The Bruins were eliminated for the fourth time this season and finished 2-1-0 under interim coach Joe Sacco. They finished with a 33-15 advantage in shots, but ultimately fell for the 13th time in 23 games (10-10-3). They also failed to get two games above .500 for what would have been the first time this season.

As the night started, the Bruins ranked 31st in the league in power play effectiveness and were once again blanked (0 for 3) due to the man advantage.

They’ll try to get their nose above the .500 line again on Wednesday night when they take on the Islanders in Elmont, N.Y.

DeBrusk, who left Boston to sign a seven-year, $38.5 million contract with Vancouver as a free agent in July, set up the go-ahead goal, 1-0, with 5:33 gone in the second period, Bruins captain Brad Marchand watching from the penalty box while serving a minor.

Camping off the right post as Brock Boeser whistled in a long wrister, DeBrusk was left with an easy tap to an open right side for his sixth goal of the season.

Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman (13 saves) immediately called for the goal to be disallowed, in part because it appeared Garland put a high stick on the puck before it jumped to the opportunistic DeBrusk. Indeed, after a long delay for the Bruins to review the play, the Boston bench challenged the goal, arguing that Garland pushed the puck to DeBrusk with a handpass.

When the forensics of the film all shook up, the goal was allowed to stand and the Bruins were forced to kill another minor because they had lost the challenge.

Garland added the second goal into an empty net in the closing seconds.

Through 40 minutes, the Bruins held a 20-9 advantage in shots, recording two more encouraging periods on the defensive side of the puck, key to their attempt to build back from their slow start. But even though they had the convincing margin on shots, the Bruins continued to struggle with converting shots on goal into scores on the board.

Heading into the third period, the Bruins had an 80-50 shot lead in their 2⅔ games with Sacco as coach. However, they managed to convert just three of those shots into goals – and only one of those goals came during five-on-five play.

The first period was among the fastest this season at the Garden. And for good reason: no goals. In fact, the two sides went without a shot on net until David Pastrnak finally landed one on Lankinen at 7:00. The pace picked up slightly in the final 13 minutes, more so for the Bruins, who finished with a total of nine shots on net in the first 8 p.m.

Meanwhile, the Canucks managed just three shots on Swayman in the first. The last of those came just before the 10:00 mark of the period, with the Bruins holding a 7-0 lead the rest of the way.

During a break in the action at 9:36 of the first game, the crowd’s attention turned to the large video board above center ice to play a tribute to ex-Bruins forwards DeBrusk and Danton Heinen.

The duo signed with the Canucks as unrestricted free agents in July, the Bruins confident they could find other pieces to replace the departing offensive contributors. With the season approaching a third mark, the Bruins remain desperate for goals.

DeBrusk, one of the Bruins’ three first-round picks in the 2015 draft, owns a 6-8-14 production line through the first 20 games with his new club. He lined up on the left wing in a No. 1 trio with Elias Pettersson in the middle and Kiefer Sherwood on the other wing. Sherwood has led the league in goals all season.

Heinen, who made Boston’s lineup last season from a training camp PTO, has a 3-7-10 line. He lined up on the left wing for his return on a third line with Teddy Blueger at center and Boeser on the right wing.

Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at [email protected].