Marcus Johansson and Charlie Coyle played heroes on Thursday night as the combined for the game-tying goal with under five minutes left in regulation and then the game-winner 10 minutes later in the extra session in Boston.
Coyle converted a Johansson assist late the third period to get the Bruins even at 2-2 with the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets.
“I thought we were clearly the better team in the first period,” Boston head coach Bruce Cassidy said. “The residual effect of the emotional win in Game 7, they had time off, that can go either way, and usually it’s hard to find your game when you have that much time off, the intensity level.”
The game-winner came off a perfect pass from Johansson at the left circle to Coyle at the doorstep for the easy tap in.
“It’s just relief we got the win. I don’t care who scored, to be honest,” Coyle said. “… It’s special personally, but it’s all about the team here, and I was glad after that turnover [in the third period] that we got the win no matter how we did it.”
Tuukka Rask made 20 saves to get the win.
“I think every game is important, but if we played well and it had not gone our way tonight, you’re going to be a little hard on yourself,” Cassidy said.
Columbus overcame a 1-0 deficit in the early stages of the third period on goals 13 seconds apart from Riley Nash (7:39) and Pierre-Luc Dubois at 4:52.
The Bruins outworked the Jackets in the first period and took a 1-0 lead on a shorthanded goal from Noel Acciari.
Columbus had not played a game in nine days since sending the Tampa Bay Lightning to the off season in a four-game sweep.
That still doesn’t sound right.
“We had our struggles in the first,” Columbus head coach John Tortorella said. “But found our game for a number of minutes there, but we just couldn’t finish the game.”
[WATCH: Blue Jackets vs. Bruins Game 1 highlights | Complete series coverage]
Sergei Bobrovsky made 34 saves in the loss.
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