Morgan Geekie, Elias Lindholm heroics save Bruins in 'gutsy' win

After Thursday's no-show loss against the Blues, the Bruins should have been set up for a classic get-right game on Saturday afternoon against the lowly Blackhawks.

It didn't quite play out that way. In fact, Boston looked downright dreadful for long stretches of this game as well, and trailed Chicago 4-2 with seven minutes to go.

But, instead of limping to another loss like they did in St. Louis, the Bruins fought back for a 5-4, come-from-behind overtime win, thanks in large part to the late heroics of Morgan Geekie and Elias Lindholm.

Mason Lohrei started the comeback, burying a feed from JJ Peterka just 46 seconds after Connor Bedard put the Blackhawks up by two. The Bruins kept pushing and firing away, ultimately landing 17 shots on goal in the third period after recording just 13 shots through the game's first 40 minutes.

The final one of those shots came with just 12 seconds left in regulation, and it was a rocket off the stick of Geekie to tie the game at 4-4. For Geekie, it was also a monkey off his back, as it snapped a nine-game goalless drought and finally gave him his second goal of the season.

"Very happy for him," Bruins coach Marco Sturm said of Geekie breaking through in a big moment. "Hopefully that will help him moving forward. He had some opportunities. He hit the post in the first. Definitely hit a rocket there at the end of the third to tie it up. Hopefully that relaxes him a little bit, and hopefully there are more coming."

The Blackhawks had the better opportunities in overtime, but Bedard whiffed on two good looks and Michael DiPietro robbed Anton Frondell (already with two goals on the day) on a breakaway.

When the Bruins finally got their chance, they capitalized. Charlie McAvoy sent Lindholm into the offensive zone with a long stretch pass, and Lindholm held off Oliver Moore with a power move to the net before finishing past Arvid Soderblom.

For Lindholm, it was the brightest moment yet in what has been a major bounce-back season for him. The veteran center is second on the team in points with 12 in 15 games, and his five goals are tied for second. His line, with Casey Mittelstadt and James Hagens on his wings, continues to produce, with Hagens setting up Mittelstadt for the Bruins' second goal Saturday. And Lindholm continues to lead the NHL in faceoff wins, adding a 17-of-24 performance against Chicago, while playing in all situations.

Sturm also credited Lindholm and Mittelstadt with taking Hagens under their wing, something Hagens is clearly grateful for as well.

"I've learned a lot, especially defensively," Hagens said of playing with Lindholm. "He's such a good player. He's great all-around. He's a guy that you want on your team if you want to win. He shows that every single night. So, to be able to see how good of a guy he is off the ice as well, it just makes you love him even more. He's taught me a lot, and he's teaching me a lot every day. Just to be able to have a mentor like that, I'm super grateful."

The other highlight from Saturday was David Pastrnak's first-period goal, which came on a breakaway and which moved him ahead of former linemate Patrice Bergeron for third on the Bruins' career goals list with 428. The only two players ahead of Pastrnak now are Johnny Bucyk (545) and Phil Esposito (459).

"He's obviously a legend and an unbelievable player," Pastrnak said of passing Bergeron. "...Obviously I'm honored, and blessed he’s my friend. Very humbled by it. At the same time, he's the reason I pass him too. He's a big part. So I'm blessed that I got to know him and learn from him."

So, maybe Saturday wasn't quite a get-right game for the Bruins. There is still a lot they need to clean up, especially with a much better team coming to town on Monday in the Vegas Golden Knights. But there was a lot to feel good about at the end of the day, and the Bruins did dig deep and show some resilience.

"For us to come out and have a gutsy win like this, I think it kind of speaks to the character and the leadership group," Geekie said. "...We're going to watch it tomorrow and there's going to be a lot to learn from for sure, but I think for us it's more about the gutsy win that we have and kind of how we can get things done when we're not at our best."