David Pastrnak had a goal and two assists and Parker Wotherspoon scored his first NHL goal to help the Boston Bruins open a four-goal lead and hold on to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 6-2.

Under duress from Charlie Coyle, Victor Hedman lost the puck just inside his left point position and Poitras pounced on it, bursting up ice on a 2-on-1. He smartly waited out Nick Perbix’s belly-flop slide and made a pretty pass around the defenseman’s skates to Trent Frederic for a redirection at 4:24, Frederic’s seventh of the year.

For this contest against the Lightning, the Bruins are going to have a far different-looking lineup. At morning skate, recent call

(AP Photo/Chris O’Meara) Tampa Bay Lightning center Michael Eyssimont (23) gets held by Boston Bruins defenseman Nikita Zadorov (91) as he tries to get a shot on goaltender Jeremy Swayman (1) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday ...

Bruins forward Matt Poitras made the most of his first NHL game since Nov. 9, sparking Boston to a 6-2 win over Tampa.

The Boston Bruins are falling and falling fast as a 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night at Amalie Arena, stretching their recent skid to a season-long six games.

Anthony Cirelli gave Tampa Bay a 1-0 lead with a short-handed goal at 14:07 of the second period. McDonagh sent the puck down the ice to a streaking Hagel, whose shot from the slot went off the end boards before Cirelli scored on the rebound from the left face-off circle.