There is one thing that has been a question mark for the Boston Bruins, and that’s their ability to capitalize on their chances. As currently constructed, the Bruins are not built to win high-scoring games. On their current road trip, the Bruins have had a mixed bag of results when it comes to their finishing ability. This has also been a common theme during the season.
Bruins’ Trip Began Ugly
Let’s just cut right to the chase, this start to the road trip was abysmal across the board. It was certainly not the kind of start that the Bruins wanted to have.
The first two games were against the Winnipeg Jets and the Seattle Kraken. The results were much to be desired, as the Bruins got outscored 13-2 in all situations and 8-0 during 5-on-5 play. The goaltending was lacking, but the finishing ability was more of the problem.
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During 5-on-5 play those first two games, the Bruins held a significant edge in the shot attempts share (125-88). They’ve become a higher-volume shooting team, but have done a good job at shot suppression. The more glaring part is their expected goals. During 5-on-5 play, the Bruins generated 5.50 expected goals. Scoring zero is a tough pill to swallow.
When you factor in all situations, the Bruins generated 7.22 expected goals and only came away with two. Not being able to bury their chances has been a common theme, so the need for a bona fide goal-scorer is clear.
However, there’s no need to panic entirely. The Bruins bounced back in a big way and played with a chip on their shoulder against the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday (Dec. 14).
Pastrnak Had His Best Game of the Season
The Bruins played with a chip on their shoulder and it was go-time the moment the puck dropped. It was not just their stronger play during 5-on-5 play, but the Bruins even generated good looks on the power play. Captain Brad Marchand led the charge in this game and was playing with aggression. He was booed by the Canucks faithful but that only added fuel to his fire; the captain thrives off of that stuff. Not only did Marchand open the scoring on the power play, but the way he was moving and creating space for himself was tale-telling.
It was not just him though. David Pastrnak had arguably his best game of the 2024-25 season. He finished the game with three assists and scored a beautiful wrap-around goal. It was his first four-point game since April 9, 2023. It is never a must-win game for any team, but for the Bruins, this was a massive victory and a much-needed response game.
The Bruins went on to pummel the Canucks 5-1 and deserved every bit of those results. That was despite a lower-event game during 5-on-5 play, with the Bruins generating just 2.46 expected goals. Scoring well above their expected rate is a good sign, as puck luck was on their side.
Seeing this type of sudden outburst isn’t uncommon and has been a theme throughout the regular season.
Bruins’ Finishing Ability Throughout the Season
Finishing ability had been sporadic for the Bruins this season. High-scoring games are not their cup of tea, but they do happen. In 18 of their 32 games played this season, the Bruins have scored two or fewer goals. However, there have been times when the offense will sporadically appear.
The Bruins defeated the Colorado Avalanche 5-3 (Oct. 16, 2024) and then went three games where they scored three total goals. After that, they had a four-goal performance but regressed back down to six goals in five games. In the entire month of November, they scored more than three goals only twice.
Being an offensive dynamo is not in the Bruins’ cards, but there is evidence that they can score in bunches. At the end of the day, their finishing ability is not the greatest in general, as they have minus-12.88 goals scored above expected in all situations. But they need to build off their last game and allow it to fuel their fire for the rest of the road trip.
Let Iron Sharpen Iron
The road trip began a disaster, but the Bruins have done some good things under the hood. They have been able to create chances and offense, but the finishing ability was lacking. A strong performance against the Canucks should give the Bruins something to build off of and fuel them as they take on the Calgary Flames and then the Edmonton Oilers to wrap up the road trip.
