By: Ryan Jainchill | Follow me on Twitter / X @Jainchill_Ryan
In the ten games since the Boston Bruins named Joe Sacco as the team’s Interim Head Coach, the team has seen its best stretch of the season. Over these ten games, the Bruins are 7-3-0, including a season-high four-game win streak.
The team has seen numerous aspects of their game improve, such as secondary scoring, defensive structure, and goaltending. While the Bruins still struggle, mainly in defensive-zone lapses and games where the finishing hasn’t quite been there, these signs of life under Sacco have allowed them to get out of their funk and begin to find form.
Secondary Scoring
The lack of secondary scoring plagued the Bruins for their first 20 games under former Head Coach Jim Montgomery. This led to the team averaging 2.4 goals per game, including being shut out three times. In Sacco’s first ten games behind the bench, the team averages 2.8 goals per game. While this isn’t a drastic jump, the change lies in who has been producing.
A player who struggled through the first 20 games of the season was Morgan Geekie. Through the first 15 games he was in the lineup under Montgomery, the 26-year-old forward had one goal and three assists and was scratched for a stretch of time. In the first ten games under Sacco, Geekie has three goals and two assists, including a two-goal game in the victory over Chicago last week. With him playing top-line minutes, Geekie’s production has helped the Bruins win seven of ten, and they’re hoping he continues to produce for the team to find their form.
Trent Frederic is another player who has seen a jump in scoring over the last ten games. In his first 20 games, Frederic had three goals and three assists. Before his two tallies in the Bruins’ overtime loss to St. Louis last month, the forward went 17 games without a goal after scoring on opening night. In his previous ten games, Frederic has five points, with all five coming in his last six games. Middle-six scoring was ailing the Bruins for most of the season, and it’s no coincidence that Frederic’s strong stretch of play coincides with the team’s success.
Defensive Structure
On the defensive front, the Bruins struggled with coverage at times under Montgomery, which led to odd-man chances against and failing to pick up opposing players in their own zone. Under Sacco, this has changed, with the team allowing 2.6 goals per game, even with last night’s 8-1 manhandling at the hands of the Winnipeg Jets.
The Bruins have allowed an average of 25.3 shots per game over the last ten games. This is a product of improved defensive zone structure and limiting chances against. Despite defensive zone lapses still occurring, the improvements in coverage (excluding the loss to Winnipeg) have allowed the team to find form in their own end.
Improvements in their own end have allowed the Bruins to generate more offense from the back end. With good structure and coverage, the likes of Charlie McAvoy, Nikita Zadorov, Mason Lohrei, and Jordan Oesterle have been able to jump into the play and generate offense. Improved defensive zone coverage allows the Bruins to play to their strengths, keep games low-scoring, and generate offense.
Goaltending
The backbone of the Bruins’ 7-3 stretch was the tandem of Jeremy Swayman and Joonas Korpisalo. The duo has only allowed more than three goals once, giving the team their best chance of winning night in and night out. While the strong play can be credited to the improvements in their own zone, having both your netminders playing well is a foundation for success.
Amidst contract drama and not having a preseason, it was a rough start to the campaign for Swayman. But as of late, the netminder has found his game. In the seven starts since Sacco took over, Swayman is 4-3-0 with a 2.86 goals against average and a .889 save percentage. If you remove the shellacking by Winnipeg, the former Maine Black Bear would have 2.01 GAA and a .917 save percentage. While this year hasn’t been ideal for Swayman and the Bruins, his numbers continuing to improve can only make the team better.
A surprise revelation for the Bruins this season has been Korpisalo. After a down year in Ottawa, the 30-year-old has bounced back as a fantastic number two for the team. Since Sacco took over, Korpisalo has started three games, posting a 3-0-0 record with a 1.65 GAA and a .929 save percentage. He also recorded his second shutout of the season in Sacco’s first game, a 1-0 shutout over the Utah Hockey Club.
With Swayman and Korpisalo finding form, it’s no surprise that the Bruins have found success. If the tandem continues to put up stellar numbers, it only improves the team around them and vice versa.
Through Sacco’s first ten games behind the bench, the Bruins have begun to shape their identity as a strong defensive team with good goaltending and glimpses of depth scoring. While improvements in consistency, scoring, and eliminating lapses in coverage in their own zone still need to be addressed, it has been a successful first ten games for the Bruins under their new head coach.
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