Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
The Boston Bruins started off their home-opener against the Winnipeg Jets with more energy than they had displayed at any point during the 2014-15 season. Unfortunately, a lack of experience on the back-end, as well as new faces in the lineup led to sloppy play in the second and third periods which led to the Bruins loss. With that in mind, here are a few post-game notes leading up to Saturday’s matchup with long-time rivals, the Montreal Canadiens.
Patrice Bergeron‘s line:
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The Boston Bruins found chemistry with each and every one of their forward lines to start the season. The line of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, and Loui Eriksson showed speed, generated scoring chances, and were very good at gaining possession in the neutral zone. The line should continue to gel as the season continues and when the Bruins get Zdeno Chara, and eventually Dennis Seidenberg back, the Bruins best two-way line should have an easier time producing more offense. One major issue that will certainly be addressed in practice will be Loui Eriksson‘s possession in the offensive-zone. Eriksson had trouble keeping the puck on his stick which led to the Jets capitalizing and exiting their zone on a few occasions. Eriksson was able to generate five shots on goal to pace the Bruins however, with Marchand shooting four on net, good for second on the team.
David Krejci‘s line:
The combination of Matt Beleskey, David Krejci, and David Pastrnak showed instant chemistry tonight, scoring the Bruins only two goals. Beleskey tallied his first point as a Bruin tonight, assisting on David Pastrnak‘s wrist-shot which brought the Bruins within one goal at the time. The real beauty came from the Bruins first goal, which was also the first goal of the game. David Pastrnak was able to find David Krejci right in front of the Winnipeg net, and Krejci was able to dangle the puck away from a Jets defender and drilled it past Pavelec to give the Bruins the 1-0 lead. Pastrnak wasn’t credited with an assist on the play as the puck was lightly tipped by a Jets player before Krejci grabbed it. David Pastrnak provided energy all night for the Bruins, and if game one of the season is any indication, a sophomore slump is anything but imminent.
Ryan Spooner‘s line:
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As mentioned, every line started the season strong on offense for Boston, and a lot of the energy can be credited to the Spooner line. Centering a line that included Dorchester-native Jimmy Hayes and former-Lightning forward Brett Connolly, the third line for Boston displayed speed and a willingness to play in the dirty areas of the ice. Brett Connolly was often found right in front of the Jets net, poking at any loose puck he could get his stick on. Claude Julien shouldn’t be disappointed with the lack of effort this line showed, despite losing the game.
Jonas Kemppainen’s line:
The Bruins newest foreign-import showed that he has what it takes to play in the NHL, and earned a roster spot out of training camp. Centering Chris Kelly and Zac Rinaldo, the Bruins fourth line looked much better than it has in recent seasons. As odd as it is to say this, Zac Rinaldo played a tremendous first period, exhibiting speed, and a controlled energy which even led to a drawn penalty. There is no reason why this line shouldn’t remain together for Saturday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens, and that goes for each of the other three lines as well.
Defense:
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The two best defensemen for the Bruins were Torey Krug and Kevan Miller, who were paired together in the third period to try and gain some sort of momentum for Boston. Torey Krug paced the Bruins with 24:54 of time on ice and didn’t look out of place at all throughout the game. Krug has made it clear that he has every intention of proving his value as a top-four defender and he took advantage of a Bruins team that is missing its top-two defensemen in Zdeno Chara and Dennis Seidenberg.
The big story of the night is probably Matt Irwin. Playing in his first game as a Boston Bruin, Irwin struggled in all aspects of the game. He was often found out of position and had way too many turnovers. As one of the more experienced NHL players on the Bruins back-end today, Irwin’s ice time truly tells the tale. Claude Julien lost faith in Irwin after the second period and Irwin was limited to a total of 13:37 of ice time. Irwin will need to prove that he can tighten upon positioning and on puck-possession if he wants to play on Saturday against the Montreal Canadiens. That is especially true with the chance that Zdeno Chara can return to the lineup, as well as Colin Miller waiting to debut for Boston.
Joe Morrow was able to hold his own throughout the night, and it showed with his total time on ice. Playing for 21:52, Morrow was given the second most ice-time of any Bruins player, behind only Torey Krug. Claude Julien clearly trust Morrow, who will be looking to keep a spot in the top-four heading into Saturday’s contest.
Goaltending:
Tuukka Rask was Tuukka Rask. Keeping the Bruins in the game up until the end of the second period, where the turnovers were simply mounting up too high to even count, Rask cannot and will not be blamed for allowing five goals in the Bruins home opener. Rask was able to make some outstanding saves which Bruins fans have come to appreciate over the years, and didn’t display any offseason rust to start the season. Rask will look to get the start on Saturday against the Montreal Canadiens, and he will be vital in any chance the Bruins have of winning that game. The Montreal Canadiens have widely dominated the series against the Bruins in recent years, and Boston will need to really work on helping their all-star goaltender if they plan on winning.
Follow Brandon Share-Cohen on Twitter @BShareCohen to discuss all things Bruins and sports