“We have to stay out of the box,” stated Bruins coach Jim Montgomery. “If we take a penalty, we’re going to pray”
Charlie Coyle #13 of the Boston Bruins shadows Connor McDavid #97 of the Edmonton Oilers during the second period on February 27, 2023, at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
It rained on the Boston Bruins’ parade when they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs last spring, losing to Florida after being a regular-season machine and scoring the most points in NHL history.
Only the Panthers have more points (78-77) before the Bruins’ game against the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday.
The Bruins are soldiering on without their longstanding captain, Patrice Bergeron, who retired and will be eligible for the Hall of Fame on the first ballot in three years. Even without No. 2 center David Krejci, who has now retired, and winger Taylor Hall, who was traded because the team could not pay him, among others.
This season’s Bruins are revealing flaws. They need a PP QB (how about dealing for Nashville’s Tyson Barrie?), and their PK has been poor for weeks without Bergeron winning every face-off. Their defense could use some nastiness, and they recently lost one of their key blueliners, Hampus Lindholm, for weeks (but no surgery) due to a suspected knee injury, so they must grind out goals.
Players like Jake DeBrusk, who has been a Bruin for seven years and will be an unrestricted free agency on July 1, aren’t putting up points.
However, after scoring 135 points last season, they remain a tough out due to the strongest goaltending tandem in the league – Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark — even if the victories are not always glamorous. They entered the Oilers game with 12 regulation losses in 53 games.
Are they the overwhelming favourites heading into the playoffs this spring, as they were in 2023? Not by a long shot, in a faith, hope, and parity NHL, but does anyone truly know who will win the Stanley Cup today, in a wide-open field? Nope.
“I think we’d maybe clinched a playoff spot after 50 games last season,” said DeBrusk, who is presently on the wing with David Pastrnak and Pavel Zacha but has gone nine games without a point.
The fans always believe their team is the best, and they don’t give the other nearly enough credit, but in today’s NHL, where every club has a weakness, there may be 12 legitimate Cup candidates.
“After we lost in the playoffs (last spring), they (fans) think the world is ending,” said DeBrusk, who understands the fans’ concerns about a leadership hole after Bergergon and Krejci retired.
However, they won their first six games, were 9-1 after ten, and 12-3 after fifteen.
They have only won 11 of their last 21 games, but have scored points in 16 of them. They’ve lost four of their last five games, although they recently defeated Dallas.
“There’s going to be ups and downs in a season but you have to believe you have the horses to run,” DeBrusk said. “This game can be nasty and humiliating at times, but we have a standard here. “We try to bring the same intensity.”
Jake DeBrusk Boston Bruins
Jake DeBrusk #74 of the Boston Bruins skates away after being stopped by Andrei Vasilevskiy #88 of the Tampa Bay Lightning during Tampa’s 3-2 shootout victory at TD Garden on February 13, 2024 in Boston, Massachusetts. Photo by Winslow Townson/Getty Images.
Last year, the Bruins lost only 12 of 82 regular-season games, but the league is tight.
So far, they’ve survived the storm, but losing Lindholm hurts. He plays the most minutes at even strength, averages 2:40 on the penalty kill per night, and is on the team’s second power play unit. If he is sidelined for an extended period of time, they may be forced to move for another left defence man. Certainly, they’re vying for Calgary’s Noah Hanifin.
“Hampus is not on this four-game trip. He’s out week to week,” said coach Jim Montgomery, who lost him in the win over Dallas after he landed awkwardly in the third period on an inconsequential play.
“Sometimes a part of your skate gets caught in a rut,” Montgomery explained.
But, no medical procedure?
“No, not an option,” Montgomery replied.
“He plays a defensive game. He covered a lot of territory in our defensive zone. In my opinion, he’s the best two-way player of all time (six-time Selke winner). If one layer broke down, he was usually in the second layer. “It was difficult to get through him,” stated DeBrusk.
“And the face-offs, he won pretty much all of them.”
They miss Bergeron, who retired at 38 after 19 seasons in the bumper position on the power play, with Pastrnak and Brad Marchand, who now wears the C. On the PK, he was the brightest and best player on the ice.
“If there’s any player you want to show your little ones, it’s probably him,” he remarked.
Boston Bruins Head Coach Jim Montgomery
The Boston Bruins’ head coach, Jim Montgomery, looks up at the scoreboard during the third period of their 4-1 loss to the Seattle Kraken at TD Garden on February 15, 2024, in Boston, Massachusetts.
Montgomery, last year’s coach of the year, believes De Brusk will break out.
“For the past several games, his line has had numerous opportunities. In one game, Jake, Pasta, and Pav had nine, eight, and eight scoring opportunities, respectively. “They’re in the right places; it just hasn’t been going in for them,” Montgomery explained.
“The hockey gods aren’t on my side right now,” said the hometown boy De Brusk, who entered the Oilers game with 12 goals on 119 shots and 25 points.
“Looking at the statistics weighs on you a little. “That’s what I’m here to do: produce,” he remarked. “I’m trying to find new ways to aid the team (33 blocked shots), such as defensive matchups, which aren’t always enjoyable for an offensive player.
“However, I believe I’ve become a more complete player. I’ve battled before, and the next thing you know, you’ve scored six goals in eight games. I am waiting for that.”
The Bruins’ penalty kill has been below 70% for weeks (they are playing Marchand and Charlie Coyle on both the PP and penalty kill, which may be tiring them out), and they now face an Oilers penalty kill that will be missing Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (illness), but will still have Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Zach Hyman, and Evan Bouchard on the point.
Is there trouble ahead?
“We have to stay out of the box,” Montgomery added.
“If we take a penalty, we’re going to pray.”
