Why have the Bruins been so successful on the power play?

Loui Eriksson has five power play goals this season. AP

By Jon Mael

December 4, 2015

4 minutes to read

COMMENTARY

The Bruins have been sensational on the power play this season. In fact, through nearly the first third of the season, the Bruins are hovering dangerously close to the NHL’s single season power play percentage record, which currently belongs to the 1977-78 Canadiens at 31.88 percent. It’s pretty crazy, especially for fans who remember a team that looked incompetent on the power play just a few years ago.

Through 23 games, the Bruins have scored 22 power play goals in 70 chances, good enough for a sublime 31.4 percent success rate. There are a number of factors contributing to this run — and luck is one of them — but it’s undeniable that Boston’s special unit has been, for lack of a better term, special so far this season. When the numbers are examined, the Bruins’ power play efficiency becomes even more apparent.

Consider this: it’s not as if the Bruins have scored their 22 power play goals because they’re skilled at drawing penalties and earning opportunities. Boston is tied with the Calgary Flames for 29th in the NHL in total power play opportunities with 70, 26 behind the league-leading Vancouver Canucks. If the Bruins had 96 power plays this year, assuming they’d maintain their 31.4 percent success rate, they’d have a ridiculous 30 power play goals on Dec. 4. The Bruins have played in four fewer games than the Canucks and Canadiens (second in the league with 95 power plays), but they’re still drawing half a penalty fewer per game than those two clubs (an average of three opportunities per game).

Patrice Bergeron has enjoyed a dominant year on the power play so far. He is second in the league with 13 power play points (five goals, eight assists), trailing only the Blackhawks’ Patrick Kane (14). Loui Eriksson has five goals as well, and David Krejci is 13th in the league with nine points (two goals, seven assists). In fact, the Bruins have an impressive six players who have multiple power play goals on the season (Brad Marchand, Brett Connolly, Ryan Spooner join Bergeron, Krejci, and Ericsson.)

Lost in the attention being paid to Boston’s power play, the Bruins offense as a whole has been good. They are sitting at seventh in the NHL in goals scored (74) as of Dec. 4, despite playing the fewest games of any team in the league. Their average of 3.22 goals for per game is third in the NHL. The power play has been the engine that has driven the offense, with 29.7 percent of the team’s total goals coming on the man advantage. To put that in perspective, Montreal is tied with the Bruins for the league lead in power play goals, but they only accounts for 24 percent of their total goals. After a win against the Wild on Nov. 19, Bruins coach Claude Julien described his squad’s power play as “an important weapon,’’ and it’s easy to see why he’d think that way.

So what has been the key for this impressive showing? One factor is the presence of defensemen who are willing to play a more open style of hockey and move the puck themselves into the attacking zone. Colin Miller has played very well on the power play and is third among NHL rookies in power play points with three. Torey Krug, who is leading the Bruins with 21:58 time on ice per game, has always performed strongly on the power play, but has taken on a more prominent role on the team this season and as a result, is getting more chances to play a man up.

But if there’s one major reason to point to for this success, it’s the play of Eriksson. A talented right wing, Eriksson struggled in his first season in Boston — where he faced sky high expectations because he was traded for Tyler Seguin — but he has settled in nicely and is contributing consistently on the power play, where he has scored more than half of his nine goals. Eriksson is built for the power play, as he plays some of his best hockey in front of the net, and capitalizes on the extra space that comes with being a man up. Eriksson is adept at turning rebounds back on net and timing his shots well to catch opposing goalies out of position, and that is something he wasn’t doing consistently last year.

While it’s unlikely the Bruins can keep up this pace and set a league record, it’s encouraging to see them finding success on the power play like this, considering it was a major, glaring weakness just a few years ago. One of the hottest teams in the NHL, the Bruins will need to continue feeding off the power play if they want to be a contender by year’s end — but it’s easy to be hopeful considering their start.