Brad Marchand admits as much after ending the scoreless drought

BOSTON – Bruins captain Brad Marchand could have scored his first goal of the season and eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs with a scoreless goal with just under a minute left in regulation.

However, that didn't happen. Marchand was handcuffed and had to stand offside before he could fire a shot.

But when the Maple Leafs forced overtime, Marchand didn't miss his second chance to finally defeat Toronto.

Marchand got his chance after a terrible loss of possession by the Maple Leafs in their defensive zone and a pass from David Pastrnak. The Bruins captain's first shot on the doorstep was stopped by Toronto goaltender Anthony Stolarz, but Marchand knocked in the loose puck to give the Bruins a thrilling 4-3 overtime victory over their Original Six on Saturday night at TD Garden -Rivals.

It was definitely the way to go for Marchand to score his long-awaited first goal of the season, as he also ranked third in franchise history for all-time game-winning goals.

“To be honest, I was hoping it would happen on an empty net,” Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery said. “You could see how happy the bench was when we scored that goal. He is our leader, he is someone who embodies what it means to be a Bruin – in the right way. The way he carries himself on the ice, off the ice, everything.”

Marchand felt the weight of his goalless drought with every game. It was the longest time without a goal to start a season since his first full year with the Bruins in the 2010-11 season.

“Yeah, it is,” Marchand said when asked if it felt like he ripped the monkey off his back. “I've been through many different phases in my career, good and bad. You have to stay calm. I didn't get too into it. But it’s definitely nice to get that out of the way.”

The Bruins needed it too, having entered the contest on a three-game losing streak and blowing a late lead when Auston Matthews scored with 1:17 left in regulation. But Marchand, who tied with Rick Middleton for the fourth-most goals of all time in Bruins history, felt no panic on the bench after the Maple Leafs equalized.

And then Marchand made sure he came through for his teammates while also getting on the scoresheet himself.

“Perfect timing,” Pastrnak said.

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Here are more notes from Saturday's Bruins-Maple Leafs game:

— Pastrnak has his signature look back, but it has nothing to do with his hair. Pastrnak broke his teeth against the Maple Leafs when he hit William Nylander in the face with a high stick.

“The old look is back,” Pastrnak said. “I can’t wait for my next visit to the dentist.”

Pastrnak also opened the scoring for the Bruins with a power play goal in the second period. It was Pastrnak's 30th career goal against the Maple Leafs, his most against a franchise.

– Justin Brazeau was not in the Bruins' lineup for two of three games on Boston's last road trip. But his response to being a healthy scratch has been excellent. Against the Maple Leafs, he brought tremendous energy on both ends of the ice and scored his second goal in as many games.

“I think it was just a matter of getting back to what I was doing,” Brazeau said. “Obviously I don’t think I had the start I wanted. I knew I could play and I knew I could come back and help this team.”

– Montgomery admitted that before the game against the Maple Leafs he saw something in his team that had been missing recently.

“The group was relaxed this morning, which I was happy about,” Montgomery said. “They hadn't been relaxed for a while. There were no smiles on our faces during the morning skate – we saw that. We had a lot of energy. Positive energy creates good attitudes and good attitudes create good habits. The motivation to play properly then comes easily.”

— The Bruins complete their three-game homestand Tuesday against the Philadelphia Flyers, who are in last place in the Eastern Conference. TD Garden puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET. You can watch the game as well as an hour of pre-game coverage on NESN.