Bruins
After a 6-4 loss to Toronto during which the Bruins never had a lead and missed far too many possibilities, Boston has now lost three games in a row and 4 of their last five. And while there was an improvement within the scoring department on Saturday, the Bruins had their backs against the wall for too long to deserve a road win.
After falling behind 2-0 early within the second period, Boston showed life and got a goal back just 12 seconds later because of Morgan Geekie. Before the top of the second period, Trent Frederic scored the equalizer and breathed latest life into the Bruins.
This moment was short-lived. Boston gave up a goal early within the third period to Matthew Knies, who finished Saturday's game with a hat trick and five points.
This time, David Pastrnak managed to tie the rating by getting a steal in Toronto's own zone and making a ravishing play to fireplace a shot past Joseph Woll.
That was the last time Boston was really near winning on Saturday. Later, Toronto took the lead again, using an empty-net goal, and after one other goal from Pastrnak, the Maple Leafs scored a second empty-net goal, finally sealing the deal.
“We weren’t tough enough in certain areas of the game tonight,” interim coach Joe Sacco said after the sport. “It’s hard to play catch-up hockey. But it's 2-2 going into the third round. We have two mistakes…two mishaps that they are capitalizing on.”
Here are three takeaways from the loss:
The Bruins need more from Jeremy Swayman.
Jeremy Swayman definitely had his work cut out for him on Saturday, and the Bruins didn't do the very best job of defending the online around him. However, Boston should give you the option to depend on its All-Star goaltender to make defensive mistakes. And Swayman didn't answer that bell against the Maple Leafs.
Swayman's final stats: 4 goals allowed on 27 shots and 23 saves. Good for a below-average savings of 0.867 percent. Swayman entered Saturday with a save percentage of .893. That's thirty eighth within the leaguebehind even his own backup Joonas Korpisalo, and the fifth-worst goalie within the NHL with 20 or more starts.
Of course, a part of it is a residual effect of Boston's struggles early within the season. And Swayman himself got off to a slower start after missing the Bruins' training camp on account of his contract dispute. Still, for a goaltender who now makes over $8 million per yr, Swayman wasn't quite the star in net that Boston hoped for in comparison with last yr's breakout season.
Having goaltender is critical for many teams heading into the playoffs, and Swayman might want to reignite his game if Boston desires to return to the postseason – and be competitive in it.
David Pastrnak could have found his groove.
The Bruins' superstar scorer hasn't been his usual self for many of this season, but David Pastrnak could have found his rhythm again despite Saturday's loss.
Pastrnak's point total in 40 games is nowhere near what it was within the last two seasons, and he's on pace for his lowest goal total since his second yr within the NHL. For a Boston team that has struggled to place up points this yr, it needs its leading scorer to reclaim its throne.
Against Toronto, Pastrnak recorded his first multi-goal game of the yr. Of course, it's an especially small sample size game, but Saturday offered a taste of the version of Pastrnak that Boston has turn out to be accustomed to. Score goals often and at a high level.
If there's anything to remove from the tough away loss, it's the incontrovertible fact that Pastrnak can still influence the momentum of a game with the puck on his stick. The overall result wasn't there yet on Saturday, however the formula still works.
Now Pastrnak has 40 points in 41 games. He's still a great distance from his back-to-back 110 and 113 point seasons, but some extent per game is greater than serviceable and can only proceed to rise if Pastrnak returns to his winning ways.
Morgan Geekie doesn't miss a beat in the highest six.
Morgan Geekie is catapulting up the Bruins' rankings and proving he has the suitable to remain there.
Geekie, who was a final six player last season, will get time on Boston's second line this yr. He appeared on the wing alongside Charlie Coyle and Pavel Zacha on Saturday and seemed very comfortable in that group.
The move that ultimately led to Geekie's goal proved exactly why the 26-year-old deserves to stay within the top-six forward rotation. First, Geekie applied pressure behind Toronto's net and delivered a goal that helped Boston regain possession of the puck. Then he flashed in front of Woll and covered the goalkeeper a lot that there was chaos in front of him.
Then, the icing on the cake, Geekie found a great spot on the back post and positioned himself perfectly for a goal because the puck skidded across the crease. Not bad for five seconds of hockey.
Geekie has collected as much as 17 points this yr (9 goals, 8 assists). He's currently just off his scoring pace from last season, despite the fact that the Bruins are scoring fewer goals and losing more games than last yr and he's getting time against more quality opposing players than before.
Boston will make a fast turnaround and look to finish a three-game deficit against the New York Islanders on Sunday night.
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