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What’s at the top of the Bruins’ to-do list before the playoffs? Sorting out a stagnant power play.
The Bruins have scored just six power-play goals in their last 57 opportunities.
It took until March 12 for the Bruins to reach 10 regulation losses.
Boston’s ticket to the postseason has already been punched. Barring a late-season collapse, the Atlantic Division crown should be theirs for the taking.
With a little over four weeks left in the regular season, the Bruins no longer need to burden themselves with glances at the standings or other external actions.
Rather, Jim Montgomery has close to a month to look inward at his roster and sort out the few flaws that could stunt this record-setting run.
And when it comes to late-season priorities, solving a slumping power-play has to sit at the top of Montgomery’s last-minute objectives.
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A potent power play is not a requirement for a proven Cup contender. The 2011 Bruins captured a title with the 20th-ranked (16.2 percent) man advantage during the regular season. During the playoffs, they cashed in on just 10 of their 88 bids en route to hockey immortality.
Of course, the 2022-23 Bruins are a different breed. Most of the B’s power-play cast that has wreaked havoc on PK units for years remains in place in David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand, and Patrice Bergeron.
And when Grade-A ice dries up and defensive structures tighten during playoff hockey, a lethal power play can often be the difference in a seven-game series decided by one or two tallies.
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But over the last month, Boston’s tried-and-true offensive unit has fallen into a rut.
This weekend against Detroit might have served as a breaking point for Montgomery and his staff. Already mired in a 6-for-57 slump over their last 18 games, Boston’s lack of execution and careless puck play led to two shorthanded goals for the Red Wings in back-to-back games.
“We just got to be honest with ourselves and we’re not putting forth the effort that we expect from ourselves,” Montgomery said postgame following Boston’s 5-3 loss to Detroit on Sunday. “And this isn’t the first game here, the Calgary game was a little similar and we were tired that day, but there’s no excuse to be tired because Detroit had the same schedule as us.”
A gaffe by Pastrnak at the offensive blue line led to Moritz Seider’s shorthanded strike on Sunday. It was a frustrating lapse by Pastrnak, but given his offensive capabilities, his spot on Boston’s top unit is guaranteed.
Beyond any tweaks to the netfront role and the blueliner stationed up high (with Dmitry Orlov the latest candidate), Boston’s personnel likely isn’t changing on the power play.
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As evidenced by Pastrnak’s miscue, the prevailing issue dragging down the B’s top unit is a lack of urgency with puck movement.
“It was a poor decision,” Montgomery said of Pastrnak’s play, per Kevin Paul Dupont of The Boston Globe. “You know, we want that puck to go to the goal line when we don’t have a play and don’t have time on the entry.”
The Bruins have effective avenues for offense on the man advantage, be it Pastrnak’s one-time bomb at the left circle or Bergeron’s quick snapper from the “bumper” spot. But those Grade-A chances are usually the end result of crisp passing that spreads a PK unit thin down low.
But when Boston is sedentary with the puck on its stick, that extra second or two can give teams all the time they need to pressure high, collapse inside around their goalie, and other proactive defensive measures.
“I think it’s puck movement, we just have to make quicker decisions, but I didn’t like our decisions with puck movement on breakouts and neutral zone counters and O-zone play,” Montgomery said after a home loss to the Capitals back on Feb. 11. “Usually when I’m behind the bench, usually when I’m thinking, ‘Move it now,’ it’s already moving and when I said, ‘Move it now [today],’ I could have said it two more times.”
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With 17 games left on the regular-season docket, Montgomery and his staff don’t have the time to completely rework this power play and start from scratch. But stressing the need for prompt puck movement needs to hit home soon for Boston’s top offensive conduits.
The Bruins still have other tweaks and lineup wrinkles to address over the next few weeks. All things considered, those looming decisions stand as good problems to have for Montgomery.
Boston is still sorting through its ongoing defensive rotation, but all three “bubble” players in Derek Forbort, Connor Clifton, and Matt Grzelcyk have showcased their value in various games. Montgomery will have to reserve a proper time and place to rest veterans during back-to-back matchups over the next few weeks.
Those pending calls will sort themselves out in due time.
But if Boston’s power play doesn’t start humming along at its usual output, the Bruins will only make things harder on themselves come the postseason.
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