BOSTON — The Bruins Rangers opener delivered a late surge Tuesday night at TD Garden, where Boston scored three times in a 1:15 span of the third period and blanked the New York Rangers 3-0 in the 2026-27 season opener for both clubs.
Fraser Minten broke a scoreless deadlock with 3:46 remaining, JJ Peterka doubled the lead on his Bruins debut, and Mark Kastelic finished an empty-netter 23 seconds later. Jeremy Swayman stopped all 24 shots for his 19th NHL shutout as Boston opened the year with a win after a busy preseason.
How the Bruins Rangers opener broke open late
The first two periods were a goaltending duel. Swayman made 15 saves through 40 minutes; Igor Shesterkin answered with 14. Midway through the third, Swayman turned aside consecutive chances from Pavel Dorofeyev and J.T. Miller, and Shesterkin answered with a glove stop on Casey Mittelstadt’s 2-on-1.
Minten finally cracked the ice with a slot wrister stick-side after a feed from Mason Lohrei into space, with Marat Khusnutdinov nearby. Peterka then stickhandled between Braden Schneider’s legs on the rush and buried a wrist shot at 17:06. Kastelic’s empty-netter at 17:29 completed the three-goal burst and the 3-0 final.
Peterka debuts on Pastrnak’s line
Peterka, acquired from the Utah Mammoth on June 26 for the No. 23 pick in the 2026 NHL Draft and a conditional 2028 first-rounder, skated on Boston’s top line with newly named captain David Pastrnak and Elias Lindholm. The German winger called the TD Garden reaction “crazy” and said the group looked for each other with speed and poise.
Swayman praised the finish—“He’s silky… that was a goal-scorer’s goal”—while noting the job was unfinished after Minten’s opener. Peterka’s debut goal capped a summer remake that also brought defenseman Will Borgen from the Rangers; Borgen finished plus-2 in 17:43 in his Bruins debut. The captaincy announcement that set the tone for opening night is covered in our earlier David Pastrnak Bruins captain report.
Notes from opening night at TD Garden
Charlie McAvoy served the first game of a six-game suspension for a playoff slash, so Boston’s blue line was already short. Rangers coach Mike Sullivan, a Boston native, coached his 1,000th NHL game—the third American-born head coach to reach the mark. Eighteen-year-old Alberts Smits, the No. 5 pick in 2026, made his NHL debut for New York and logged 16:54.
The shutout followed a mixed preseason that included a 3-2 overtime loss to the Capitals and an earlier 2-0 setback against the Flyers. Regular-season hockey, with real standings points, arrived with a clean sheet.
What’s next for the Bruins
Boston next visits the Winnipeg Jets on Friday at 8 p.m. ET. Sustaining the Minten–Khusnutdinov chemistry, integrating Peterka with Pastrnak, and managing McAvoy’s suspension absences will shape the early schedule. For New York, Miller said the Rangers created chances but “gave up a little too much easy offense” once Boston’s rush game clicked.
Sources: NHL.com Rangers at Bruins game recap.