Boston Bruins: 3 takeaways from 4-3 overtime loss to the Capitals

Jan 30, 2021; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Boston Bruins defenseman Jeremy Lauzon (55), Bruins left wing Nick Ritchie (21), Washington Capitals right wing Richard Panik (14), and Capitals defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk (57) battle for the puck in the third period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 30, 2021; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Boston Bruins defenseman Jeremy Lauzon (55), Bruins left wing Nick Ritchie (21), Washington Capitals right wing Richard Panik (14), and Capitals defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk (57) battle for the puck in the third period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
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Aug 12, 2020; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Boston Bruins right wing David Pastrnak (88) chases the puck against the Carolina Hurricanes in the first period in game one of the first round of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 12, 2020; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Boston Bruins right wing David Pastrnak (88) chases the puck against the Carolina Hurricanes in the first period in game one of the first round of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

1. David Pastrnak is back for the Boston Bruins, but has a bit of rust to shake off.

The biggest storyline of last night had to be the return of star right wing David Pastrnak.

Pasta missed the first two weeks of the season because he was still recovering from offseason surgeries. Last night he returned, and two weeks ahead of schedule.

While Pastrnak looked good — he was skating well and shot the puck quite a lot (five shots on goal) — you could tell he’ll need a few games to shake off some rust he built up over his time off,

As I just said, Pastrnak was skating well and he was creating chances by being in the right place at the right time and through all the shots he took. However, he wasn’t able to finish any of these chances.

At one point Pasta received a cross-crease pass but missed the net on a one-timer. This is a pass Pastrnak usually buries, but this time he was just off.

I think right now Pastrnak’s brain is up to speed, but his body isn’t. He knows what he wants to do and where he wants to shoot the puck, but his body just isn’t there yet. I would give Pasta another game or two for his body to get back up to speed and for him to start burying some pucks in the net.