By: Jason Cooke | Follow me on X @cookejournalism
The Boston Bruins are rolling into the holiday break on a high note. Elias Lindholm broke a 1-1 deadlock late in the third to push the Bruins over the Washington Capitals, 4-1, on Monday night. It was the first of three third-period goals for the Bruins, followed by tallies from Charlie Coyle and an empty-netter from Brad Marchand. Following a three-day hiatus, Boston returns to action on Friday when they commence a home-and-home with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Justin Brazeau scored a power play goal for the Bruins to start the party, while Jeremy Swayman made 10 saves amid a strong defensive effort by the hosts at TD Garden. The Bruins (19-13-4) went 2-for-3 on the penalty kill, including a pivotal kill on a five-minute major in the third period when Oliver Wahlstrom was assessed a game misconduct for boarding.
“There’s a good feeling obviously right now in the room because of the way we are playing,” interim head coach Joe Sacco said after the win. “But it’s good to go into the break the way we did tonight getting on the right side of that feeling.”
With the Bruins off for the holidays, it’s a good time to take a look at some areas (good and bad) that have stuck out before Christmas:
The Bruins are Fighting Under Sacco
Amid a cloud of uncertainties that may still loom over the Bruins, one specific aspect of their game has been made apparent as of late; Boston isn’t willing to back down from a deficit. This is particularly noteworthy when compared to the Bruins in similar situations under Montgomery. When Boston recovered from a 3-1 hole on the road in Calgary on their recent swing out West, the comeback triumph marked the second instance in which the B’s have overcome a deficit when trailing after two periods.
Under Montgomery, they did it just once in 22 previous games. It’s what you ideally hope for after a coaching change. While results may not be immediate, picking up on an increased sense of urgency is essential to right a sinking ship. The Bruins did that, and it’s an encouraging development as the team continues their upward climb out of their early-season hole.
Bruins Boast Second-Worst Power Play
It’s been one of the Bruins’ most visible thorns so far this season. Boston’s unit on the man advantage ranked 13.2% ahead of Monday’s tilt with the Capitals. That’s 31st across the whole league just in front of the league-worst New York Islanders (12.1%). If Boston wants to be a playoff team come spring, they simply cannot afford to squander so many five-on-four opportunities.
The good news for the Bruins? It’s getting better. According to 98.5 The Sports Hub’s hockey scribe Ty Anderson, the Bruins stood at 6-for-28 following Brazeau’s tally on Monday in a nine-game span dating back to Dec. 4. That percentage (21.4%) is good for 13th in the league. That’s a lot better than 31st.
What’s been the difference? Well, I think it begins with shooting the puck. The Bruins reaped benefits from doing just that on Monday, as Brazeau cleaned up a rebound from Morgan Geekie on the doorstep to net his fourth power play tally of the season. This isn’t pretty, but it’s simple. And simple is oftentimes effective in the NHL.
This change could very well be attributed to Boston’s coaching change. The Bruins were notoriously known for a shot quality over shot quantity approach under Montgomery as opposed to a more traditional high-volume mindset under Sacco. Either way, the Bruins have made promising steps in bettering perhaps the worst part of their game into the holiday break.
Slow Start for Jeremy Swayman
As the Bruins got off to a slow start in 2024-25, so did their newly tagged franchise netminder. Following an offseason contract saga that was settled just before the puck dropped in October, Swayman never really found his footing. His game certainly saw glimpses of what Bruins fans witnessed last April in the postseason, but it also uncovered the reality of the baggage that comes with his first full season between the pipes as the number-one goaltender.
In Swayman’s first eight games of the season, he allowed a staggering 27 goals. And just when it looked like his game may have been turning a corner in a 3-0-0 stretch entering December, he allowed a career-worst eight tallies in a defeating loss to the Vancouver Canucks. Entering Monday’s matchup against the Capitals, Swayman’s numbers positioned him in the basement of the league’s goalie leaders.
In a group of 36 goaltenders who have played in 15 or more games this season, Swayman sat firmly at No. 34 in goals against average (3.13) and No. 32 in save percentage (.887). Those numbers surely aren’t what Bruins brass hoped for when forking over $66 million to designate Swayman as the team’s goaltender of the future. Is Swayman fully responsible for those numbers? Of course not. Boston’s defensive play in front of him has been shaky at best for points throughout the season and hasn’t helped his case.
But for Swayman, point-blank letdowns have plagued his game for much of the year, including Vrana’s power-play score in the middle period on Monday to tie the contest. In his defense, this one-timer was a rocket that most goalies likely won’t save. But if Swayman wants to elevate himself to the grouping of elite goalies that roam atop the NHL, that’s a save you probably want him to make if you’re the Bruins.
David Pastrnak Carrying the Offensive Load
With all the discourse surrounding Pastrnak, you’d think he wasn’t making up for it on the scoresheet. But with 35 points in 35 games heading into Monday night, his point-per-game average says otherwise. While his turnovers and lack of finish at points throughout the season have been evident, Boston’s franchise superstar is still delivering where it matters the most.
To this point in the year, Pastrnak has managed just 12 goals, which means the brunt of his offensive production has resulted in helpers (23). That’s not a bad thing. While Boston would certainly like to see their perennial goal scorer light the lamp more often when the season resumes on Friday, he’s been able to adapt.
Pastrnak went seven consecutive games without a goal in November before potting four in December. In Boston’s 5-1 rout of the Vancouver Canucks on Dec. 14, Pastrnak pieced together a signature takeover game that saw him put up four points on a goal and three assists. However, unlike Boston’s power play, Pastrnak isn’t exactly entering the break on a high note. He exited Monday’s matchup against the Capitals in the second period with an upper-body injury and never returned. After being ruled “unlikely to return” to the game by the team in the third, Sacco was unable to provide an update to reporters postgame.
Depth Scoring Coming Into Form
On the flip side, Boston has done a much better job helping out the likes of Pastrnak and Marchand (30 points) to round out an offense that was extremely top-heavy to start the year. Morgan Geekie and Coyle have headlined that effort as of late to supplement the offense.
Geekie went on a four-game run where he netted three goals in what has been a drastic turnaround from his slow start. He recently netted the game-winner in Saturday’s victory over the skidding Buffalo Sabres and has been more active offensively. Coyle, who lit the lamp on Monday, has also been more effective as of late. He also found twine in Saturday’s win over the Sabres and has been successful on the wing with Marchand and Lindholm.
“That was a good step in the right direction,” Coyle said of the chemistry with his new linemates. “You feel good about your game when you finish a few times, but again, playing the right way, doing the right things, getting to know each other. I haven’t played with (Lindholm) a whole lot…that’s always a work in progress. There’s a lot of things to like about our game.”
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