After splitting a two-game road trip with a win over the Chicago Blackhawks and a loss to the Dallas Stars, the Boston Bruins return to the TD Garden to host the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday night. Not only will they be welcoming former coach Bruce Cassidy, but also former Calgary Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson. That's right, the same Rasmus Andersson who the Black and Gold were close to acquiring last weekend.
In the end, the reports surfaced that a deal fell through with the Bruins when Andersson wouldn't sign an extension. At that point, Boston GM Don Sweeney backed out and wouldn't pay the price for Andersson as a rental. That was the right move. Now, the Bruins will be looking to get back into the win column at home in what is going to be a difficult game.
Bruins lose defenseman on waivers
Who says you can't go home? Seriously, who? That was the case for defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok. He was claimed off waivers by the Bruins last month from Dallas when injuries were piling up on the backend for Marco Sturm. On Tuesday, he was placed on waivers by Boston, and he was claimed by the Stars, of all teams.
During his month in Boston, Kolyachonok played in two games for the Black and Gold against the Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres around the Holiday Break. With Boston getting healthier on defense, it wasn't surprising to see him placed on waivers. It's the second player Sweeney has lost on waivers this year, with John Beecher claimed by Calgary in November.
Bruins learning experience
Boston was looking for a seventh straight when they visited Dallas on Tuesday night. A seventh straight win wasn't in the cards, and you could tell from the opening faceoff. The Stars scored the game's first six goals before Morgan Geekie and Fraser Minten avoided the shutout with third-period goals. After the game, it was an opportunity to learn from.
“We have to learn from it,” Sturm said. “How I see it is those guys (on the Stars), it’s a playoff team. Without even some of the names that are not in the lineup, they’re willing to play that style of game, just grind it out and stick with it. And we didn’t do it, right?
“We were still playing cute right to the end, and you cannot play that way. So, that’s something that we just have to learn from it.”