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Bruins ground Jets 4-1 in battle of division leaders

Charlie Coyle scored the tie-breaking goal late in the opening period and Boston's tight defence carried the Bruins to their fifth straight victory, 4-1 over the Winnipeg Jets on Monday in a matchup of top NHL teams.

Winnipeg's streak of allowing 3 goals or less ends at 34 games, 1 shy of modern NHL record

Ken Powtak · The Associated Press ·
A goalie makes a save in front of his net.
Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck makes a save on a shot by Boston Bruins forward James van Riemsdyk during second-period action of their NHL matchup on Monday in Boston. (Michael Dwyer/The Associated Press)

Charlie Coyle scored the tie-breaking goal late in the opening period and Boston's tight defence carried the Bruins to their fifth straight victory, 4-1 over the Winnipeg Jets on Monday in a matchup of top NHL teams.

Jake DeBrusk and Jakub Lauko also scored as Boston improved to 10-1-3 in its last 14 games. Jeremy Swayman made 21 saves for the Bruins, who lead the Eastern Conference with 67 points.

DeBrusk's short-handed goal with 5:25 left ended the Jets' string of holding opponents to two or fewer goals at 14 consecutive games. The Los Angeles Kings did it in 18 straight during 2013.

Brad Marchand added an empty-net goal that halted Winnipeg's streak of holding its opponent to three goals or less at 34 games. The modern NHL record is 35 games, set by the 2015 Minnesota Wild.

Vladislav Namestnikov scored for the Jets, who lead the Central Division with 64 points. Connor Hellebuyck stopped 17 shots.

Last season, Boston set NHL records for the most victories (65) and points (135) before being eliminated in the opening round of the Stanley Cup playoffs by Florida.

Two hockey players battle for the puck.
Winnipeg Jets captain Adam Lowry battles with Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand for the puck during the second period of an NHL game on Monday in Boston. (Michael Dwyer/The Associated Press)

Coyle, positioned in the slot, tipped Linus Lindholm's shot from the point and it sailed past Hellebuyck, pushing Boston ahead 2-1 with 1:34 left in the first period.

The Bruins had jumped ahead when Trent Frederic collected a rebound and sent it over to Lauko, who scored from the top of the crease 2:20 into the game.

Namestnikov tipped Dylan DeMelo's shot from the point and it dipped past Swayman's glove, tying it at 4:16.

Coming off a nine-goal outburst in Saturday night's win over Montreal and after scoring 14 total goals in their previous two games, the Bruins were faced with a tough test against the league's best defensive team.

Boston improved to 6-0-1 in its last seven meetings with the Jets, getting some payback for a 5-1 loss at Winnipeg on Dec. 22.

The Jets came in giving up just 2.25 goals per game.

Boston responded with some stingy defence of its own, holding the Jets to single digits in shots on goal until the closing minutes of the second period.

Two players chase for the puck while a third hockey player tries to catch up.
Boston Bruins defenceman Brandon Carlo, top, battles for the puck with Axel Jonsson-Fjallby of the Winnipeg Jets, as Hampus Lindholm, bottom, tries to catch up during the second period of an NHL game on Monday in Boston. (Michael Dwyer/The Associated Press)

Winnipeg also entered the night with the league's top winning percentage (72.7%) and Boston was second (72.2).

The Jets will look to rebound Wednesday when they visit the Toronto Maple Leafs.

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