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Thornton scores twice as Boston downs Atlanta

Dec 24, 2010 - 5:49 AM Boston, MA (Sports Network) - Shawn Thornton scored a pair of goals and Tim Thomas made 26 saves as Boston downed Atlanta, 4-1, at TD Garden.

Patrice Bergeron added a goal with one assist, and Michael Ryder also tallied for the Bruins, who had dropped four of their last five coming in.

"It's what we needed right now to turn things around," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "Now we get a chance to bottle that up and bring it on the road."

The Bruins will next head out on a five-game road trip, starting Monday against the Panthers.

Dustin Byfuglien provided the lone offense for the Thrashers, who have lost two in a row and four of their last six.

Ondrej Pavelec allowed all four goals on 36 shots in defeat.

Bergeron's breakaway goal while Boston was shorthanded gave the home team a 1-0 lead just three minutes in.

The B's took a 2-0 lead at 4:04 of the second period on the advantage when Ryder let fly from the right circle with a snap shot that ticked off the far post and in.

Thornton boosted the home team's edge to three 56 seconds later, but Byfuglien's harmless backhander got through Thomas at 8:40.

Thornton tallied again inside the five-minute mark of the third period, then hit the post with 20 seconds remaining on his last chance to notch a hat trick.

The clubs engaged in a rare line brawl with 4:06 left in the contest, as Bruins forward Milan Lucic and Thrashers defenseman Freddy Meyer exchanged hits that sparked the melee.

Lucic was given a match penalty and game misconduct for hitting Meyer high with his stick, though Atlanta couldn't accomplish anything with the brief power play.

Game Notes

Boston has won 12 of the last 14 meetings with Atlanta since the start of the 2007-08 season...These clubs meet in Georgia on December 30...It was Thornton's first multi-goal effort since February 12, 2008 against Carolina.