BOSTON - Craig Smith had fair warning.
With two goals already to his name on Saturday afternoon, David Krejci put him on notice as they sat on the bench late in the third period. The message: keep your stick on the ice and you'll get your hat trick.
"Krejci told me before the shift, he goes, 'Just get your stick down, I'm going to try to shoot it at you every time.' It just happened to be the first one he shot," said Smith. "I was laughing with him half the time."
Krejci (three assists) certainly kept his word as he whipped a feed right on Smith's stick for a textbook redirect with just under six minutes remaining to secure the winger's second career hat trick, which propelled the Bruins to a 6-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres at TD Garden.
"It was cool seeing the hats flying, I don't get to see it very often for myself," said Smith, who opened the scoring just 1:21 into the game, added his second at 5:31 of the third, and capped his hat trick with a power-play marker with 5:55 to play. "It felt great…I thought we had some good looks, but I thought as a team we built some pretty good energy down there. A lot of stuff we worked on in practice the other day was translating and we're playing our game.
"I think a lot of lines did a lot of great things and it ended up just being a product of some nice plays. All in all, it was a great game."
Patrice Bergeron, Nick Ritchie, and Sean Kuraly also potted goals as Boston went on to score four straight after Buffalo tied the game with a shorthanded marker in the first period. The offensive explosion helped the Bruins to their ninth win in 11 games since the trade deadline and pushed them - at least for now - into third place in the East Division, one point ahead of the New York Islanders.
"I think this is a time of year where you're looking internally," said Smith, who has 13 goals and 32 points in 49 games this season. "No matter where you are with your game, I think everyone is building to play for the crest…it might be the smallest detail that can win a game and this time of the year those are going to be the biggest things to make the push."
Video: Smith records hat trick in win over Sabres
Boston's post-deadline surge is, no doubt, in part due to the quick chemistry that has developed between Smith, Krejci, and Taylor Hall on Boston's second line. Since the acquisition of Hall on April 12, the trio has combined for 16 goals and 33 points in 11 games.
Smith's hot streak dates back even further, with the veteran forward having piled up seven goals and 21 points in his last 19 games.
"He's a very popular guy in the room," said Cassidy. "Obviously, new to the group. We've talked about with COVID, it's a little tougher to get to know guys. Obviously, over time, I think they appreciate his kind of lunch pail approach and getting in on the forecheck, creating some turnovers for them and digging around and getting to the front of the net. He's got a great shot. They're happy for him.
"And that's typical Krech. He's looking for him the whole third period. Krech is obviously going to do the right thing. The game is still in hand, but at the same time, looking after a teammate. I think those guys have done that around here when they can.
"Good for him. Happy for him. Happy for the whole line. They've really played real good hockey for us. Hopefully they can stay hot."
Video: Smith notches hat trick in Bruins win
Third Line Clicking
Kuraly potted his first goal in 31 games on Saturday afternoon, burying a rebound off a Ritchie shot with 3:22 left in the first period to give Boston a 2-1 lead. Ritchie followed up in the third period with a tally of his own when he tipped home a Matt Grzelcyk point shot to extend the Bruins advantage to 4-1.
"I think the reaction says it all there," Kuraly said of his goal celebration. "It feels good…there's a lot of other things you try to take pride in…but you can tell by my reaction how that one felt."
With Charlie Coyle snapping his extended goalless streak on Thursday night, all three members of Boston's new-look third line now have goals over the past two games. While moving Coyle to the wing is not Cassidy's preferred option, he does like the heavier nature of the trio with all three of them checking in at 6-foot-2 or above.
"It's early. But I like the fact that we've been trying to build a bigger third line for the majority of the year," said Cassidy. "For a while there it was Coyle, Frederic and Smith, right? But injuries happen. People get shuffled around. We added some real good pieces at the deadline, so you sort of rethink where they're going to best fit. And Coyle moving to the wing goes against what we've kind of tried to do here, is have him, one, two, three and then Kuraly four.
"But listen, you do what you have to do to put the best lineup together and find chemistry. Right now, with Ritchie, they're big bodies. And if they continue to sort of play in behind teams, be hard, recover pucks, they're going to be hard to play against. Everyone has a goal the last two games. We'll see if we can keep it going."
Cassidy was particularly pleased to see Kuraly get on the board after a lengthy scoring drought that included some time as a healthy scratch earlier this season.
"There was a time in the year where we sat down with Sean…don't lose your identity," said Cassidy. "[Curtis] Lazar came in and [Taylor] Hall obviously. So, we moved him to the wing with Lazar and [Chris] Wagner…all of a sudden, a few changes of scenery for everybody and you find yourself on a line that maybe could work best for you in the now. We'll see how it does going forward.
"I think with Sean, we've moved him up at different times. As long as he doesn't lose his identity of what he is, not trying to be something you're not, just play in straight lines and understand how you can get your offense…we've always liked Sean here. Had a lot of loyalty to him as a player. Been a good playoff player for us."
Video: BUF@BOS: Kuraly puts Bruins ahead with rebound goal
DeBrusk Checks Back In
Jake DeBrusk was back in the lineup after sitting out two games as a healthy scratch. The winger, who subbed in as the fourth-line left wing with Curtis Lazar in the middle and Karson Kuhlman on the right, landed a shot on goal and rang another chance off the post in 16:53 of ice time. Kuhlman had a career-high and game-high six shots on net.
"Jake's been on a lot of lines. He's been given an opportunity with almost every center iceman here," said Cassidy. "It falls on him to play the game that's in front of him…to me, it's a second effort league. If he's willing to do that, he'll have success in this league. I thought Kuhlman, back in the lineup, did a lot of that. Took it to the net. Shot the puck when he had opportunities, cut in and tried to attack the net whenever possible.
"The line was good. Unfortunately, didn't get on the scoresheet. But that's OK. Do your job, create energy for us, physicality if it's there."
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