Forward Brian Boyle leads Penguins to 3rd consecutive win

Brian Boyle’s time with the New Jersey Devils was profound.

Not necessarily for anything he did on the ice.

But for simply being on the ice.

In 2017, the staunch defensive forward was stricken with chronic myeloid leukemia, a form of cancer, but played through his ailment before it went into remission by 2018. That strife was shadowed by his son, Declan, being diagnosed with an arteriovenous malformation of his jaw at roughly the same time.

His resolve led to Boyle becoming a fan favorite over the parts of two seasons he spent in New Jersey.

“These fans and this organization, the way they supported my family and I, it’s always really great coming back and seeing all those people that did so much,” said Boyle, who, along with his son, are healthy today. “All the fans, there were some dark days and their voices were heard.”

Boyle’s actions spoke loudly Sunday as he led his current employer, the Pittsburgh Penguins, to a 4-2 comeback victory against the Devils at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

The 14-year veteran, currently the Penguins’ fourth-line center, scored the winning goal and also helped set up the Penguins’ first score of the contest.

“He’s been in the league for a really long time, and there’s a reason for that,” Penguins defenseman Mike Matheson said to media in Newark. “He also brings the same effort every night and so much consistency to our lineup. He’s great to have with us.”

The Penguins as a whole haven’t been too shabby over the past week. Sunday’s victory extended a winning streak to a modest three games and pushed the Penguins into first place of the Metropolitan Division with a 30-11-8 record and 68 points.

“Our focus here coming in was to play on our toes, play in their face,” Penguins forward Bryan Rust said. “We did a pretty good job of that.”

After the Devils struck first 7 minutes, 2 seconds into the first period thanks to forward Jack Hughes collecting his 13th goal of the season, the Penguins tied the score at 13:16 of the second period.

Stealing a pass in the Devils’ left circle, Boyle had a wrister get blocked and deflect to the opposite corner. The rebound caromed to the right point, where Penguins defenseman Chad Ruhwedel corralled it and shuffled a pass to the center point for his defensive partner, Matheson, who wired a slapper for his seventh goal.

Rust scored only 36 seconds into the third period to put the Penguins up 2-1. It was Rust’s 17th goal of the season and extended a goal-scoring streak to a career-best five games.

The Devils tied the score again, 2-2, at 2:51 of the third period when forward Nico Hischier was credited with his 13th goal.

Boyle’s goal came at 6:58 of the third. From the right point, Matheson chucked a wrister towards the cage. Devils goalie Jon Gillies made the initial save but kicked out a rebound above the crease. Boyle out-muscled Devils defenseman Ty Smith for possession and chopped a forehand shot past Gillies’ right leg for his sixth goal.

An empty-net goal by Penguins forward Jake Guentzel — his 24th — secured victory at 18:53 of the third. Penguins goalie Jarry made 28 saves on 30 shots and boosted his record to 25-8-6.

The Penguins thought Boyle might boost their depth when they brought him into training camp in September on a tryout basis.

Nearly five months later, he’s found a variety of ways to prove that he should remain on the ice at the age of 37.

“He’s fit in and played a really important role for us.” coach Mike Sullivan said. “He’s embraced the role that we’ve cast him in. He gets a big goal for us (today).”