BOSTON -- The Boston Bruins (33-20-5) started slow, but shut down the Columbus Blue Jackets (29-21-7) and won 4-2 on Thursday night inside TD Garden.
It's a 10th-straight victory on home ice for the Bruins, with the last loss on home ice coming before Christmas.
The Bruins allowed 20 shots on goal in the first period, but snuck out with the game tied at one. They allowed just 20 shots the rest of the game, and came out with the win.
Viktor Arvidsson scored twice, the opening goal for Boston and the game-sealing empty-net goal with all of 33 seconds to go.
Undoubtedly, the Bruins started slow and rusty. Ultimately, this became a much-needed win. The win, according to Moneypuck.com, moved the Bruins playoff odds from 60.5% to 67.8%, a huge step forward against a team directly chasing them.
Entering the third period, it became a battle of two immense, season-long stats. The Bruins entered Thursday night 26-0-3 when leading after two periods. The Blue Jackets entered 1-13-0 when trailing after two periods.
Those numbers can be moved into their usual columns. Boston up to 27-0-3, while Columbus drops to 1-14-0.
Joonas Korpisalo started and stole the show, making an outstanding 37 saves. Moneypuck had him at 1.88 goals saved above expected, which is the difference tonight.
In the second period, Korpisalo missed 6:03 of game time when being checked for a concussion after Miles Wood ran him.
Michael DiPietro entered and made two saves in his Bruins debut.
Despite only playing 6:03, his pair of saves loomed large, which his teammates and coach praised him for postgame.
DiPietro's had three prior appearances, all for the Vancouver Canucks. His last NHL appearance came in the 2021-22 season, in a 3-1 loss to the Blues.
Game Recap:
The game began with an avalanche from the Blue Jackets. They were all over the Bruins, attacking at will.
Then, Mason Marchment sprung Kirill Marchenko for a breakaway. Marchenko ripped it past Korpisalo, making it 1-0 Columbus.
Chances up-and-down the ice became the norm, often with Columbus getting a greater share than Boston. Korpisalo stood on his head to keep it 1-0.
The Bruins rewarded Korpisalo's effort with Arvidsson's equalizer.
Damon Severson deflected it up and over Elvis Merzlikins, an own-goal that tied the game and changed the direction it ended up going.
In the second period, the Bruins asserted themselves far better, and limited chances at their own end.
Then came the goalie interference penalty that temporarily knocked Korpisalo out of the game.
Morgan Geekie scored a power-play goal to punish the Jackets, giving the Bruins a 2-1 lead with DiPietro in net.
It's just an unbelievable pass from David Pastrnak, who teed up Geekie for the one-timer.
The Bruins carried that lead into the third period, where Sean Kuraly scored what became the game-winning goal.
It's hard to fire a slap shot that hard and perfect, but boy did Kuraly juice that one.
Still, the Bruins weren't quite out of the woods. Adam Fantilli made it a 3-2 game off a rush with a wicked wrister, wide open in the slot.
Bruins Head Coach Marco Sturm called out the defensive lapse postgame and called it an unnecessary mistake.
Still, the Bruins hung on for a massive win. Next up, a Saturday afternoon matinée against the Philadelphia Flyers in Philly.