SAN JOSE (Interstat) — Charlie McAvoy scored in his season debut after serving a six-game suspension, and the Boston Bruins used a balanced attack to beat the San Jose Sharks 6-3 on Tuesday. McAvoy missed the first six games of the season as punishment for slashing Buffalo’s Zach Benson late in Game 6 of the first round of the playoffs last season when the Bruins were eliminated. Boston improved to 5-2, while San Jose fell to 3-3. The game at SAP Pavilion at San Jose drew 14,748.

The Bruins opened with pressure and grabbed the first lead midway through the first period. Fraser Minten scored on a wrist shot, with assists from Casey Mittelstadt and Nikita Zadorov. Minten won the ensuing faceoff, and Boston continued to press. San Jose answered later in the period when Jacob Trouba scored on a slap shot, assisted by Kiefer Sherwood and Dmitry Orlov. Boston regained the advantage before the first intermission when McAvoy scored on a wrist shot, with JJ Peterka assisting. The goal capped a strong first period for Boston, which also received saves from Jeremy Swayman as San Jose pushed for a quick response. Early in the period, San Jose’s Luca Cagnoni put a wrist shot wide, Igor Chernyshov forced Swayman into a save, and William Borgen delivered a hit on Zack Ostapchuk. Pastrnak also had a shot blocked before Boston broke through.

San Jose tied the game in the second period when Ivar Stenberg scored on a wrist shot, with Macklin Celebrini and Orlov picking up assists. The Sharks had momentum after the equalizer, but Boston responded with two goals before the period ended. Matthew Poitras scored on a tip-in, assisted by Mark Kastelic and Morgan Geekie. Later in the second, Pavel Zacha scored on a wrist shot, with Geekie and David Pastrnak assisting. The goals restored Boston’s two-goal cushion and forced San Jose to chase the game again. Before Stenberg’s goal, Celebrini had a slap shot saved by Swayman. Poitras scored after Askarov stopped his earlier wrist shot, and Zacha’s goal came after Swayman denied Darnell Nurse, Jacob Trouba and Igor Chernyshov during a busy stretch.

In the third period, San Jose made one more push. Macklin Celebrini scored on a wrist shot, with Stenberg and Will Smith assisting, cutting Boston’s lead to one. But the Bruins answered when Minten scored his second goal of the game on a tip-in, assisted by Marat Khusnutdinov and Mason Lohrei. William Borgen added an unassisted wrist shot later in the third to seal the win. Swayman finished with 34 saves on 37 shots, while San Jose goaltender Yaroslav Askarov faced steady pressure throughout. Boston also killed off a too-many-men penalty in the third, and a late fight between Zadorov and Nurse added to the chippy finish.

Minten was Boston’s top star, finishing with two goals, four shots on goal, two penalty minutes and two hits. Swayman earned the win with his 34-save performance. Borgen added a goal, one shot on goal and two hits. McAvoy scored once on three shots and recorded a hit in his return. Poitras also scored and put three shots on goal. Zacha scored on his only shot. Geekie contributed two assists and a hit, while Pastrnak had an assist, four shots on goal and two penalty minutes. Khusnutdinov recorded an assist and one shot on goal, and Peterka assisted on McAvoy’s goal.

San Jose’s Celebrini had a goal, an assist and five shots on goal. Stenberg scored once and assisted on Celebrini’s goal. Orlov had two assists, while Smith and Sherwood each recorded an assist. Trouba scored for the Sharks. The game included several special-teams and physical sequences. Boston’s Nikita Zadorov was called for hooking and tripping, and Pastrnak received a high-sticking penalty. San Jose’s Ivar Stenberg was whistled for hooking, Jacob Trouba and Boston’s Minten received roughing penalties, and Will Smith was called for cross-checking. Boston also was assessed a too-many-men penalty. Late in the third, Zadorov and Darnell Nurse received fighting penalties.

Boston’s recent form has been strong. The Bruins beat Philadelphia 5-1 in their previous game, following a 6-1 win over Utah. Before that, Boston lost to Minnesota and Ottawa, and opened the season with a home shutout of the New York Rangers and a win at Winnipeg. San Jose had alternated results before Tuesday, including an overtime win over St. Louis and home overtime wins over Los Angeles and Florida, along with losses to Edmonton and Dallas. The Sharks will next head out on the road, while Boston continues its road trip with games against Anaheim and Los Angeles. San Jose will begin a road trip at Nashville before continuing to Detroit, Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa.

The Bruins’ victory came despite San Jose entering as the home team at SAP Pavilion. Boston’s depth provided the difference, with six different goal scorers and contributions throughout the lineup. The Bruins’ ability to answer each San Jose push kept the Sharks from building sustained momentum. Swayman was steady when called upon, and Boston’s penalty killers did enough to limit damage during a chippy contest that featured 10 penalties. The Bruins improved their record to 5-2, while the Sharks dropped to 3-3. Boston’s road trip will continue as it looks to build on the win, and San Jose will try to regroup away from home.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of San Jose 4, Boston 2. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Boston with a 62.1 percent probability to win. San Jose had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.5. The total score of 9 went under the over/under line of 6.