By: Andrew Bluestein | Follow Me On X (Formerly Twitter) @adbblue
The Boston Bruins lost 5-1 to the Winnipeg Jets Friday night in what was undoubtedly their worst loss of the season. The Bruins couldn’t do anything right, and there was a complete lack of effort. The Jets were skating circles around them all game long.
Perhaps the Bruins are eager to get to the holiday freeze, where they’ll have three days off because they did not seem invested. But they have a chance to get back in the win column tonight, as this disaster of a performance was the first half of a back-to-back.
First Period
Both teams were shot out of a cannon ensuing the opening face-off. The Jets had the first high-danger chance, but Jeremy Swayman denied it. It seemed like the Jets struck first, but Josh Morrissey kicked the puck in, resulting in no goal. Winnipeg controlled the play after that, dominating the possession game.
They were also the much quicker team, winning every puck race. The Bruins had a couple of solid shifts, but it was a stalemate after that. In the final seconds of the opening frame, the Jets got on the board. Josh Morrissey opened the scoring by beating Swayman off the rush, making it 1-0. This occurred with just seven seconds remaining in the first period. Truly a gut punch for Boston, and they never recovered from it.
Second Period
The Bruins had the first power play in the second period but failed to convert and were lackluster in the process. The Jets extended their lead when Gabe Vilardi made it 2-0. The Jets scored again when Ninio Niederreiter potted one, making it 3-0. It was a complete no-show of a period by the Bruins, who just seemingly couldn’t put anything together and couldn’t do anything positive.
Third Period
The third period was just as bad as the second for the Bruins. They completely imploded, which was highlighted by allowing two more goals. Adam Lowry tucked one by Swayman for a 4-0 lead. The Bruins did get on the board with Brandon Carlo spoiling the shutout, making 4-1, but that was all they could muster.
Neiderreiter scored his second of the game on the power-play, which made it 5-1, continuing the Jets’ onslaught. Boston was again dominated in every aspect of the game in the final frame. There was no attention to detail, and many players seemed to check out after the fourth goal. The Jets outshot the Bruins for the game 33 to 25. It is hard to win hockey games when you only put 25 shots on goal.
Up Next
Things don’t get any easier for the Black and Gold, as they’re right back at it tonight. They’ll be in Minnesota to take on the Wild for a 7:00 p.m. puck drop in the second half of a back-to-back. The Wild beat the Bruins 4-3 in overtime on Tuesday.
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