Boston Bruins vs Vegas Golden Knights Match Player Stats On Mar 03, 2022

Craig Smith had a hat trick and Jeremy Swayman made 34 saves to lead the Boston Bruins to a 5-2 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday night in Las Vegas.

It was the third hat trick and 22nd multi-point game of Smith's career. David Pastrnak scored two goals and Trent Frederic added a career-high three assists for Boston, which improved to 4-1 on its six-game road trip that ends Saturday at Columbus. Swayman improved to 6-0-1 over the last seven starts, allowing two goals or less in all of them.

Jack Eichel and Jonathan Marchessault each scored for Vegas, which continues to struggle at home; the Knights are just 6-8-3 over their last 17 contests at T-Mobile Arena. Robin Lehner made 31 saves.

Boston took a 1-0 lead at the 13:18 mark of the first period, taking advantage of a Vegas turnover in the neutral zone. Frederic then drove down the right wing and passed back to Smith in the high slot, where he rifled a wrist shot past Lehner's blocker side.

The Bruins then extended their lead to 2-0 a few minutes later, after another Vegas turnover. Smith roofed a shot from the right side of the goal over Lehner, off a crossing pass from Charlie Coyle.

Eichel cut it to 2-1 at the 17:34 mark of the period on a breakaway, sliding the puck through Swayman's pads for his second goal in seven games since being activated after neck surgery in November. It also snapped a 66-save streak by Swayman.

The Golden Knights nearly tied it early in the third period. William Carrier's wrist shot from the bottom of the right circle caromed off Swayman's shoulder, then off the crossbar and out.

Pastrnak made it 3-1 at 8:14 in the period when he tapped in his own rebound through Lehner's pads to hit the 30-goal mark for the fifth time in his career.

Smith then one-timed Matt Grzelcyk's pass from the left circle inside the near post for the hat trick and his ninth goal of the season.

Vegas pulled Lehner with 4:52 to go, and Marchessault cut it to 4-2 with his team-best 22nd goal of the season. Pastrnak, who has scored a league-best 23 goals since Jan. 1, then sealed it with an empty-net goal with 1:40 to go. It was his 31st of the season.

--Field Level Media