Through the season's first five games, the Bruins are doing just fine. They're not lighting the world on fire as they have a 3-2 record, but Jeremy Swayman has been solid and they've been able to win a few different ways, whether that's outscoring an archrival or fending off a comeback attempt.
While players like Brad Marchand, Charlie Coyle, and Morgan Geekie have been notably struggling for points to open the year, the Bruins are getting a big boost from the bottom six, particularly the fourth line.
The trio of Johnny Beecher, Mark Kastelic, and Cole Koepke have been one of the best lines in hockey this season. Although it's only been five games, the line featuring two offseason acquisitions have been bailing the Bruins out more often than not.
The Bruins' 4th line has been one of hockey's best, and it's been hugely important for the team so far
Over the 40 minutes, the Beecher-Kastelic-Koepke line has been on the ice together, and they've outscored opponents 9-0 at five-on-five play. All three players have two goals and three assists, with the line combining for six goals and nine assists through the first five games. For Koepke, he's already set a career-high in points. Beecher is halfway to his career high of 10. Kastelic is practically halfway to his career best of 11.
The fourth line has had only 34 percent of their faceoffs in the offensive zone so far, as Jim Montgomery has given them tough defensive zone matchups. Despite that, Kastelic, who's been the center on the line, has been solid at the dot this year, as he won six of his eight faceoffs in their most recent win against the Colorado Avalanche.
Koepke has also opened eyes to begin the season. He had just three points over 26 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning before joining the Bruins, and he's already got a pair of goals and three assists, including a sweet redirect of an Andrew Peeke shot to get the Bruins on the board against the Avalanche.
Cole Koepke's redirect beats Georgiev to open up the scoring for Boston!#NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/OV3A97IDCZ
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) October 17, 2024
This fourth line likely won't continue to be the best in hockey, or the best among the Bruins. The top six will eventually pick things up and be the force everyone expects them to be. But, the work the fourth line has done needs to be acknowledged, especially as two of the three linemates are new additions from the offseason.