The Bruins’ David Pastrnak is all about his team’s offense

VANCOUVER – Help with scoring is coming. Maybe Oliver Wahlstrom will wear his new club’s uniform on Tuesday when the Boston Bruins play the Calgary Flames. Everyone knows Wahlstrom, who was claimed off waivers on Saturday, can shoot the puck. Maybe even better than David Pastrnak.

“He’s a great shooter,” said Brad Marchand, who spoke with Wahlstrom before Saturday’s 5-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks. “He has a very, very dangerous shot. He’s almost like a big pasta the way he can shoot the puck. He will be a weapon in that regard.”

However, Wahlstrom is out of the New York Islanders. He only has two goals. It’s unrealistic to call the newest Bruin an offensive difference maker.

Pastrnak is.

Entering this year, the No. 1 right wing led the Bruins in scoring in six of the previous seven seasons. He is one of the NHL’s best at putting pucks in the net.

Things weren’t so easy for Pastrnak this year. He only has 11 points, two fewer than Marchand’s team leader.

But Pastrnak tied his season high with four points, including three assists, against the Canucks. Even in a bad year, Pastrnak has the ability to spark at any time.

“I’m a scorer,” Pastrnak said. “I haven’t been there yet this year. I miss the look. We had big problems on the power play. Now in the last three or four games there are always power plays. It will definitely get better. I always look forward to doing plays. I have nothing against passports.”

Pastrnak controls the Bruins’ 2024-25 destiny, perhaps more than anyone else. As the team’s highest-paid player, Pastrnak’s annual compensation of $11.25 million underscores his importance. If he makes the offense look easy, as he did against the Canucks, Pastrnak can single-handedly give the Bruins two points – or two more than they had after 40 percent of their five-game trip.

“His game is versatile. We all know that,” said interim coach Joe Sacco. “He can score. He can pass, the ability to make plays. Getting him moving in the right direction offensively is a huge boost for our team.”

Pastrnak had good legs. So did the rest of the team. After consecutive slow flops against the Winnipeg Jets and Seattle Kraken, the Bruins were firing on all cylinders Saturday. They controlled the puck and moved it purposefully.

“We looked quick tonight because we controlled the puck well,” Sacco said. “We didn’t put ourselves in a position to turn the puck over and now you’re chasing the game back on our side. Everyone benefited from this. Obviously pasta was king tonight.”

Pastrnak got his first assist on Marchand’s power play goal. He set up the Bruins’ first five-on-five goal of the trip by quickly passing out Morgan Geekie. Before Thatcher Demko could push off the strong post, Geekie shot the puck once into the goal, giving the Bruins a 2-0 lead.

Pastrnak added his third helper with another quick push, this time outside the boards, setting up a speedy Pavel Zacha. The center made the score 3-0 at 1:12 of the second period. It was Pastrnak’s 400th assist in his career.

But Pastrnak is a finisher. He is not only characterized by his talent in scoring goals. He is exceptionally good at reading his surroundings, assessing his options and determining how best to score.

Case in point: his goal in the third period.

During four-on-four play, Charlie McAvoy captured the offensive zone and dropped the puck for Pastrnak. The right wing’s first thought was to put the puck in the net. But Pastrnak saw that Demko was outside the goal area and aggressively blocked his shot. A shot on goal was a low percentage decision.

So Pastrnak crossed that off his list. He decided on plan B: a sweeping attack.

As Pastrnak approached the goal line, Demko dropped into the butterfly throw. That gave Pastrnak even more information that, given his speed, he could make the break before Demko could recover. Pastrnak was right.

David Pastrnak scores the fourth point of the night! 🔢

📺: @Sportsnet or stream on Sportsnet+ ➡️ https://t.co/4KjbdjVctF pic.twitter.com/3zWu8j2OF8

– NHL (@NHL) December 15, 2024

“I felt like I had some speed,” Pastrnak said. “Usually you have to be very fast for these sightseeing flights. It’s worked out. I obviously looked shot at first. But he completely took away the strong side of the net. So I tried the all-round experiment. It is beautiful. To be honest, I don’t score many points from it.”

The Bruins are 8-4-0 under Sacco. It was their interim coach’s first win against a team currently in the playoffs.

Pastrnak helped make it happen.

(Photo of David Pastrnak scoring in the third period: Bob Frid / Imagn Images)