After the Boston Bruins began the season with three straight wins under first-year coach Marco Sturm, it opened some eyes across the NHL. Then, they hit rock bottom as teams sometimes do under a new coach and lost six games in a row.
As is the case in the NHL and all sports, you can expect the unexpected at any time. Boston broke that losing streak against the best team in the league, the Colorado Avalanche, with a 3-2 win at the TD Garden in late October. Then, in late October through mid-November, the Black and Gold ripped off a seven-game winning streak. Who saw that coming after their October struggles?
After beating the Utah Mammoth, 4-1, at the TD Garden on Tuesday night, Boston has won eight of their last 12 games. After the game, Casey Mittlestadt had a quote that should open some eyes across the league and be music to the Bruins' fans' ears.
Bruins Casey Mittlestadt has an eye-opening quote after a win over the Mammoth
Leading 2-1 in the third period and trying to hang on to split the season series with Utah, Mittlestadt gave the Black and Gold some breathing room when he knocked home a puck that hit the boards behind the Mammoth net and came directly to Boston's forward, who buried the puck into an open net for a 3-1 lead. After the game, Mittlestadt said that the Bruins have found their identity under their new coach.
“I think as a team, I think we’ve really found an identity,” Mittelstadt said. “Marco’s come in firm and strong on that. I think the way he wants to play fits the personnel we have as well.”
When they are healthy and playing Sturm's system, the Bruins have been a team that is tough to beat. David Pastrnak echoed that after the Utah win.
“We try to wear them down. The system we’re playing, when everybody is on the same page, it’s not easy to play against,” Pastrnak said. “We just try to be patient, wait for our opportunities, and sometimes it works out in the third. That’s a perfect example today.”
That should be used as a warning for the rest of the NHL that the Bruins are going to make you work for everything, but also have them waiting to strike on their chances. That's what they did against the Mammoth. It will be put to the test on Thursday night when Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers make their only trip to Boston.