The Providence Bruins are off to a blistering start to the 2025-26 season with a loaded roster of prospects in the American Hockey League (AHL). They got a big test on Wednesday night in a matchup of undefeated teams when they traveled to play the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and came away with a 3-1 win.
Brett Harrison, Georgii Merkulov, and Riley Tufte scored three second-period goals for the P-Bruins, while Michael DiPietro turned back 25 of the 26 shots he faced. Providence is off until Saturday night when they host the Hershey Bears.
David Pastrnak praises Morgan Geekie
One Bruins player who has been on a hot streak scoring goals is Morgan Geekie. He has scored in five straight games, including a power play goal in Tuesday night's 5-2 win over the New York Islanders at the TD Garden. After the game, David Pastrnak had praise for his teammate during his hot streak.
“I keep telling him, keep reminding him, he has a heck of a shot and he has the goal-scorer instinct,” Pastrnak said. “The shot that he has is amazing, it’s the best on our team. We just need to get him the opportunities and keep reminding him to shoot more.”
His last three goals have been highlight reel goals. Against the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday afternoon at home, he collected a loose puck behind the net and faked out Scott Wedgewood to jam the puck home with four seconds left in the second period. It turned out to be the game-winning goal.
Against the Ottawa Senators on Monday night, he collected a failed Sens clearing attempt and ripped a wrist shot past Levi Meriläinen for an early 1-0 lead in a 7-2 loss. Against the Islanders, he one-timed a Charlie McAvoy pass on the power play past Ilya Sorokin in the third period to extend the Black and Gold's lead to 4-2.
There have been a few Bruins who have played consistently this year, but Geekie has been one of the most consistent at producing much-needed offensive production.
New-look Sabres next up
The Bruins will continue their three-game homestand on Thursday night when the Buffalo Sabres visit. This is not the same Buffalo team that the Bruins will face that they saw a couple of weeks ago when they won 3-1.
The Sabres have rebounded from a bad start and come to Boston 4-4-2 on the season, playing some good hockey. Tage Thompson leads them in goals with four, and this is an early test, believe it or not, for Marco Sturm's crew. The Carolina Hurricanes visit on Saturday afternoon to close out the homestand.
Utah makes commitment to star defenseman
One of the biggest surprises this season has been the Utah Mammoth. Despite a 6-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night, the Mammoth are currently tied with the Colorado Avalanche at the top of the Central Division. The Bruins saw firsthand how good Utah is earlier this month in a 3-2 loss on a third-period goal off one of many Bruins turnovers in the defensive zone this season.
On Wednesday, the Mammoth signed young center Logan Cooley to an eight-year extension for $80 million. The 21-year-old and third overall pick in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft is a star in the making for Utah. This was a no-brainer deal.