It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Christmas is here, which means time with your loved ones. It also means that Santa Claus is coming to town and leaving presents under the tree. Like a kid opening gifts, hockey fans feel that same sentiment with respect to their teams. For the Boston Bruins, there are certain things on the wish list that they’d love to find under the tree, or in this case, on the ice. Let’s take a look at the Bruins’ Christmas wish list.
Adding a Legitimate Goal Scorer
Pinch me if you’ve heard this before, but the Bruins are not this offensive dynamo of a hockey team. Goal scoring is not their best cup of tea and they are one of the worst offensive scoring teams in the league. The Bruins rank 27th in goals scored at five-on-five (57) and 25th in all situations (88). Furthermore, they’ve become a low-event offense under new head coach Joe Sacco, but do have a strong shot suppressing defensive structure. They are built better to win games 3-2 or 2-1, but adding a dynamic scorer would make this team light-years better than what it’s been. By some Christmas miracle, the Bruins find themselves within striking distance of first place in the Atlantic Division and should make the playoffs. What’s even more puzzling is they have a negative goal differential. That’s hockey baby.
Related: Bruins’ Poitras Is Perfect Fit for Second-Line Winger Role
For the third year in a row, the Bruins are being carried by superstar winger David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand. Pastrnak has led the team in goals for two straight seasons now and is the ONLY player to score 30 or more goals. As it stands, Marchand leads the team in goals (13) and Pastrnak is one behind him with 12. The next closest is Pavel Zacha with eight.
When it comes to this lineup, finishing ability is tough. This team does have players who can put the puck in the net, they just haven’t this season. Despite getting their looks, they have 12.25 goals scored above expected and are averaging 2.55 goals per game. Simply put, that’s not good enough. During an 82-game sample size, you can get by with it and ride the wave. However, when it comes to the playoffs, teams will aim to limit Pastrnak’s open ice and try to put pressure on the rest of the lineup.
It remains to be seen what the approach will be at the trade deadline. But adding a legitimate goal scorer would be the greatest Christmas gift to this hockey team.
Calling Up The Kids
Asking for all three to be called up is a pipe dream. However, at least ONE of them should be a boost of offense for the Bruins. After all, general manager Don Sweeney did intend to leave a spot open for them, so why not utilize it? The kids that are in play are Georgii Merkulov, Fabian Lysell, and Matthew Poitras.
Merkulov did get his call up to the Bruins, but after three games got sent back down. He was good in his small sample size and brought life to the third line alongside Charlie Coyle and Trent Frederic. Lysell could be a good injection of youth in the lineup, but letting him cook in the American Hockey League (AHL) is a good idea. The bigger Christmas gift would be getting Poitras back up to the Bruins.
Poitras was a breath of fresh air during the 2023-24 season and gave the coaching staff every reason to keep him on the team. Fast forward to 2024-25, he had strong on-ice impacts during five-on-five play despite the lack of production. However, former head coach Jim Montgomery explained why the send-down was necessary.
“More of an impact in the game. Making more plays, understanding our structure.”
So how’s life been for the young Poitras down with the Providence Bruins? He has spent a little over a month with the Providence Bruins and has certainly been a blip on the radar of the Bruins front office. He has been on a seven-game scoring streak and now has 15 points and is over a point-per-game player. Safe to say, the cooking is going very well. But given the offense, adding a player like Poitras back into the mix makes the most sense. There is the caveat that the Bruins would have to create a roster spot and they also just added Oliver Wahlstrom off of waivers.
Poitras is the center of the future and could be the center of the present and be an immediate boost to the lineup. The thought is that the front office is going to let these young guys cook and develop further and be 100% ready for next season.
It follows the same sentiment as the Boston Red Sox, with the highest caliber prospects on their way; it’s just a matter of when. Seeing number 51 would be the best gift of all.
Continuing to Believe in Themselves
After a tough start to the season, belief has set in and something Marchand touched on after their matchup against the Calgary Flames.
“Confidence and belief is dangerous… we’re starting to have that belief again that we can come back in these situations.”
It all ties into the things that the Bruins have struggled with. They are not the highest-scoring team, not by a long shot. If the game does get out of hand and the Bruins find themselves down by a couple of goals, it’s a big mountain to climb. However, under Sacco, they have won twice when trailing by two periods, something that they did once in the first 22 games of the season.
Belief is a powerful thing. The Bruins were playing some of the worst hockey imaginable under Montgomery. They were still in the thick of things despite that and now have found new life. They are more in sync, playing with better structure, and just competing better as a team. It is exactly what you want to see and how they’ve been able to right the ship in short order is amazing to see.
Not only is it a powerful thing, but it is dangerous and their belief can take them on a run and anything can happen in the game of hockey.
Wish List Could Be Reality
Regardless of what happens, adding a prolific goal scorer should be at the top of Sweeney’s list. It may not happen on Christmas Day, but could be a late gift. Adding one of the younger players from Providence could do wonders for the anemic offense. But if the Bruins just rally together as a team and believe in what they are doing, the sky is the limit. That’s the beauty of the intangible factors in this wonderful sport. First place is not far out of reach and neither is the hope of making the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
