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The 2022-23 Boston Bruins have rewritten the NHL record books following their 5-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday.
With their 63rd win of the season, the Bruins now have the most single-season wins by any team in NHL history, taking the record from the 1995-96 Detroit Red Wings that went 62-13-7.
This was supposed to be a transition year for the Bruins, a team that had a new head coach in Jim Montgomery and many question marks on the roster, including whether captain Patrice Bergeron was returning after being knocked out by the Carolina Hurricanes in the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season.
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Charlie Coyle celebrates his first-period goal against the Flyers with his Boston Bruins teammates at the Wells Fargo Center on April 9, 2023, in Philadelphia. (Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images)
But that quickly changed when the Bruins went on a tear to start the season, and never looked back.
"I think it shows the kind of group we have," defenseman Connor Clifton told Fox News Digital about setting the new record. "We trust each other and the style we’re playing."
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It was only right that David Pastrnak, the team’s points leader this season, scored his career 298th, 299th and 300th goals for a hat trick in the win. It also totaled 60 goals for him on a season where he earned a massive eight-year extension worth $11.25 million per season.
That style Clifton alluded to runs through Pastrnak, which showed on the first of his three goals in Philadelphia. Clifton got the puck at the blue line and was looking for No. 88 streaking across the middle of the offensive zone.
A quick flick of the carbon fiber in his hands led to a perfect pass to Pastrnak, who sent a missile at the Flyers’ net. It found the five-hole of goaltender Felix Sandstrom for the team’s second goal of the game.
About five-and-a-half minutes later, Pastrnak found the back of the net again, assisted by Tyler Bertuzzi and Pavel Zacha to make it a 3-1 game. And when the third period had just gotten underway, a Flyer turnover led Bertuzzi to find Pastrnak on the rush for the hat trick.
Boston Bruins goalies Jeremy Swayman, left, and Linus Ullmark celebrate a win over the Toronto Maple Leafs, 2-1, in overtime. (Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
Charlie Coyle also collected the first goal of the game just 47 seconds after puck drop, sniping one past Sandstrom for his 15th goal of the year.
For the Flyers, Wade Allison scored just seconds after Coyle and Joel Farabee flipped in his 14th goal of the season in the second period to make it a one-goal game. Owen Tippett’s 24th of the season did the same, making it a 4-3 game on an odd-man rush.
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But Philly experienced what many other NHL teams have this season, as the Bruins were able to execute to the final buzzer, doing whatever it took to win. Zacha added a late third-period goal, assisted by Pastrnak, to be the dagger in the historic win.
Through all the records, all the success this regular season, the Bruins have remained consistent in their thought process heading into the playoffs: The Presidents' Trophy isn't the only thing they want to hoist.
They want the Cup.
David Pastrnak and his Boston Bruins teammates celebrates the second of his two second-period goals against the Flyers at the Wells Fargo Center on April 9, 2023, in Philadelphia. (Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images)
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"We feel we’re built for a long playoff run," Clifton explained. "Obviously a regular season record has nothing to do with the postseason, so we secured our home ice advantage, and we go back to zero. We have to find the style that is going to give us success in the hard, tight games that are coming. It’s going to be challenging and we’re gonna face obstacles every series we’re in, but we believe in what we have in that room."