It’s hard to believe, but the 2023-24 regular season has just three games remaining for the Boston Bruins. There is still plenty to be decided for the Black and Gold in terms of playoff positioning and what the roster will look like when the puck drops on their first-round series either April 20 or 21. Are the goaltenders going to be rotated and what does the third defensive pairing look like? Some many questions with little answers right now.
That brings us to the latest Bruins Buy or Sell where it’s time to take a look at whether to buy or sell some of the Bruins’ recent storylines or rumors.
Bruins Power Play Struggles
The special teams have been a staple of the Bruins over the last decade and this season, while the penalty kill has been good, the power play has struggled and struggled mightily at times. In their last nine games, they have just three man-advantage goals.
The first unit has struggled with zone entries, puck movement, lack of high-danger, and quality shots. They finally broke through on April 6 against the Florida Panthers with a Charlie Coyle second-period goal. In the first period, they had some early opportunities and failed to capitalize.
The second unit has been better for Boston and Justin Brazeau has been someone who has capitalized on his opportunity there by finding the back of the net, but he was injured against the Nashville Predators on April 2 and he’s now out week-to-week. Going forward in the playoffs, the Bruins are going to need to get more production from the power play against either of their opening-round opponent.
Buy or Sell the power play struggles right now are concerning ahead of the playoffs.
Can Bruins Hang on to Win the Atlantic Division?
It’s not too far-fetched that the Atlantic Division is locked up for the Bruins. Despite beating the Panthers in overtime on a Jesper Boqvist overtime goal on April 6, Boston held a five-point lead with four games remaining. Tuesday night (April 10) Boston lost to the Carolina Hurricanes, 4-1, while the Panthers beat the Ottawa Senators, 2-0, to close within three points. One look at the teams’ schedules shows things could get very interesting over the final five days of the regular season.
Florida closes out with home games against the Columbus Blue Jackets, Buffalo Sabres, and Toronto Maple Leafs. Boston closes with road games against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals, and Senators at home. Pittsburgh and Washington are desperate for points for one of the final Eastern Conference playoff berths, and while the Bruins are playing them, the Panthers have an opportunity to bank points against Buffalo and Columbus.
Related: Bruins/Panthers Rivalry Cemented With 2023-24 Matchups
Boston has playoff positioning to play for, but getting any points on the road against two desperate teams is anything but a given. This may end up being closer in the end than some may think. The Bruins will know where they stand before they take the ice on April 13 in Pittsburgh with Florida playing Columbus and Buffalo before the Black and Gold play their next game. Buckle up.
Buy or Sell the Bruins finish ahead of the Panthers in the Atlantic Division.
Is a Wortherspoon/Peeke Defensive Pairing Good or Not in Playoffs?
Things become a whole different game in the postseason and the question has to be asked, is a Parker Wotherspoon/Andrew Peeke third pairing going to be good enough against the Tampa Bay Lightning or Maple Leafs? With the top four, Charlie McAvoy, Hampus Lindholm, Matt Grzelcyk, and Brandon Carlo, you know what you’re getting in terms of puck-moving defensemen, but with Wortherspoon and Peeke, you lack any puck-moving ability there is.
That’s where Mason Lohrei comes into play with his ability to be a mobile puck-moving blueliner and help get the puck out of the defensive zone. Last season in the first round against Florida, you saw just how valuable it was and how much the Bruins missed that with Grzelcyk out of the lineup as a scratch. Lohrei may be young and raw, but it may be best to let him learn on the go in the playoffs to give Jim Montgomery one more puck-moving defenseman in the lineup.
Buy or Sell that Parker Wortherspoon and Andrew Peeke is a good enough third defensive pairing in the playoffs.
Swayman or Ullmark? To Rotate or Not to Rotate in the Playoffs
If it’s not broken, don’t fix it. That can be said about a lot of things, but it also comes into play when it comes to the Bruins’ goaltending situation. Last season against the Panthers, Montgomery decided to go with Ullmark instead of Swayman, and why not? The former Sabres netminder had a Vezina Trophy-winning season, but when things started to go off the rails toward the end of the series, Montgomery stuck with him too long before going to Swayman in Game 7. Maybe he should have gone to the former University of Maine standout in Game 6 or during that game when Ullmark struggled.
This season, it looked like Swayman had the inside track to the starting job, but Ullmark has looked more like the 2022-23 version and this Vezina form. This might be the year that Montgomery goes with one, but quickly transitions to the other if things start to go downhill like last season late in the series against Florida.
Buy or Sell that Jim Montgomery should rotate his goaltenders in the playoffs.
There is a lot to still be determined over the next five days for the Bruins in terms of playoff seeding and roster construction for the first round. Whoever they get is going to be a tough draw as the players who were on last season’s team look to erase the bad memories of the collapse last spring after a historic regular season.