Halloween night in the NHL belonged to the third period

Boston erases two goals in seven minutes

The night's sharpest comeback came in Boston. The Bruins trailed the Blackhawks by two goals with seven minutes remaining in the third period, then forced overtime when Morgan Geekie scored the tying goal with 10 seconds remaining, and Elias Lindholm scored the game-winning goal in overtime for a 5-4 win, the Bruins' 10th victory of the season. m:…3538

The comeback also carried a milestone. David Pastrnak scored his 428th career goal, moving into sole possession of third place on the Bruins' all-time goals list. Chicago had built its lead through Anton Frondell, who scored the opening goal on a power play at 6:04 of the first period and added his second goal at 3:31 of the second, and Casey Mittelstadt, who scored his fifth goal of the season at 12:34 of the second period. James Hagens recorded his fourth point in four games for Boston. m:…3538

Stamkos settles it in the shootout

Nashville's night ended later than anyone else's. The Predators defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-4 in a shootout at Bridgestone Arena, with Stamkos tying the game and then winning it in the shootout against his former team. It was the Predators' first victory past regulation in six tries this season, and goaltender Justus Annunen stopped all four shootout attempts in his first career shootout. m:…2837

Coach Andrew Brunette credited the whole bench, saying all 20 players contributed to the win, according to the team site. In regulation, Reid Schaefer, Adam Edstrom and Jayden Struble scored for Nashville, with Schaefer's goal his first of the season, scored on a two-on-one against Andrei Vasilevskiy. m:…2837

Three in the third in Detroit

Detroit hosted the night's other third-period reversal. The St. Louis Blues defeated the Red Wings 5-4 at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday, October 31, scoring three consecutive goals in the third period to rally past Detroit. Justin Barron and Aleksanteri Kaskimaki scored goals 18 seconds apart in the third, the burst that turned the game. m:…8652

Ottawa pulls away, Buffalo closes late

Ottawa's separation came in a rush of its own. The Senators defeated the San Jose Sharks 5-1 at SAP Center, scoring four consecutive goals to pull away. Tim Stutzle, Dylan Cozens and Shane Pinto each recorded a goal and an assist in the win. m:…8784

Buffalo's win was tighter and later. The Sabres defeated the Los Angeles Kings 3-2, with Tage Thompson scoring two goals including the game-winner with 6:20 remaining in the third period. Thompson now has 10 goals this season and 223 career goals with the Sabres, moving into ninth place on the club's all-time goal-scoring list, while Jack Quinn also scored. Goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 27 saves in his 200th career game behind a defense that blocked 30 shots, and the Sabres have now won three consecutive games, earning seven of eight possible points on a four-game road trip. m:…4034

The night's exception

Only one Halloween game refused the script. The New York Islanders lost 4-0 to the Edmonton Oilers, ending their two-game winning streak. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored two goals in the second period, Edmonton scored three goals in the period including two in a span of 1:08, and the Oilers led 3-0 after two periods. Vasily Podkolzin added his ninth goal of the season in the decisive middle frame. m:…8424

Taken together, the night rewarded patience. Four games turned on late goals, a shootout or a third-period burst, and the one team that never got back into its game was the one beaten before the third period began. For the Bruins, Predators, Blues and Sabres, Halloween was decided not by how the game started, but by who still had a goal left when it mattered. m:…3538 m:…2837 m:…8652 m:…4034