Boston Bruins Blank Tampa Bay Lightning
TAMPA (AP) — Tuukka Rask and the Boston Bruins put together an all-around strong performance.
Rask stopped 23 shots and five Boston players scored to help the Bruins beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-0 on Saturday night.
"You want to win," Rask said. "You never want to let the team back in the game. Tonight, we gave them nothing and it paid off."
Rask made a nifty glove save on Steven Stamkos' point-blank redirection in the third period. It was the goalie's first shutout this season and 17th overall.
David Krejci, Adam McQuaid, Patrice Bergeron, Chris Kelly and Shawn Thornton scored for the Bruins, who have won six in a row against Tampa Bay. Boston leads the all-time series 50-20-9.
"Everybody showed up from the drop of the puck tonight, and obviously it shows on the result," Bergeron said.
With the game well in hand late in the third, Boston fans in attendance began chanting "Let's go, Red Sox!" One win from the World Series, the Red Sox were playing at the same time in Game 6 of the AL championship series at Fenway Park.
"Not that I don't like you guys, but I'd like to check out the game right now," Thornton said with a smile. "Everybody knows I'm a fairly big Red Sox fan."
The Lightning are 3-2 during a seven-game homestand.
"The only thing good about tonight was, probably, the national anthem," coach Jon Cooper said.
Stamkos called Tampa Bay's performance "embarrassing."
"They wanted it more, and it showed," Stamkos said. "Unacceptable."
Krejci stopped a nine-game goal drought to put the Bruins up 1-0 from the low slot off a pass from Milan Lucic 1:32 into the game. Krejci has a point in four straight games.
After McQuaid scored his first goal in 24 games at 4:37 of the second, goals 55 seconds apart later in the period by Bergeron (14:52) and Kelly (15:47) made it 4-0.
Thornton extended Boston's advantage to 5-0 just 34 seconds into the third as the left wing ended his 29-game goal drought.
Tampa Bay goalie Ben Bishop, who won all five of his previous games this season, was pulled after Kelly's goal and replaced by Anders Lindback. Bishop allowed four goals on 17 shots.
Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman finished the game minus-5.
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