After dropping two games on a disappointing road trip to the Carolina Hurricanes and St. Louis Blues, the Boston Bruins were looking to rebound at home with games against two Western Conference opponents, the Chicago Blackhawks and Vegas Golden Knights.
Nothing is going to be easy for the Bruins this season or really for any NHL team. Like every other team in the Eastern Conference, a losing streak of any length can be devastating for any team in terms of the playoff race, which will change on a daily basis. Boston ended up picking up an overtime win over the Blackhawks, 5-4, and a shootout win over the Golden Knights, 3-2, to collect four big points.
Now, after a couple of days off, the Bruins hit the road for a rare road game in November against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Here are three winners and two losers from the two wins for the Black and Gold.
Winner: Morgan Geekie
One player who was struggling and needed to find the back of the net sooner rather than later was Morgan Geekie. He had one goal going into Saturday's game against Chicago, but he was robbed a couple of times by the Hurricanes and the Blues. He scored his second goal of the season in the final seconds against Chicago to force overtime. He then struck on the power play against Vegas for his second goal in as many games. Hopefully this gets him going more consistently.
Loser: Charlie McAvoy
It was a rough two games for defenseman Charlie McAvoy in terms of discipline and spending a lot of time in the penalty box. Against the Blackhawks, he was whistled for a penalty in the second period for interference and got the raw end of the deal, when maybe there should have been matching minors. Against the Golden Knights, he was called for all three penalties, and the middle one led to a Mark Stone goal. After that goal, he said some words to a referee and was slapped with a second minor penalty. McAvoy needs to be better than that and stay out of the penalty box.
Winner: Elias Lindholm
One forward quietly having a good season is center Elias Lindholm. Healthy after dealing with back issues the last couple of seasons, Lindholm has been much better this season and has picked up points in both games. He scored the game-winning goal in overtime against the Blackhawks, then he had an assist on James Hagens first-period goal against the Golden Knights. He is turning into the perfect third-line center for Sturm.
Loser: Nikita Zadarov
It feels like with each passing week, it's another step back for Zadorov this season. He doesn't look like the player he did in his first two seasons, and he certainly hasn't responded well to the benching from earlier this season against the Los Angeles Kings. Against Vegas, Mark Stone completely outworked him at the top of the crease for a power-play goal. There just isn't something that seems right here.
Winner: James Hagens
What a steal Hagens is turning into from the 2025 Entry Draft when he fell all the way to the Bruins at No. 7. He continues to get to the front of the net, scoring goals, and opening the scoring against the Golden Knights by getting to the front of the net. One bizarre thing continues to be how Sturm handles him late in games, but there is no doubt he's making a bigger impact than some thought he would.
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