Bruins react to getting booed off ice after ugly loss to Capitals
"It's something that I don't want to hear, because that means we're not doing our jobs.”
Jim Montgomery was candid when asked about the boos that cascaded down from the TD Garden seats on Saturday evening.
“I love our fans. That’s what I think,” Boston’s bench boss remarked. “They’re hockey-knowledgeable. They’re not wrong.”
It’s hard to push back against such sentiment.
Boston’s 3-0 loss to the Capitals on Saturday felt more akin to a double-digit loss, given the lack of pushback from a Bruins squad that also submitted a snoozer of an effort on Tuesday in a 4-1 defeat against Calgary.
The sting of submitting a regulation loss to a lackluster roster like the Capitals (23-20-7) is already sharp. But how Boston let two points slip through their grasp made for a miserable affair on Causeway Street.
Through the first two periods of play, the Bruins only landed eight shots on goal. The Capitals? Twenty-three shots on net against Jeremy Swayman.
Even with four power-play bids, including three opportunities in the final period of play, the Bruins were unable to generate much of anything against Washington netminder Charlie Lindgren.
A steady drone of boos from the Garden crowd eventually erupted into a large chorus of consternation as the final seconds ticked off the clock on Saturday.
After the game, several Bruins reacted to the reception they received as they made their way down the tunnel.
“You don’t love it. I have so much respect for this organization, for that spoked-B. We all do in this room,” Brandon Carlo noted. “And I think the culture that’s been established here in years past, especially since I’ve been here — you come to work every single day.
“And I love the fact that the fans and this organization hold us accountable when we don’t come to work to play, to be at our best. So that’s what you want from a fan base. I can’t imagine a better fan base to win in front of. So I respect it, obviously. But it’s something that I don’t want to hear, because that means we’re not doing our jobs.”
“It’s just the standard that is here. We have that standard,” Charlie Coyle added. “The fans have that standard. They expect a lot and they deserve a lot. So yeah, it’s not a proud moment for us but they deserve [for] us to be our best and that’s up to us. And we didn’t give it to them tonight, and that’s a shame.”
Bruins captain Brad Marchand offered more of a sharp commentary on the boo-birds making an appearance at the Garden, but acknowledged that Boston’s overall effort fell far below the standard that the team has set so far this season.
“They get a quick memory, short memory. But that’s their right,” Marchand said of the boos. “They pay for tickets to come watch and they can cheer if they like what they see, they can boo if they don’t. So that’s up to them. Obviously, we know we have a very passionate sports city and very passionate fans and they expect us to win every game. It’s not gonna happen but they got to see the effort and obviously they didn’t like it tonight.”
Even with Boston’s impressive 4-0 win over the West-leading Canucks on Thursday, Montgomery acknowledged that the Bruins’ overall effort and tenacity on pucks has been severely lacking since the return from the All-Star break.
“We will change, or things will change,” Montgomery said. “It just comes down to, if there’s a puck between you and I? I want to break your leg to get it. And we don’t have that right now, two of the last three games. That’s what it boils down to. … Not acceptable. We were just bad.”
The Bruins will have a chance to put Saturday’s game in the rearview mirror on Tuesday when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning at TD Garden.
“There’s no excuse for it,” Coyle said of Boston’s lapses in work ethic as of late. “I hate to even try to talk about it because it shouldn’t happen. And we have to address that and be better next game. We say use it as a learning tool, but we should know that already.
“But yeah, it’s a work ethic thing. It’s a mindset thing. We’ve got to bring that. That’s what we expect from ourselves. It’s what the fans expect. That’s just unacceptable.”
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