Whether it’s in early October or late April – overtime games are always thrilling and after 15 overtime/shootout losses last season, the Boston Bruins start off the 2024-25 campaign with an undefeated post-regulation record, thanks to David Pastrnak‘s third goal of the season – winning the game in overtime. Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman stopped 31 of the 32 shots he faced, Elias Lindholm buried the game-tying goal for his fifth point in three games and Boston goes on their first multi-game winning streak of the season.
Matthew Poitras Shines in Season Debut
Matthew Poitras‘ season debut was delayed a couple games due to an undisclosed injury, but in Saturday’s (Oct. 12) win over the Los Angeles Kings, it looked like he hadn’t missed a step. He led all Bruins players in expected goals for (xGF) at 5v5 with 0.81 expected goals, had the third-lowest expected goals against (xGA) at 0.10 and had the best shots for percentage (SF%) on the entire roster at all strengths, out-shooting the Kings 10-5.
In the overtime session that lasted only 3:07, Poitras played 1:28 (47%) spread out over two shifts. During that time, Poitras was all over the ice at both ends, trying to make offensive plays and then hustling back on the backcheck. On Pastrnak’s overtime winner, Poitras received a quick pass from Mason Lohrei who performed an excellent stick check on a pressing Kings player, stopped at the blue line – awaiting Pastrnak across the zone. Pastrnak fed it over to Lohrei who returned it back to Pastrnak for the open shot and the win. Poitras’ display of patience at the very end of his 48-second shift to avoid the defender and make an intelligent pass rather than just flinging the puck to relieve pressure was pivotal and allowed Boston to get the scoring chance.
It was clear Poitras was perhaps the best skater for the Bruins in this game, he excelled at bringing the puck into LA’s zone, something Boston as a team struggled to do effectively. He was great at slowing the game down to his pace, trying to find teammates on cross-ice feeds and making a clear impact every time he was on the ice. Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery praised Poitras’ debut, saying post-game, “I thought that was the best game he’s played in the NHL.”
Related: Bruins’ Third Line Missing Matthew Poitras Impacts
Adding in Poitras is huge for this Bruins team going forward, him staying healthy gives additional depth in the forward core and don’t be shocked if in the near future he gets some right-wing ice time with Brad Marchand and Charlie Coyle.
Best Defensive Game So Far This Season
It doesn’t take a hockey expert to know that allowing ten goals against in two games is a poor recipe for any kind of long-term success, so there was a desire for a more structurally sound defensive game for Boston and they showed just that. While Swayman did have to stand strong on a few chances, including some powerplay chances, the defense did a far better job boxing out the Kings’ forwards which was a large issue in the previous two games.
Simply watching all three games, it’s very clear to tell the Bruins took massive strides in limiting chances against at 5v5. The defense core seemed a lot calmer, made smarter decisions, and gave Swayman the best possible chance to win this game for them. When the defense did make an error or miss their man, the forwards did a great job – highlighted by Elias Lindholm and Matthew Poitras – backchecking and picking up the slack. The numbers support the defensive improvement as well, as this game was Boston’s best of the season so far.
- Goals Against 5v5 (1)
- Shots Against 5v5 (17)
- Shot Attempts Against 5v5 (38)
- Expected Goals Against 5v5 (1.23)
- Scoring Chances Against 5v5 (15)
- High-Danger Scoring Chances Against 5v5 (8)
Additionally, the Bruins blocked 19 shots in this game – four more than against the Canadiens and only two fewer than the Panthers, although the Panthers had a staggering 54 shot attempts compared to only 38 in the game against Los Angeles. Boston turned the puck over only nine times while they turned it over nearly 20 times in each of the other two games. It’s one game – but a drastic improvement.
Special Teams Were Good & Bad
To continue on the strong defense, Boston went a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty kill, which is a great statistic – however, too many penalties once again forced them to have to play shorthanded more than they should. As it stands, the Bruins have taken the most penalties so far with 19, four more than the Buffalo Sabres. On the flip side of that, the B’s have also drawn the most penalties so they’re having to play the game with either their power play or penalty kill units out.
More power play opportunities seem like a good idea but at times in this win over LA, the Bruins may have been better off declining the penalty and continuing to play 5v5. Boston went 0-for-5 on the man advantage and gave up three scoring chances against, while the Kings went 8-0 in scoring chances while on the power play. In the early parts of the contest, Boston seemed to struggle entering the zone and making a first pass which allowed the very aggressive Los Angeles PK unit to attack the forwards and create odd-man rushes the other way. If it weren’t for some great back-checking efforts from Elias Lindholm and saves from Swayman, there was a high likelihood of a Kings shorthanded goal.
So yes, going perfect while shorthanded is excellent and continues to be a serious strength for this team, but failing to convert with a 5-on-4 advantage will come back to haunt them as the season goes on. The powerplay needs to figure out its offense – whether that is a personnel change or a system change – but right now it is not working. Boston was able to win without it today, but in a 2-1 victory that needed overtime, just one power play goal could’ve settled this one in regulation.
Strong Game for Depth
David Pastrnak got the game-winning goal and Poitras had the best 60-plus-minute game, but some other Bruins also had strong efforts that led to a Saturday victory.
Lohrei made a great pass to Pastrnak in overtime to get a primary assist while also leading Bruins defensemen in expected goals for percentage (75.24%). After struggling a bit in the first game against Florida which led to him being a healthy scratch against the Canadiens, Lohrei looked much better all-around and much more like the Lohrei we saw last season.
#NHL GameScore Impact Card for Boston Bruins on 2024-10-12:#NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/OMQL6XRXy5
— HockeyStatCards (@hockeystatcards) October 12, 2024
John Beecher and Trent Frederic also had strong games in the bottom-six. Frederic had an 8-3 scoring chance differential while on the ice at 5v5, was second on the team with 0.89 xGF and was second among Bruin forwards in shot attempts with five. Beecher had the second-lowest expected goals against on Boston (0.03), credited with three hits in the game – tied for the second-most on the team – and played over three minutes on the penalty kill, second behind only Charlie Coyle for the most shorthanded minutes of all Bruins forwards. Andrew Peeke, Brad Marchand, and another strong game from Cole Koepke were also major factors in Boston winning this one.
Bruins Now Look For Revenge & Keep the Streak Going
Now riding a two-game winning streak, the Bruins will get ready for a third consecutive game at TD Garden and a second matinee game in a row as they have a rematch with the Panthers, the team who holds Boston’s lone loss of the young 2024-25 season. The Bruins will be looking to continue their strengths of depth offense and improved defense while also playing better on the power play to extend their winning streak to three games and improve to 3-1-0.
