Hockey returned to TD Garden Saturday night, and the Bruins rewarded fans who endured a long delay to the start of the season because of the NHL’s labor dispute with a 3-1 victory over the New York Rangers.

In a marquee clash of two of the Eastern Conference’s top teams (the first NHL.com power rankings listed the Bruins No. 1, the Rangers No. 2), the Bruins got goals from Milan Lucic, Daniel Paille, and Johnny Boychuk.