The Boston Bruins stretched their point streak to eight games Saturday night, Oct. 24, 2026, scoring four times in the third period to beat the San Jose Sharks 6-4 at TD Garden. David Pastrnak’s tying goal also moved him into a tie with Patrice Bergeron for third place on the Bruins’ all-time goals list, with 427, according to NHL.com.
Boston improved to 9-2-1 and is 7-0-1 in its past eight games. The Sharks fell to 6-5-1, finishing a six-game road trip at 3-2-1.
Bruins vs. Sharks: how the third period turned
San Jose took its first lead of the night at 4:03 of the third period, when defenseman Dmitry Orlov scored with a one-timer from the point to make it 3-2. Boston answered with three straight goals in a span of 3:33.
Pastrnak, just out of the penalty box, took a feed from JJ Peterka and beat goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic with a wrist shot from the top of the right face-off circle at 8:27 to tie the game 3-3. It was his seventh goal of the season, the Associated Press reported. Forty seconds later, at 9:07, rookie James Hagens put Boston ahead 4-3 from the edge of the crease. Fraser Minten made it 5-3 at 12:00, knocking in a rebound on the power play.
Will Smith pulled the Sharks within 5-4 just 27 seconds later with the teams playing 4-on-4. Will Borgen sealed it with an empty-net goal at 19:32.
Early goals and special teams
Casey Mittelstadt opened the scoring at 3:08 of the first period, tucking in a pass across the crease from Elias Lindholm after a strong Boston forecheck forced the puck loose. San Jose tied it on the power play at 5:54, when Michael Misa tapped in a deflected shot at the far post.
Marat Khusnutdinov restored the Bruins’ lead with a backhand at 8:20 of the second period, but Kiefer Sherwood tied it 2-2 at 13:34 with a short-handed breakaway goal after intercepting a Lindholm pass in the neutral zone.
All four San Jose goals came away from five-on-five play: two on the power play, one short-handed and one at four-on-four. At five-on-five, the Bruins outscored the Sharks 4-0 over about 42 minutes and held an 18-4 edge in high-danger scoring chances, The Boston Globe reported.
Box score highlights
- Multi-point nights: Hagens, Mittelstadt and Minten each had a goal and an assist. Lindholm and Peterka each had two assists.
- Goaltending: Jeremy Swayman made 23 saves, per NHL.com. Nedeljkovic stopped 29 shots for San Jose.
- Sharks scorers: Misa, Sherwood, Orlov and Smith. Jacob Trouba had two assists.
- Milestone: Mittelstadt’s goal was the 100th of his NHL career, according to the Globe.
James Hagens and the Bruins’ checking line
Hagens, the No. 7 pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, scored his fourth goal of the season and entered Sunday tied for the NHL lead in rookie scoring with four goals and five assists, according to the Globe. The 19-year-old also led all NHL forwards with 16 blocked shots, the paper reported, and three of his four goals have come within 7 feet of the net.
“That was something right away we noticed. This is not college anymore,” Bruins coach Marco Sturm said of Hagens, as quoted by the Globe. “I think he realized pretty soon, and we’re pushing him pretty hard, getting more to the paint, more to the inside. That’s where you score the goals, so good for him that he realized that.”
Sturm has used Hagens, Lindholm and Mittelstadt as a line against opponents’ top units. In 7:16 of five-on-five time against Sharks star Macklin Celebrini, Boston outscored San Jose 2-0, the Globe reported. Lindholm has 8 points in eight games since joining the line.
“Lindy does a heck of a job in all three zones,” Mittelstadt said, according to the Globe. “Me and [Hagens] are there to support him and help him when he needs it. But thankfully, I don’t think he needs it that often.”
Pastrnak and the Bruins record book
Pastrnak, who was named Bruins captain before the season, now shares third place on the franchise goals list with Bergeron. That earlier move is covered in our story on Pastrnak being named captain. The Bruins’ win over the Sharks followed a 6-0 shutout of Nashville that we covered in our Bruins-Predators recap.
What Pastrnak said
“We were down by a goal (in the third period) and then we retake the lead and stay calm,” Pastrnak said, according to NHL.com. “Even though we took two penalties, we stayed composed and end up getting the lead before the end, so it’s impressive how mature this group is sometimes during certain stages and it’s fun to see. We know we were far from our best today, but it’s OK because we ended up winning.”
Pastrnak also praised Hagens’ work around the net. “He’s got the touch,” he said, per NHL.com. “He’s very smart around the net.”
What’s next for the Bruins
Boston plays at the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night, Oct. 27, at 8 p.m. ET, according to the NHL’s national TV schedule. San Jose hosts Buffalo the same night, per NHL.com. For more Bruins, Celtics, Patriots and college coverage, visit the Boston Report Sports section.
Featured image: David Pastrnak (88) of the Boston Bruins during a game against the Seattle Kraken in February 2023. Photo by Jenn G / Wikimedia Commons, licensed CC BY-SA 2.0; cropped.
Sources
- NHL.com: Bruins rally past Sharks in third, run point streak to eight
- The Boston Globe: James Hagens has been gritty, and more observations
- CBS Boston / Associated Press: Bruins keep rolling with win over Sharks
Additional sources
- NHL.com Gamecenter: Sharks at Bruins, Oct. 24, 2026
- Boston.com: Pastrnak, Hagens go back-to-back to give Bruins lead
- Boston Bruins: Bruins beat Sharks 6-4 in back-and-forth affair
- NHL.com: Nationally televised games, week of Oct. 26
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