It has been a whirlwind of a start to the season for the Boston Bruins. After an offseason where they spent money, the results are much to be desired. It is not all doom and gloom, as the Bruins still find themselves tied for third place in the Atlantic Division. Still, there are things that the Bruins need to do to make a significant climb and one of them is fixing their power play.
Bruins’ Poor Execution with the Man Advantage
A good power play can be a weapon and be a difference-maker in a game. For the Bruins, that is not the case, as they’ve executed poorly with the man advantage. Despite having the most time spent on the power play with 126:27 of time on ice, the Bruins have scored the sixth-fewest goals with eight. To make matters worse, they have the worst-ranked power play in the league with a woeful 11.3% success rate. It’s puzzling considering the players that are on the unit.
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Oftentimes, you see them trying to do too much. You’d think with the team spending the most amount of time out there, they’d make the most of it, but they have not. Chris Kelly, who runs the power play, has to find a solution somewhere.
Time for Bruins to Capitalize and Execute
When you look deeper under the surface, there are things that stand out regarding this power play. They have generated the most expected goals for with 18.13, but that’s partially due to the amount of time they’ve spent with the man advantage. Their 8.6 expected goals per 60 minutes ranks 15th in the league and they sit 24th in shot attempts per 60 minutes. Despite the most time on ice, they are doing little with it. You look at a team like the Colorado Avalanche, who have spent 40 minutes fewer than the Bruins on the power play. They’ve generated the third most expected goals (15.48), and have scored the third most goals on the power play.
It’s been the opposite for the Bruins. They are generating, but are struggling to finish. The Bruins have scored eight goals, which is way below their expected rate, and have a 7.2% shooting percentage. It has to be better, especially if you are going to get the amount of chances that you are getting.
The units need to improve and it starts with the players. This power play runs through David Pastrnak, who is the team’s biggest weapon. Opposing teams know where he sets up on the power play and know that one-timer slap-shot is coming. He does have three goals, which is good, but there has to be more support. The Bruins have to do a better job of generating chances from all over the ice.
How the Bruins Can Improve
The Bruins’ power play needs to be able to generate chances from all over the ice. Looking at the heat map from HockeyViz, the Bruins love the left side of the ice. They’ve been able to generate chances from above the faceoff circle and the spot where Pastrnak stands is getting its looks.
The Bruins are getting their shots on the net and are getting rebounds in front to cause chaos for the goaltender. While they’ve managed to have the most high-danger attempts, they sit 18th in high-danger goals with the man advantage. Again, it comes down to finishing, which they’ve struggled to do.
They are extremely limited when it comes to finding space in the inner slot. The teams have managed to clog that neutral zone part of the ice and give the Bruins nothing there. Also, they hardly ever shoot from the right side of the ice, as if they looking for something specific. The Bruins need to utilize the entire offensive zone and do a better job executing.
With Hampus Lindholm out, Charlie McAvoy and Mason Lohrei are going to quarterback the two units. Head coach Jim Montgomery placed Lindholm on the top unit and it looked better, but that’s not an option. For practice on Sunday, the power-play units have been tweaked and they’ve wasted no time getting to work. The talent is there, especially on the first unit, and they have to do a better job of cashing in.
Power Play Being Better Goes a Long Way
With spending as much time as they do on the power play, the Bruins have been ineffective. They aren’t doing nearly enough with the man advantage and it’s why they are at the bottom of the barrel. They need to do more and need to find better ways to get into scoring positions. Something has to give at some point, and the finishing ability has to improve.
