The Boston Bruins have struggled since the ‘Return To Play’ and now face a real prospect of starting the Stanley Cup Playoffs on a four-game losing streak.
Of course, this depends which version of the Boston Bruins decides to play against the Washington Capitals today, but every indication in recent games is that it’ll be another lacklustre affair, leading us to a very challenging first round opponent.
Torey Krug in an interview with NBC Sports Boston confirmed exactly what the eye-test points to. The round-robin play-in format isn’t one the team have been able to ramp up their intensity for.
While it was envisaged as a way for all teams to get competitive and intense action in the lead-up to the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs proper, the regular season first-place team hasn’t been able to make good on what should’ve been a top seeding.
Even more disappointing is the fact that the top seed would’ve lined us up against ‘Original Six’ rivals, the Montreal Canadiens, who upset the Penguins to advance to the first round as the regular-season’s 24th placed team.
Perhaps, it really is just a mental block leading to this lack of intensity and come the start of the playoffs proper, the Boston Bruins can flick the switch; only time will tell.
It’s vital that all of the team steps it up either way, not least the star players. For a player with 48 regular-season goals, David Pastrnak hasn’t been that big of a threat so far. Though, with that said, he’s still been one of the better players since the restart.
In fact, their have been struggles throughout the Bruins line-up, but three key players stand-out in particular, especially as they’re usually some of the more reliable guys on the team.