Bruins’ Power Play Struggles in 3-2 Loss Against Detroit
Oct 14, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; Detroit Red Wings goalie Jonas Gustavsson (50) tries to cover the puck in front of defenseman Jonathan Ericsson (52) , defenseman Niklas Kronwall (55) , Boston Bruins center David Krejci (46) and right wing Jarome Iginla (12) during the second period at TD Banknorth Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
Coming into the game the Bruins might have thought they had a good chance of winning the game, as Red Wings’ goalie Jimmy Howard was forced out of the starting lineup with an injured left hand. That was not the case as Red Wings backup goalie Jonas Gustavsson stepped up and played well in the Red Wings’ 3-2 victory against the Boston Bruins.
The Bruins’ power play looked promising in the beginning of the season as they scored two power play goals in the second game. Since then the power play has been awful. They have not scored a goal on the power play since the second game.
Today versus Detroit the Bruins had five opportunities on the power play, including a two-man advantage for 1:54. “We’re getting chances, but we’re not burying them and at the end of the day if you want your power play to be successful we’ve got to score goals,” coach Claude Julien said.
With the additions of Jarome Iginla and Loui Eriksson and with defenseman Torey Krug now playing full time, the Bruins power play was thought to be much better this season, but they have not been much better than the last few seasons. Krug and Zdeno Chara are the only two players to score on the man advantage this season.
“We didn’t score goals and that’s what we’re judged on,” Krug said. “They can say we had great puck movement, but that doesn’t matter because our job is to score goals and get momentum for our team. They did a good job of blocking shots. I had a few blocked myself and I’ve got to do a better job of getting pucks to the net. We’ve got to score goals.”
At 4:56 of the third period they Bruins gained a two man advantage for 1:54. If the Bruins scored during this opportunity, it could have changed the whole direction of the game and we might be talking about how great the Bruins power play is.
The Bruins need to keep working on their power play and they need to improve in order to be successful for the rest of the season.
Milan Lucic and Loui Eriksson both scored for the Bruins at even strength in the game. Henrik Zetterberg, Stephen Weiss, and Daniel Cleary all scored for the Red Wings and Jonas Gustavsson had 28 saves in their victory.