Boston Bruins: How did Boston’s defense handle Colorado’s top forwards?
The Boston Bruins defensemen had an up-and-down game against one of the league’s best forward groups.
The Colorado Avalanche dealt the Boston Bruins their first loss of the season. Boston fell 4-2 in the final leg of a four-game road trip.
The Bruins jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first. The Avalanche responded with a power play goal late in the period. Colorado added one in the second and two more in the third to come away with the victory.
The 4-2 scoreline doesn’t really indicate how the Bruins defensemen fared against Colorado’s forwards. For the most part, the Bruins handled the high-powered offense.
Chara and McAvoy matched up against Colorado’s top line
The big question before the game was how the Bruins would defend Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog, and Mikko Rantanen.
Bruce Cassidy matched Zdeno Chara and Charlie McAvoy with Colorado’s top line virtually all night long. Chara and McAvoy each saw over 21 minutes of action.
Chara had one of his strongest games of the season. He certainly doesn’t have the speed to deal with someone like MacKinnon, but Chara used his reach effectively.
MacKinnon barreled down the right wing early in the second period, but Chara used his reach to keep him outside. As a result, MacKinnon could only put a weak shot on goal.
Later in the second period, Chara used his stick to deflect a pass and start a rush. Joakim Nordstrom got a quality chance on the other end.
Chara also got on the scoreboard in the first period with a shot from the point. The puck deflected off an Avalanche stick and flew past the goalie’s left shoulder.
McAvoy had an effective game against Colorado’s first line. He played aggressively in the neutral zone to stop attacks before they could even start.
Although Chara and McAvoy played well, MacKinnon and Landeskog each finished with a goal. MacKinnon scored on the power play, and Landeskog had an empty-netter. That said, neither Chara nor McAvoy can take responsibility for these goals.
Bruins challenge Colorado’s forwards at the blue line
One thing that really stood out was how Boston’s defensemen challenged Colorado’s forwards at the defensive blue line.
The goal here was to disrupt zone entries and prevent quick strikes from players like MacKinnon and Rantanen. MacKinnon especially is great at flying into the offensive zone to fire shots on net.
These blue-line challenges definitely made a difference. McAvoy challenged MacKinnon a couple times to eliminate clean zone entries. MacKinnon tried to get by on his backhand, but McAvoy closed his space.
Torey Krug followed suit with aggressively play at his defensive blue line. At one point, Krug stepped up, took possession, and then started a counterattack.
When the Bruins didn’t challenge Colorado at the blue line, there were problems. Brandon Carlo got caught flatfooted late in the first period on a penalty kill. If Carlo stepped up and challenged Landeskog at the blue line, he could have prevented a goal.
Connor Clifton made a similar mistake in the third period that led to the tie-breaking goal. Clifton gave up an easy zone entry and then lost an edge as he tried to recover. Andre Burakovsky found an opening and scored.
The outcome against Colorado shows that the Bruins defensemen are at their best when the challenge opponents and dictate play.
Not the best night for Brandon Carlo
Brandon Carlo was one of Boston’s most reliable defensemen over the first three games. He, however, struggled in Denver.
Carlo finished the game with only 15:34 in time on ice. This was lowest among all Bruins defensemen. He did have 1:23 of penalty kill time, but this didn’t go exactly as planned.
In the first period, Landeskog entered the offensive zone on the power play. Carlo was indecisive at the blue line and fell for Landeskog’s head fake.
Landeskog cut inside and fired a shot on Jaro Halak. MacKinnon cleaned it up for a goal to get the Avs back in the game.
Carlo needed to make a better play against Landeskog. He let a player of Landeskog’s caliber skate unopposed into the slot. This put Chara in a bad spot, and the result was a goal.
Carlo was better on Boston’s second penalty kill of the night. He was out there with Matt Grzelcyk and made some strong defensive plays. As such, Colorado did not capitalize on the second power play.
It’s clear that Carlo is best when he’s physical and aggressive. He’s a great skater, but he needs to consistently take advantage of his reach and big frame.
Expect Carlo to bounce back this weekend against the Devils.