Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand made his season debut in Thursday night’s win against the Detroit Red Wings. Marchand’s return came a month ahead of schedule but if you watched him play, you wouldn’t know. Many speculated on his return when the Bruins’ practice lineups were posted online Wednesday afternoon.
Marchand skated with the top line and people immediately started wondering if an early return was on the horizon. Coach Jim Montgomery quickly set those rumors to rest on Wednesday but was quick to announce that Marchand would indeed be in the lineup for the game against Detroit.
Charlie Coyle got the scoring started for the Bruins putting them up 13 minutes into the first period. Marchand put one under the goalie’s arm on a powerplay to make the score 2-0 in the second. Detroit scored to cut the lead to one and the game went into the third period 2-1. The Third period was a light show. Brad Marchand scored another power-play goal then Craig Smith scored 40 seconds later. Then a minute later David Pastrnak scored another power-play goal making that the third one in just this game. The game ended with a final score of 5-1.
The Bruins extended their winning streak to 4 games, their longest of the season, and improve to a league-leading 7-1-0. Boston will be without star center David Krejci for at least their next matchup with an upper-body injury he sustained in the 2nd period. Krejci will be evaluated while the team is in Columbus.
Jeremy Swayman got the start and was great. He stopped 28 shots and made a lot of key saves to start the game. Swayman was glad to put his last performance behind him and show that he can be in net more often. If Swayman plays as well as he did last year the Bruins could have a Jennings-winning duo.
Brad Marchand was amazing in his season debut. He recorded 3 points in his return. Marchand was off to the races from the jump. Pushing the pace and moving really well. Marchand said that he hasn’t felt as good as he does in about 6 years. Marchand will stay behind while the team travels to Columbus for the second game in a back-to-back just as a precaution. The Bruins have 4 days without a game after Friday night’s matchup so Marchand should be well-rested for the start of November.
The powerplay hasn’t been Boston’s strong suit. But over the last 2 games, they have 4 goals with a 3 goal performance coming from the Boston special teams. This could be the spark the powerplay needed it was the one thing that has been truly holding the team back.
The Bruins continue to extend their lead in the standings while waiting for players to get healthy. David Pastrnak continues to roll adding another goal to his team-leading total of 6 which is good for the 4th most in the league. Pasta also leads the league in points and assists. Making a strong case for the Hart trophy to start the year that will definitely be something to watch as the season progresses. Boston will travel to Columbus where they hope to extend their winning streak against the Blue Jackets.