The Boston Bruins kicked off their three-game California road trip with a 5-2 victory over the Los Angeles Kings at crypto.com Arena. After a sluggish opening period, the Bruins found themselves down by one, thanks to a goal from Phillip Danault.
Boston took its game to another level in the second. The tide began to turn after Kings’ forward Adrian Kempe tripped Brad Marchand. Marchand erupted when he got back on his feet and discovered no penalty had been called.
Brad Marchand is ... not happy.
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) January 6, 2023
He gets whistled for unsportsmanlike conduct. pic.twitter.com/fRPgwb8gK0
After one quick tantrum and a shattered stick later, Marchy found himself sitting for two minutes with an unsportsmanlike penalty. Boston limited the Kings’ chances on the man advantage and killed off the penalty before Marchand took the ice on a mission to get retribution.
The 34-year-old protected the puck in LA’s zone before finding a wide-open David Pastrnak. Pasta took his time to settle the biscuit and then ripped a shot past Pheonix Copley. With plenty of Bruins fans in attendance, they could tell the momentum had started to shift.
David Pastrnak ties things up in LA! #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/4DSXheOt63
— Garden Grizzlies (@GardenGrizzlies) January 6, 2023
A little more than two minutes later, Marchand scored his 11th of the season with a power-play goal. The Kings were able to tie the game at two before the end of the middle frame, but Boston proved once again why it’s the best third-period team in hockey.
Just over a minute after the Kings tied the game, Trent Frederic dropped the gloves with Brendan Lemieux in a fight that kept Los Angeles from taking over the game. Frederic did a great job picking his spot to help shake his team up heading into the final period.
Incredible fight between Brendan Lemieux and Trent Frederic, heck of a heavyweight battle#GoKingsGo #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/GNH4SWKbgQ
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) January 6, 2023
Halfway through the third, Frederic tied his career-high in goals for a season with his eighth of the year. The Bruins regained the lead and would never look back. Freddy found the back of the net less than a minute later to put his team up by a pair.
Pastrnak then scored his second of the night with an empty net goal to seal the victory for the B’s. Boston has started 2-0-0 in 2023, leading the NHL with 64 points through just 38 games. The Bruins continue their three-game road trip on Saturday night when they visit the San Jose Sharks.