Jeremy Swayman was so adamantly confident that the Boston Bruins will break through and score some goals that one couldn’t help wonder if he was trying to convince himself after his team only buried one marker and fell for the second straight time (2-1 to the struggling New York Rangers) on this three-game road trip that concludes on Saturday night in Toronto.
On second thought, Swayman was right on brand. Confidence is a huge part of his success.
“The mindset doesn’t change. If anything, it elevates,” said Swayman of the situation the Bruins suddenly faced after outplaying the Rangers over the opening several minutes of the game, only to fall behind 2-0. He pointed to the success the Bruins had early on in territorial play, zone time and scoring chances.
“We know that we can get results and have success with our gameplan,” said Swayman. “It’s not going to discourage us, no matter what comes our way. It’s going to make us stronger. … I’ve got no doubt in this room, and I know that we’re going to respond and take the positives out of this one and move forward.”
Swayman made 25 saves in the loss, while Jonathan Quick stopped 32 of 33 Boston shots. While Quick made one of the better saves this season on Charlie McAvoy, Swayman made some big stops in the second and third period to keep the Bruins within range.
On a lighter note, Swayman had respectful words for Quick, whose prime years long preceded Swayman’s. The two are both former Hockey East star backstops.
“It’s frustrating obviously right now we’re not scoring … not for a lack of some opportunities, we’re just not finishing them,” said Bruins Interim Coach Joe Sacco, who was pleased with his team’s defensive effort “for the most part. We have to stick with it.”
The Rangers were opportunistic, scoring first-period goals only 3 minutes and 5 seconds apart to grab a 2-0 lead during an opening period that had, until the Bruins gave up those strikes, was mostly if not all Boston.
Sacco acknowledged that, while his team needs to improve the quality of its looks, it also has a tendency to over-pass the puck. He had to be thinking about a chance Johnny Beecher had in the third period as he carried into the slot only to backhand a pass into a Ranger’s skate.
Elias Lindholm, the Bruins’ lone scorer, gave Quick credit but insisted one goal two games in a row is not good enough.
“Mistakes are going to happen out there, and obviously they capitalized right away. That’s tough, but you now, our mood and the talk was kind of stay with it,” said Lindholm. “I thought they took over after those two goals, but we battled back and had plenty of chances to tie the game… This league is hard to score, and we have to find ways to score more than one goal a game.”
David Pastrnak hit Lindholm with a great pass across the goalmouth that Lindholm shot into the top of the net with Quick down, but that was all the Bruins could muster.
“It’s tough because their goalie played amazing … the chances were there, we just didn’t capitalize,” said Pastrnak, whose assist on Lindholm’s goal was a thing of beauty.
On a hunch, Sacco put together the two with Brad Marchand, and don’t be surprised if you see it again Saturday night in Toronto. To a man including the coach, they all liked the switch, felt it was timely and that it went well for them.
Sacco is realistic in terms of his team defense, which he said was solid for the most part. Things are going to go wrong in hockey games, and the focal point right now is on trying to ring out whatever offense is hiding in the forward group, and the defensemen for that matter.
Charlie Coyle and Cole Koepke were the only Bruins skaters not to register a shot on Quick. Coyle had a rough night with the puck but gave the Bruins two important faceoff wins in the third period after they’d iced the puck three times on the same shift and kept losing the draw. Coyle turned that around.
Trent Frederic played at center again, skating 16:46 and going 3-6 on faceoffs. He helped generate some scoring chances on a line with Justin Brazeau and Oliver Wahlstrom, but like just about everyone else, they could not break through.
One wonders should this trip go through Toronto without points if GM Don Sweeney will make a trade for a goal-scoring winger. Names like Tyler Toffoli and Frank Vatrano come to mind. Matt Poitras has played in the AHL like a center who eventually belongs in the NHL, but how soon is the question.
The Bruins have a lot of moving parts, and few solutions for their offensive malaise.
Tonight they talked about the goaltender and rightfully so, as Quick was sensational. But this team has been challenged in the post-DeBrusk year very much like it was in 2009-10, the post-Kessel year.
We’ll soon see if Swayman is right about this team as presently constituted.
GAME BLOG
The Boston Bruins open the 2025 portion of their schedule tonight against the New York Rangers, whose season has been a horror movie compared to that of the Bruins.
The Rangers haven’t made a coaching change, but much else has happened since GM Chris Drury told the rest of the NHL that his team was looking to make personnel changes and named Chris Kreider and Jacob Trouba. Trouba and Kappo Kaako have since been traded, and the Rangers only sign of life of late was a tight loss at Florida.
Tonight it’s Jeremy Swayman in net for Boston against former Kings stalwart Jonathan Quick, whose solid play has been among the few bright spots for New York.
Rink Rap hasn’t been in this building since the teams’ 2013 playoff series. Now the concourses are also done, so it’s a much nicer arena to visit. They had changed the seating bowls by 2013, so even in 2013 it looked far different than it had back in 1994 and beyond.
The Bruins are in not-broke-so-don’t-fix-it mode, with minor tweaks such as Oliver Wahlstrom back in the lineup tonight for Marc McLaughlin.
The Rangers are 2-8-0 in their last 10, as their season slips into oblivion. The Bruins, though, are only 5-4-1 in their last 10 so the feel-goods about the turnaround under Joe Sacco completely disappear with anything less than 2 points tonight.
FIRST PERIOD
Bruins defending the goal to our left…
The Bruins came out and played their typical opening 10 minutes, generating several scoring chances but lacking execution on the shot attempts. Then, with 10:12 remaining in the first period, Nikita Zadorov and Charlie McAvoy converged on an aerial pass in the neutral zone and barely averted a collision, but in the process the Rangers got an odd-man rush, and Mika Zibanejad converted on the backhand rebound for a 1-0 Rangers lead.
The Bruins fell into a 2-0 hole three minutes later when they turned the puck over in the Rangers zone, and Brett Berard scored on the 2-on-1.
The Rangers caught some fire and had more close calls, perhaps buoyed by the confidence that comes with a smattering of success. The Bruins, meanwhile, had to calm some internal chaos before fully resuming the hockey they were playing until the self-inflicted damage.
The period ends without a penalty.
SECOND PERIOD
Trent Frederic has hit best shift in games, and the Bruins almost get the puck over the goal line but no. Quick stopped it on the line.
K’Andre Miller flips the puck over the sideglass in the D zone and takes the game’s first period at 3:41. David Pastrnak high-sticks Ryan Lindgren at 4:08, so it’s 4 on 4 for 1:34.
Artemi Panarin hits the post from the left point.
Cole Koepke takes a lucky deflection into the NYR zone, Bruins go to work. Justin Brazeau puts a shot on Quick from the left point, the Bruins recover possession and get two more tighter looks, the last by Frederic. But Quick shuts it all down and preserves the Rangers’ 2-0 lead 7:28 into the second period.
Pastrnak completes the Bruins’ in-zone pressure by centering across the goalmouth to Elias Lindholm, who finds the top corner, 2-1 game 7:57 into the second period. Bruins are on the board.
Bruins turn it over, but Swayman makes two big stops, the rebound on Will Cuylle from point-blank range.
Brandon Carlo screams a slapshot wide.
Zadorov gets himself in trouble with the puck in front of Swayman, and that sets off a chain of events that ends with the save of the game by Quick, sticking out the right leg to stop a charging McAvoy at the left post. Save of the year?
The Rangers enjoy their best shift of the game, but Miller cannot get the puck past Swayman.
The Bruins continue to be sloppy, McAvoy first, then Swayman, resulting in a shot-pass that Swayman is able to smother.
Fans wanted a call on Brazeau for crunching Braden Schneider behind the NYR net.
Second period ends, 2-1 Rangers.
Shots after two periods: 21-20 Boston.
THIRD PERIOD
Swayman stops a Chris Kreider backhand at the right post, then Coyle has a backhand from the slot at the other end that Quick traps with his pads.
Brazeau reaches to disrupt Panarin and creates a scoring chance for the Bruins.
The Bruins’ top line pressures for the equalizer but cannot turn the Rangers’ turnovers into a goal.
The Bruins create more pressure in the O-zone but cannot turn it into quality shots. Johnny Beecher left one on the table, skating the puck freely into the slot and passing into a pair of skates.
Lindgren got dinged in the neutral zone, skates off.
Geekie pressures the Rangers into an icing call.
Trying to make a play, Zadorov ices the puck.
Rangers win another draw off a Boston icing.
Bruins turn it around, and Marchand makes a great play to test Quick, but the veteran is on tonight as he has been all season.
8:11 remaining in regulation, as the Bruins press for the tying goal.
The Rangers, desperate for anything positive in this season gone wrong, are holding on and trying to be opportunistic when the Bruins misplay the puck. Meantime, the Bruins are not getting great shots on Quick, but they are getting some good ones.
Bruins ice it again, and they lose yet another D-zone draw. They get the puck out, but Wahlstrom turns it over to Panarin, whose goalmouth pass almost connects. Swayman save.
Bruins ice it again … rinse and repeat … but they’re not winning the faceoffs. Coyle vs. Zibanejad: Coyle wins one for Boston.
Bruins ice it again. Coyle vs. Zibanejad (again): another win for Coyle. Not-so-great line change, but Rangers also gassed and go to the bench.
Bruins ice it again. Lindholm vs. Filip Chytil … Lindholm wins it, but the puck goes out of play.
TV timeout with 5:51 remaining.
Lindholm and Marchand misconnect on a 2 on 1 with 5 minutes to go.
Wotherspoon shaken up blocking a shot.
Bruins generate pressure. Quick stops Peake’s shot from the center point. 3:42 left.
Quick kicks out good shots by McAvoy, Zadorov and Pastrnak. Rangers ice it with 2:59.
Pastnrak plays the puck to Quick to get an O-zone faceoff, and Swayman to the bench with 1:54.
Kreider has a chance but can’t get past the last stick.
Faceoff in NYR zone with 48 seconds left. Coach Joe Sacco takes his timeout.
Rangers win.
Rink Rap with Mick Colageo 