David Pastrnak Sneakily Made Bruins History On Their West Coast Road Trip
By Matt Dolloff, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- Call me crazy, but the Bruins might have something with this Pastrnak kid.
It's already common knowledge that 20-year-old David Pastrnak is quickly developing into a high-end goal scorer at the National Hockey League level. He's 11th in the league with 26 goals this season - and due to missed time, he ranks seventh with 0.47 goals per game. But you may not have been aware that Pastrnak is actually on something of a historic pace.
It's hard to believe that Pastrnak is scoring at such an incredible clip before he even turns 21 years old. And to really put his breakout season into perspective, his 26th goal of the season last Thursday against the Los Angeles Kings set a new Bruins franchise record for career goals before age 21.
As you can see in this graphic from the NHL on NBC Twitter account, Pastrnak is in some seriously elite company:
Pastrnak doesn't turn 21 until May 25, so he has the rest of the regular season to obliterate the record. He has 20 games left to add to his total, which means he has a good chance to hit 60 career goals by the time May rolls around.
The winger scored his record-breaking goal during a power play, splintering his stick in the process. NESN's Jack Edwards described the goal as a "change-up" - an accurate assessment, considering how confused Kings goalie Peter Budaj looked in the moment.
Of course, there's always the chance that Pastrnak turns out like Sergei Samsonov, who won the Calder Trophy as a 19-year-old in 1997-98 but ended up with just 235 career goals. But hey, if "Pasta" can approach even the same offensive stratosphere as the legends he passed on the list, then the Bruins have something special on their hands.
Matt Dolloff is a writer for CBSBostonSports.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect that of CBS or 98.5 The Sports Hub. Have a news tip or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff and email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.
