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 Center Patrice Bergeron scored his second goal of the game at
2:33 of overtime when he tipped a shot by left winger Milan Lucic
from the center point. The play stood up under a review to see if
Bergeron's stick was a legal height off the ice for a 3-2 win
against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Consol Energy Center.
"At some point, it's going to have to go our way, and tonight that
was the case," Bergeron said. "It wasn't perfect by all means, but
it was a good effort and we found a way to get a big win."
It came a day after the Bruins got chastised by new club CEO Charlie
Jacobs, who said the season has been "very disappointing" and that
the Bruins' performance has been "unacceptable." Several players
reacted following Wednesday's morning skate by saying they accepted
not only Jacobs' criticism but also blame for the state of things.
Boston, the defending Presidents' Trophy winner, began the night
fifth in the Atlantic Division, ninth in the Eastern Conference and
below the playoff cutoff going into a game that got them to the
midpoint of the season. The two points moved them above the playoff
line.
 "It's always nice to win, especially right now. We need those
points," said defenseman and team captain Zdeno Chara, who scored
the Bruins' first goal.
With their point, the Penguins moved into sole possession of first
place in the Metropolitan Division, but they thought they could or
should have had two points after outshooting Boston, 39-24.
"I think we deserved the two points, but we missed a couple of
chances," said Pittsburgh center Evgeni Malkin, who had a goal and
an assist. "We had a little bit of bad luck, but we played hard. We
shot the puck. We controlled. Just not enough to win."
The Penguins were 0-for-4 on the power play and are just 2-for-31
with the man-advantage over their past 13 games.
It was the eighth meeting in a row between the teams that was
decided by one goal.
The Penguins dominated the opening minutes, and right winger Beau
Bennett gave them a 1-0 lead at 3:37 of the first period. He took
Malkin's centering pass from behind the net and, six feet to the
right of the net, swept the puck between the wide-stance legs of
towering Chara and inside the near post.
"He's coming off injury, too, so we had him spinning a little bit,"
Bennett said of Chara. "(Malkin) gains a lot of attention when he
has the puck, so I just kind of slipped through the cracks there and
was lucky enough to be in the right spot and put one in."
Chara tied it at 1 at 17:57 of the first period on a searing slap
shot from above the left circle. With center David Krejci providing
a screen, Chara's shot sailed past the blocker of Pittsburgh
goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury.
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It was Chara's first goal since Oct. 18, before he missed 19 games
because of a knee injury.
Pittsburgh outshot Boston 14-6 in the second period, but the Bruins
got the only goal.
Fleury poke-checked the puck away from Lucic, who battled to get
around Penguins defenseman Robert Bortuzzo. The puck slid into the
left circle, where Bergeron caught up with it and scored from the
hash marks at 15:37 for a 2-1 Bruins lead.
Malkin tied it for the Penguins just 15 seconds into the third
period. He carried the puck from his own blue line, cutting wide
toward the left-wing boards before cruising to just above the left
dot. He let loose a perfectly placed slap shot that sailed over the
left shoulder of Boston goaltender Tuukka Rask.
Although Bennett hit the inside of the left post early in overtime,
it was Bergeron's tip that decided it.
"It wasn't a perfect game, but I think the win was really important
for us," Boston coach Claude Julien said. "You know, you say, 'Where
is the confidence?' Well, you need to win some games to get some
confidence so it feels good to get that win and in overtime.
"By no means do we feel or think that we're out of the woods here,
but it's a good start."
NOTES: Pittsburgh played without C Marcel Goc, who was ill, along
with injured RW Blake Comeau, RW Patric Hornqvist and RW Pascal
Dupuis, and D Olli Maatta. Goc missed Monday's practice, returned
for practice Tuesday but sat out the game-day skate and game
Wednesday. Coach Mike Johnston indicated the illness is not serious.
... Although Boston recalled rookie RW David Pastrnak from the AHL
after he played for the Czech Republic in the world junior
tournament, coach Claude Julien said the team opted to scratch the
2014 first-round pick Wednesday so he would not have to play on
back-to-back nights. Julien said Pastrnak will play Thursday against
New Jersey. ... Boston continues to play without LW Simon Gagne, who
is on a personal leave. ... The Penguins lead the NHL with goals
from 24 players this season.
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