stars: After three games in Canada last week, the Stars are back on the road for the next three. They play at Columbus on Thursday.
