Things are looking a lot better for the Boston Bruins than they were a month ago. The team is on their longest win streak of the season, four, and have moved up the standings to third in the Atlantic Division. Under new coach Joe Sacco, things seem to be clicking at the moment. With the positive news, there is still a lingering sore spot with the absence of Hampus Lindholm on defense, who was placed on injured reserve at the start of November and is week-to-week.
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Prior to his injury, Lindholm was arguably the best defenseman on the roster due to some rough starts from other top players. It was quite devastating when the 30-year-old’s injury was announced with the knowledge that it would be weeks before his return. The concerns were obvious with how well the blue line could hold up in his absence.
While there were some initial adjustments, like the rest of the roster in recent weeks, the blue line was able to get it together. Several players have stepped up in his absence, and the team is slowly beginning to look more like what many were expecting coming into 2024-25.
Lindholm’s Performance Before Injury
Through the first 17 games of the season, Lindholm had three goals and seven points. At the time of his injury, he was tied for second on the team in even-strength goals and fourth for points at 5-on-5. He already matched his goal total from last season (three) in significantly fewer games while only averaging 20:51 a night, below his last two season totals that saw him playing a little over 23 minutes a night.
Amongst the defensemen, Lindholm looked the most comfortable with the puck, particularly on the offensive side of the puck. Just prior to his injury, he even replaced Charlie McAvoy, who had a very shaky start to the season, on the top power-play unit. He was impactful at both ends of the ice, and out of all Bruins defensemen, he was on the ice for more shots, goals, and expected goals.
Lindholm’s best season came in his first full one as a Bruin, 2022-23, when he had 10 goals and 53 points in 80 games and was a plus-49. While he was probably not going to match that this season, he was still on track to improve in points from last season’s 26 in 73 games.
More importantly, was the impact he had on the team. The Bruins were better with him on the ice, and his absence has certainly been felt in the past three weeks. Luckily, guys have begun to step up and shake off the funk from the start of the season, and the team has looked much better in the past week.
Bruins Stepping Up on Defense
McAvoy is a superstar and an elite defenseman in this league. He is one of the top US-born players in the NHL, and certainly earned his recent placement on Team USA’s roster for the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off. After arguably the worst stretch of his career from last season’s playoffs to the start of 2024-25, he has stepped up in light of Lindholm’s injury and is looking more and more like the guy everyone has come to expect.
McAvoy has finished every season of his career in the positive category in terms of plus/minus, and after spending the first few weeks of the season as a minus, he is back up to a plus-six. He also had two goals in their recent matchup against the Montreal Canadiens, bringing his season total up to five. There is actually still a chance that he could set a career-high in goals (12) as he is currently on pace for 14 this season.
The Bruins’ powerplay is still abysmal and last in the league, and some of that blame definitely lies on McAvoy’s shoulders. Overall though, he was a guy that was certainly called out for needing to step up after the firing of Jim Montgomery and the Lindholm injury, and he does look a lot better.
Another guy who has stepped up in Lindholm’s absence is Nikita Zadorov. It was not the easiest of adjustments for him to the Bruins, but he scored his first goal of the season on Nov. 27 against the New York Islanders. He got another in what was arguably his best game of the season against the Detroit Red Wings on Dec. 3. He also led all defenders that night in shots with four.
The penalties are still an issue, but it feels like Zadorov is finally getting into his groove. He is playing physically in their own zone and has been effective on the penalty kill, while being able to be more impactful on the offensive side as well, making up for some of the hole left by Lindholm’s injury. Playing him with Brandon Carlo has certainly been beneficial for both guys and is something Sacco should continue to explore in upcoming games.
Rookie Mason Lohrei has had his ups and downs this season as he adjusts to playing in the NHL full-time. He is currently leading all Bruins defensemen in terms of points with 12, four of which have come in the last five games. It was a rough start to the season for him (like the majority of the roster), but after being benched, he has certainly rounded into form, and is another guy who has stepped up in Lindholm’s absence.
Bruins Getting It Together
This has certainly been an interesting season for the Bruins so far. After having pretty low expectations going into the past two seasons, the team ended up far surpassing what most assumed of them, while 2024-25 has been the opposite. There are still some pretty fundamental issues with this team and Lindholm’s absence, which seems like it won’t be ending anytime soon, is not making it any easier. But, the team is now 5-2-0 under Sacco and is certainly playing better.
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There is still a lot of season left as the calendar gets closer and closer to flipping to 2025. Hopefully, Lindholm will be able to rejoin the team early in the new year. In the meantime, guys at both ends of the ice need to continue to step up and gain some momentum. There is a tough stretch of games ahead as they take on the Winnipeg Jets (Dec. 10), and Vancouver Canucks (Dec. 14) in the next week. Both games will be great opportunities for the team to prove if the recent improvements are for real.
