In a match full of intensity, Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy became the hero by scoring the winning goal in overtime against the Los Angeles Kings. However, the celebration came at a price. McAvoy, with a bloody mouth and visibly affected, only had time to answer two questions before returning to dental work.
“Then I have to go get more dental work done,” declared the American Olympian, after scoring at 39 seconds of overtime and securing the 2-1 victory for the Bruins, extending their home winning streak to 13 consecutive games.
McAvoy, a nine-year NHL veteran and Olympic gold medalist last month in Milan, had already been sidelined for almost a month after taking a shot to the mouth in November.
Although he wore a protective mask upon his return, he wasn’t wearing it when he took another hit to the face against the Nashville Predators last week, nor on Tuesday night, when he was slammed into the glass by Kings center Samuel Helenius with seven minutes left in the second period.
“Honestly, I wish the hits would stop coming,” McAvoy said after a crucial victory for Boston, which remains in a playoff position. “It’s exhausting. My mouth, honestly, couldn’t feel worse. But I’ll get to work. We have a really good dentist here, which is great. I’m very happy we got two points tonight.”
Charlie McAvoyMcAvoy left the locker room, but returned at the start of the third period.
“I didn’t think I’d be back,” Bruins coach Marco Sturm commented. “He’s not getting any prettier, that’s for sure.”
Marco Sturm
Sturm explained that McAvoy apologized for his performance in the first period, but was in the right place in overtime when Mark Kastelic made a long pass to David Pastrnak, who passed the puck to McAvoy as he entered the zone. The defenseman made a play with his backhand to score the goal.McAvoy’s overtime goal, celebrated with the fans at TD Garden on Tuesday night, mitigated the impact of the hit he took during the game, which required another visit to the dentist.
“It wasn’t so good before the hit,” Sturm said. “But, what do you want me to say? This kid just scored the winning goal.”
Marco Sturm
The Bruins were in an uncertain leadership situation following the loss of their long-time captain, Zdeno Chara, and his successors Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand. Currently, they play without a captain, with McAvoy, Hampus Lindholm, and Pastrnak as assistants.
McAvoy’s toughness could earn him a promotion.
“Those are the players you need in a locker room,” Sturm added. “The guy who’s next to him, he’s going to look and ask: ‘Is he going to fight or not?’. If you sit in front of him, and if you’re a young guy, seeing him, (you say) ‘I don’t want to be the one who gives up'”.
