BOSTON — St. Patrick’s Day weekend is always a little wild in Boston and Saturday’s hockey game followed suit.
The Bruins and Flyers combined for seven goals in the third period and momentum swung drastically back and forth between the two teams. When the dust settled, Boston not only had a 6-5 at TD Garden, but was in first place.
The Bruins, who’d started the first two period slowly exploded to start the third.
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Just over a minute into the period, Charlie Coyle stepped through two Flyers and flipped the puck over Felix Sandstrom to give the Bruins their first lead at 3-2.
Beecher was Johnny on the spot moments later. His goal from close range gave Andrew Peeke his first Bruins’ assist, 3:45 into the third to make it 4-2. Nineteen seconds after that Jake DeBrusk scored to make it 5-2 with 15:56 left.
That looked like enough to make it comfortable. It very much was not.
Nick Deslauriers started the Flyers’ comeback. He scored his first goal of the season, jamming the puck inside the near post to cut Boston’s lead to 5-3 with 5:48 left.
Morgan Frost followed that with a circus goal between his legs, 62 seconds later to turn the game into a nail-biter at 5-4.
Even Danton Heinen’s goal with 2:59 left didn’t put the game away as Farabee answered 55 seconds later banking it off Jeremy Swayman with the Flyers’ goalie pulled to make it 6-5 with 2:04 left.
But the Bruins survived a few more anxious moments to hold on from there.
The Bruins (40-14-15) host the Senators on Tuesday.
Ryan Poehling took advantage of a slow Bruins star and put the Flyers up 1-0, 4:18 into the game with a one-timer on a two-on-one.
Bruins didn’t get an official shot on goal until 12:26 into the game before they eventually settled in.
After Swayman made two big saves on Travis Konecny with 4:19 left in the first, the Bruins took off on the rush. Jake DeBrusk drew three Flyers to him and slid a pass to the top of the right-wing circle where Morgan Geekie blasted a shot into the top corner to tie the game.
After Joel Farabee put the Flyers up, 2-1, the Bruins tied the game on the power play. Marchand mishandled the puck for a split second to prevent him from shooting, but alertly reset and flipped a perfect backhand to Coyle who banged it into the open net to make it 2-2 with 4:38 left in the second.
