Boston Bruins left wing Brad Marchand, top, celebrates after his goal off Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price (31) during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Boston, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2018. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Bruins left wing Brad Marchand, top, celebrates after his goal off Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price (31) during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Boston, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2018. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) Credit: Charles Krupa

Boston — David Pastrnak and Ryan Spooner each scored an early goal, Tuukka Rask stopped 21 shots and the Bruins beat Montreal, 4-1, on Wednesday night in Canadiens coach Claude Julien’s return to Boston.

The surging Bruins have earned at least a point in 14 straight games (10-0-4), their longest stretch since going 15-0-1 in March 2014.

Brad Marchand added a power-play goal in the third period, David Krejci had an empty-netter and Patrice Bergeron had two assists for Boston, which posted its second win over the Canadiens in five days. The teams meet again in Montreal on Saturday night.

Jakub Jerabek scored his first NHL goal for Montreal, and Carey Price made 28 saves.

Julien, who coached Boston’s Stanley Cup-winning team in 2011, was fired last Feb. 7 in his 10th season. He was replaced by assistant and current Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy, who opted for more up-tempo, charge-into-the-zone play from his defensemen, as opposed to Julien’s mostly defensive-minded style.

Rask extended his career-best point streak to 15 games (13-0-2), including a 4-3 shootout win at Montreal last Saturday.

Trailing 1-0, Boston tied it 6:50 into the first when Pastrnak took a pass from Bergeron at the bottom of the left circle and slipped a wrister behind Price.

The Bruins took the lead early in the second when Spooner’s backhander from just outside the crease caromed into the net off the right skate of Montreal winger Jonathan Drouin.

Montreal had a two-man power-play advantage for 69 seconds midway into the second — immediately after Rask made a pad-stop on Drouin’s clean break in — but Boston limited the Canadiens’ shots to mostly lower-percentage chances from the outside.

Marchand’s team-leading 19th goal came 3:40 into the period.

Jerabek’s shot from the left point found its way through a group of players in front and slipped into the net 31 seconds into the game.

Anthem Singer to Retire

Boston — Rene Rancourt, the tuxedoed troubadour who has sung the national anthem before Boston Bruins games for more than 40 years, announced on Wednesday that he will retire at the end of the season.

The 78-year-old trained opera singer began singing the Star-Spangled Banner at Red Sox games and took over the U.S. and Canadian anthems at Bruins games during the 1975-76 season. He ends his performance with a signature fist pump he modeled after Bruins forward Randy Burridge.

“It’s wonderful, the fan reaction,” he said in a news conference during the first intermission. “Every time I sing the anthem, I imagine it’s for the last time.”

Rancourt performed the anthem on April 17, 2013, for the first sporting event in the city after the Boston Marathon bombing. He sang the first few words and then allowed the crowd to take over.

“Nothing comes close to that,” he said. “I was petrified to get out there. I had planned to stop singing in the middle of it. I was very afraid to do that. The reaction was something.”

Notes: Julien got a brief ovation during a video tribute midway into the opening period, but the crowd’s chance for prolonged applause was drowned out by loud music until the next faceoff.