By: Chad Jones I Follow me on Twitter/X @ShutUpChadJones
The Boston Bruins handed the Buffalo Sabres their 13th straight loss Saturday night at TD Garden. The Black and Gold came away victorious by a score of 3-1. Goaltender Joonas Korpisalo only allowed one power-play score and stopped 19 of 20 Buffalo shots for his seventh win of the season. Forward Charlie Coyle picked up his eighth tally of the year, while team Captain Brad Marchand put the game on ice with an empty netter, which extended the Bruins captain’s scoring streak to nine straight. But the main story for Boston was the timely scoring of forward Morgan Geekie.
With the game knotted up at one aside, it appeared number 39 gave the Bruins the lead with a third-period snipe. But Buffalo was convinced forward David Pastrnak was a stride too eager to beat the puck to the Sabers’ zone. Buffalo Head Coach Lindy Ruff challenged the play for offsides, and the goal was taken off the board.
It was a frustrating outcome for Geekie, as Pastrnak was on the other side of the ice and did not draw attention from either Buffalo defenseman when he crossed the blue line. But Geekie would not be denied, and he ended up scoring the game-winning goal towards the end of a Boston power play with 1:45 to go in regulation.
Since November 27th, 2024, Geekie has been dynamic, playing a more offensive-centric role. Skating primarily with Pastrnak and forward Pavel Zacha, Geekie has scored six goals and three assists in 12 games, having posted just four points in his first 18 games of the year. Boston has managed to post a record of 8-3-1 during this stretch.
“I’m trying to get to the net as much as I can with these two,” Geekie told the media postgame. “I know they like to make plays and get the puck inside. Someone’s got to do the dirty work, a little bit, and get inside the crease.”
Over this duration, the forward’s six lamplighters have consisted of burying chances right in front of the net and ripping wrist shots past goaltenders. Geekie has collected two game-winning tallies over these 12 contests, including against Buffalo Saturday night.
That said, Bruins Head Coach Joe Sacco and the team’s General Manager Don Sweeney will have to answer this question sometime this season. Is this just a productive month for Geekie, or is he a serious option to skate in the top six for the remainder of the season and the playoffs if Boston qualifies?
Since Sweeney took over as Bruins GM in 2015, a consistent problem for the organization come spring has been a lack of secondary scoring, especially against opponents with four productive lines and sturdy defenses. While there were many reasons for the Bruins’ second-round exit against the Panthers last May, Geekie only managed two points over those six games.
If the forward continues to rack up goals and assists in this offensive-driven role, Boston can focus on improving other deficiencies at the trade deadline, such as a forward who compliments Marchand and forward Elias Lindholm. But if Geekie reverts back to a cold streak, or the Bruins decide to drop him down in the lineup, Boston might have too many holes in their offense to effectively fix during the season. Geekie’s play is critical to determine where the Bruins wind up in the standings and how Sweeney looks to upgrade the roster to round the Bruins into a formidable playoff opponent.
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