By: Julia Simone | Follow me on Twitter / X @j_simone40
Heading into last night, the Boston Bruins ranked 30th in the league in scoring chances. The club was shut out, 4-0, by the Nashville Predators in Tennessee this evening. The Bruins head home with three out of the possible six points from this road trip after going 1-1-1.
Both Ryan O’Reilly and Luke Evangelista logged a goal and an assist, along with Tommy Novak and Gustav Nyquist, who scored a goal a piece. Jusse Saros made 33 saves for his first shutout of the season and 24th of his NHL career.
With a 4-0 win over the Bruins, the Predators notch their first win of the season and snap a five-game losing streak. Coming into the night, the Preds were the only team in the NHL without a win.
The B’s sloppy play and lack of scoring are the story and concern from tonight’s game. The team recorded six penalties with four out of the six called in the first period.
Center Charlie Coyle criticized the team’s performance tonight, stating, “You gotta find ways to get to the net more … maybe we are not getting to the inside as much.”
Bruin’s Captain, Brad Marchand, is not getting to the net as much as he has yet to score in the first seven games of the season. The 5’9″ center received three surgeries this offseason with one repairing his elbow for a torn tendon, another in his groin to address a sports hernia, and the third in his abdominal area to address another sports hernia.
Given the Bruin’s lack of scoring, head coach Jim Montgomery shuffled the team’s top nine. Marchand skated tonight with Elias Lindholm and David Pastanark on the top line, replacing Pavel Zacha. Charlie Coyle remained on the second line as two new wingers joined him: Max Jones, making his third appearance as a Bruin at left wing, and veteran Trent Frederic at right wing. At the bottom of the top nine, Zacha dropped down to the third line, playing with center Matthew Poitras and right wing Morgan Geekie.
These line changes did not pay off for Montgomery after posting a zero on the scoreboard in Nashville. Jeremey Swayman made 38 saves. In his prior starts against the Preds, Swayman displayed shutouts, stopping all 70 combined shots he faced in those games. This was not the case tonight as the star goaltender for the Bruins let in four shots. Max Jones finished with two minor penalties and zero shots on goal with 11:14 of ice time. Jones replaced Justin Brazeau in the lineup tonight.
Many fans wonder if Montgomery will switch up the top nine again or keep it the same. The only line for the Bruins that has been producing so far this season is the fourth line made up of left-wing Johnny Beecher, center Mark Kastelic, and right-wing Cole Koepke,Ā posting a combined 16 points.
Up next, the Bruins will face the Dallas Stars on Thursday night at TD Garden to kick off a three-game homestand.
Leave a Reply