After beginning the season 3-0-0, many fans were wondering if it was fool's gold for the Boston Bruins. Two of the three wins were over teams, the Buffalo Sabres and Chicago Blackhawks, in a similar position they are, stuck between a retool and a rebuild.
Ok, so Buffalo is more of a rebuild, and Chicago has been doing the same thing for what seems like years, but you get the point. It just may be fool's gold as the Bruins have dropped three straight against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Vegas Golden Knights, and the Colorado Avalanche. The last two were two performances against Cup contenders you should have expected.
Outclassed is the best way to put it, and when that happens, you need your top players to respond and carry the team. That wasn't the case on Saturday night in the Mile High City. After the game, Sturm was rather blunt about his team's performance.
"My grinders were the best players again,'' said Sturm to Andy Brickley on the NESN broadcast. "And if your grinders are the best players and not my best players, [we're) going to be in trouble."
If we're being honest, Sturm has a roster mostly full of grinders, but you get his message. The lone Bruins goal in the 4-1 loss to Colorado came early in the game from John Beecher, who was making his season debut. That was the first shot from the Black and Gold, and they only mustered 13 more over the final 56 minutes against the Avalanche. That's not going to get things done for this version of the Boston Bruins.
Johnny on the spot! 🚨 pic.twitter.com/DsKKrjIKyU
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) October 19, 2025
Bruins need more from their top players against Mammoth
It is a quick turnaround for the Bruins as they visit the Utah Mammoth on Sunday night to close out a short three-game road trip. After that, they return home to face the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers on Tuesday night. Unless Sturm gets more from his top players, the results are not going to change.