National Hockey League
Boston 3, Dallas 1
When: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, October 16, 2021
Where: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Referees: Jake Brenk, Chris Rooney
Linesmen: Ryan Daisy, Jonathan Deschamps
Attendance: 17850

Jake DeBrusk scored the go-ahead goal 4:43 into the third period, rookie goalie Jeremy Swayman made 27 saves and the Boston Bruins beat the visiting Dallas Stars 3-1 to win their season opener on Saturday night.

Brad Marchand added a penalty-shot goal and an empty-netter for Boston, which began its first season since 2006 without longtime goalie Tuukka Rask on the roster. Rask, 34, remains a free agent after undergoing hip surgery during the offseason.

Swayman became the first rookie goaltender to start a season opener for the Bruins since Blaine Lacher in 1995. The 22-year-old Swayman did not reach the 25-game threshold to graduate from rookie status after making 10 starts last season for Boston.

Luke Glendening scored his first goal of the season for Dallas, which was coming off a 3-2 season-opening overtime win at the New York Rangers on Thursday. Braden Holtby stopped 37 shots for Dallas and fell to 18-5-0 lifetime against the Bruins.

DeBrusk broke a 1-1 tie in the third when he put home a rebound in front of the crease while skating through the low slot.

Marchand beat Holtby to his blocker side on his penalty shot with 2:22 left in the first period to put Boston ahead 1-0. Marchand improved to 5-for-8 lifetime on penalty shots after being awarded the chance when Ryan Suter held his stick on a breakaway.

Per NHL Stats, Marchand moved into a tie with Vincent Lecavalier for third place on the NHL's all-time penalty-shot goals list -- two shy of Pavel Bure's league-record of seven since the shots were introduced in the 1934-35 season.

Glendening pulled the Stars even at 1-1 at 9:15 of the second period after skating into the slot and firing a wrister past Swayman.

Marchand scored into an empty net with 1:37 remaining to seal the win.

Dallas continues its four-game road trip to open the season at Ottawa on Sunday. Boston is off until Wednesday when it visits Philadelphia.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Dallas   Boston
Luke Glendening 1 Points Brad Marchand 2
Luke Glendening 1 Goals Brad Marchand 2
Tanner Kero 1 Assists Nick Foligno 1
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Braden Holtby .949 Save Percentage Jeremy Swayman .964
Braden Holtby 37 Saves Jeremy Swayman 27
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Dallas 28 1 0-6 3-3 8 33
Boston 40 3 0-3 6-6 14 29
Upcoming Games
  • Boston will play their next game on the road against Philadelphia. The Bruins have a W/L % of .000 after a win and 1.000 after a loss.
  • Dallas will play their next game on the road against Ottawa. The Stars have a W/L % of .000 after a win and 1.000 after a loss.