Brad Marchand Hyped By NHL Fans as Bruins Win vs. Maple Leafs, Take 2-1 Series Lead
April 25, 2024
Brad Marchand scored two third-period goals to lead the Boston Bruins to a 4-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 3 of their first round playoff series, giving the B's a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven matchup.
Marchand's first goal came at the 11:53 mark of the third, or just 28 seconds after Leafs forward Tyler Bertuzzi scored to knot the game at two.
The Bruins captain didn't waste much time giving Boston the lead back after Danton Heinen dug the puck out of the corner and found his teammate waiting in the right faceoff circle.
Marchand added an empty-netter with 36 seconds left to seal the Bruins' win.
The B's and Leafs entered the third period tied at one goal apiece after Toronto's Matthew Knies and Boston's Trent Frederic each scored in the latter half of the second.
Jake DeBrusk gave Boston the lead 1:07 into the third on the power play. Marchand was partially to thank for that one after DeBrusk rebounded his teammate's shot into the net.
Bertuzzi later answered with a tip-in goal, but Marchand, who hadn't scored over the Bruins' first two games, got on the board twice to put this one away. And with that, he's now tied atop the franchise's all-time playoff goal-scoring leaderboard with Cam Neely.
It was a huge win for the Bruins, who regained home-ice advantage and stole crucial momentum away from the Maple Leafs after their 3-2 road win in Game 2.
Marchand was the catalyst for the victory, and fans and analysts alike were certainly impressed by his efforts:
Greg Lane @glane0680Great Bruins win. Marchand is the leader of this team, and he put them on his back and scored the two difference makers. Couple tough calls tonight but the bruins persevered. Great great win. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NHLBruins?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NHLBruins</a>
Game 4 will take place in Toronto on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.