The Boston Bruins have now lost three in a row after a great 3-0 start to the season. Granted, the first two losses were by one goal, but their 4-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche was pure domination by one team. There’s plenty to digest from this loss, so grab a cup of coffee and let’s get into it.
Where Was the Offense?
The great news for the Bruins is that they scored on their first shot of the game. A great cross-ice pass by Charlie McAvoy found the stick of John Beecher and things got off to a roaring start. The Bruins finished the first period tied with the Avalanche in shots on goal at seven apiece. Then, they lost control of the game.
Related: Can the Bruins Neutralize the Speed of the Avalanche?
The Bruins played sloppily the rest of the way. They were mismanaging the puck in the offensive zone and it was a struggle to set anything up. Furthermore, the Bruins got outshot 17-2 during the second period overall and 13-2 during five-on-five play. The Bruins overall had seven shots on goal combined the final two periods of the game. Per Ty Anderson, this is the third time in the last 21 games the Bruins have had 14 or fewer shots on goal.
The top line of Pavel Zacha, Elias Lindholm, and David Pastrnak finished with an expected goals for percentage of 7.24%. In addition, the second line of Morgan Geekie, Casey Mittelstadt, and Michael Eyssimont was at 0% and the third line was at 9.92%. As much as you love seeing the fourth line deliver and impact the game, you want to see more out of the top guys. It’s something head coach Marco Sturm touched on after the game.
“My grinders were the best players again. And if your grinders are the best players and not my best players, [we’re] going to be in trouble.”
The Bruins are going to want to right that ship once they get to Utah Sunday Night to take on the Mammoth.
The Penalty Kill Was Phenomenal
One thing that’s been great for the Bruins this season is their penalty kill. This team has done a tremendous job of defending and keeping opponents away from the high-danger areas of the ice. It’s what has led to team success this season, as they’ve had a 92% success rate this season.
Against the Avalanche, they got into penalty trouble, putting the penalty kill out on the ice five times. The Bruins did their job and killed off all five power plays that the Avalanche got. As lethal as the Avalanche power play can be, they generated nothing of quality. Overall, the Avalanche generated nothing from the middle of the slot and were held to the perimeter. The Avalanche had one high-danger shot on goal, and that’s as successful as you can be as a penalty-kill unit.
Making life easier on your goaltender is ideal, and if not for goaltender Jeremy Swayman, this game would have been a larger deficit.
Jeremy Swayman Kept Them in It
The Avalanche were batting 1.000 to start the game, as they scored on their first two shots on goal. Given how the rest of the game went for the Bruins, Swayman helped keep the Bruins in this game.
He was under siege in the second period and stood tall. Swayman was able to see through traffic and not give the Avalanche any room to get a good shot off. Just the second period alone, Swayman finished with 1.76 goals saved above expected. That’s how sharp he was and had to be. Overall, Swayman finished the game with 0.91 goals saved above expected and a .919 save percentage.
Not much more you can ask for when it comes to your franchise goalie.
Regroup Against Utah
Games like these happen from time to time. A great penalty kill and strong play in net by Swayman helped mask what was a tough night offensively for the Bruins. They have little time to regroup for the Mammoth. If the Bruins want to end this trip with a win, their offense has to get going to right that ship.
