Swayman returns, Kastelic scores twice to lead Bruins to 6-4 win over Montreal

BOSTON (AP) — Jeremy Swayman stopped 21 shots in his first game since signing a new contract, and Mark Kastelic had two goals on Thursday night as the Boston Bruins scored four times in a row to overcome an early deficit and beat the Montreal Canadiens 6-4.

Elias Lindholm and Cole Koepke each had a goal and two assists for Boston, which lost 6-4 to the Florida Panthers in its season opener on Tuesday night. Charlie McAvoy and David Pastrnak also scored to help the Bruins open a 5-2 lead.

Brendan Gallagher scored twice for Montreal, the second with four minutes left to make it a one-goal game. Kaiden Guhle had a goal and an assist and Cayden Primeau made 23 saves for the Canadiens, who beat Toronto 1-0 on Wednesday night in Montreal.

Takeaways

Canadiens: Opening the season with games on back-to-back nights, Montreal didn’t have the energy to keep up with Boston.

Swayman returns, Kastelic scores twice to lead Bruins to 6-4 win over Montreal | iNFOnews.ca — Boston Bruins’ Parker Wotherspoon (29) defends against Montreal Canadiens’ Brendan Gallagher (11) in front of Jeremy Swayman (1) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

Bruins: After losing their opener in Florida with Joonas Korpisalo in net, a game they trailed 5-1 in the second period, Boston looked more at home with Swayman. The goalie remained unsigned this summer and missed all of training camp before agreeing to an eight-year, $66 million deal on Sunday.

Key moment

Montreal scored twice in the third period, cutting a three-goal deficit to 5-4 on Gallagher’s goal with four minutes left. But Kastelic netted his second of the game just 17 seconds later.

Key stat

The Bruins outshot Montreal 23-11 in the first two periods but the Canadiens held a 14-6 edge in the third.