When Joe Sacco changed goalies heading into the third period and the Bruins down three in Wednesday’s 5-1 loss, the natural assumption was that Boston’s interim head coach was resting Jeremy Swayman to give himself the option to start him again at home on Thursday.

Joonas Korpisalo readily admitted that he wasn’t at his best all day on Monday. But given the opportunity to preserve a win for the Bruins against the San Jose Sharks, the netminder showed up at the right time.

Dawson Mercer scored two goals as the Devils beat the Bruins, 5-1, to snap a four-game skid. Read more on Boston.com.

In the first few months of the National Hockey League season, the Boston Bruins were getting inconsistent goaltending from their newly signed netminder Jeremy Swayman, and freshly acquired backup Joonas Korpisalo,

Things came apart in a hurry in the middle frame. The Bruins didn’t react well to two calls against them that they didn’t like and the Devils took advantage delivering an early knockout blow. They became the latest struggling team to get right against Boston, beating the Bruins, 5-1, Wednesday at the Prudential Center in Newark.

Swayman stopped 25 out of 29 Devils shots he faced on the night. The Bruins were outmatched entirely by the Devils at that point of the contest, but Swayman did his best to keep the Original Six club in it. He made several big stops, but the Bruins could not stop the Devils' offense.

Korpisalo was busy in the second period, facing 14 shots and allowing two goals. Boston scored four unanswered goals in the third period to earn the victory. Korpisalo has posted a record of 8-4-2 with a 2.87 GAA and an .892 save percentage in 15 appearances this season.

Korpisalo will defend the home crease against San Jose on Monday, Kevin Paul Dupont of The Boston Globe reports. Korpisalo hasn't seen much playing time recently since Jeremy Swayman has emerged as Boston's clear No.

The Bruins hope to keep their own point streak going while keeping the Devils on the skids on Wednesday. Jeremy Swayman gets the start.

The Boston Bruins are trying to build some ground to stand on in the crowded  Eastern Conference playoff field but didn’t do themselves any favors on Wednesday night after getting dismantled by the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center by the final score of 5-1.

Dawson Mercer scored bookend goals in New Jersey's four-goal second period, propelling the Devils to a 5-1 victory over the Boston Bruins on Wednesday in Newark, N.J.