A slumping Charlie Coyle needs to break through for Bruins on road trip out west
"Charlie Coyle, he looks like he's not up to speed right now."
Jim Montgomery is shuffling up the Bruins’ forward corps ahead of Wednesday’s road matchup against the Colorado Avalanche.
With Boston’s 5-on-5 offense severely lacking so far this season beyond the contributions of the fourth line, the Bruins’ middle-six grouping was augmented during Wednesday’s morning skate in Denver.
Top-six winger Morgan Geekie and fellow forward Justin Brazeau will slot out of the lineup for Wednesday’s matchup, with Max Jones and Riley Tufte expected to play alongside Matthew Poitras on the third line.
As a result, Trent Frederic will likely move up to the second line in place of Geekie — who has yet to record a point through four games this season.
Geekie’s benching comes at a time where Boston’s second line has generated zero 5-on-5 points so far this season.
While Geekie stands as the first player in that critical segment of the lineup to draw the ire of Montgomery, center Charlie Coyle may not be far behind.
Much like Geekie, Coyle has yet to record a point through four games. After averaging a career-best 18:04 of ice time per game in 2023-24, the 32-year-old center only logged 14:32 in Monday’s 4-3 loss to the Panthers.
“Charlie Coyle, he looks like he’s not up to speed right now,” Montgomery noted Tuesday at Warrior Ice Arena. “But he’ll get there. He’s a veteran player that we’ve relied on in so many areas. We don’t have concerns about Charlie getting to where he needs to be.”
One of the many veteran players who exceeded expectations in an elevated role during the 2023-24 season, Coyle is once again entrenched in a pivotal spot in Boston’s lineup this winter.
Even though Elias Lindholm’s arrival pushed Coyle out of first-line-center duties, the Weymouth native is still expected to drive play on the second line alongside captain Brad Marchand. He lived up to that billing last year, scoring a career-best 25 goals and 60 points.
Beyond lighting the lamp, Coyle has regularly provided value for Boston as a puck-possession pivot. His ability to shield pucks down low with his 6-foot-3, 218-pound frame has been a familiar avenue for the Bruins when it comes to gaining sustained offensive-zone time.
But in Coyle’s own words, even that area of his game has not been up to his standard out of the gate in 2024-25.
“Got to be inside more,” Coyle said Tuesday. “Got to want the puck a little more, too. Sometimes you feel like you’re chasing the game a little bit, and if you do over a certain amount of time, sometimes you kind of switch things up when you shouldn’t.
“And it’s not like a lack of effort or lack of this. You gotta simplify it, and I gotta simplify it right now. And for me, that’s just playing with my body, using my body down low, winning puck battles, be on the puck and taking the puck to the net. I feel like I’ve been chasing a little bit in that regard.”
The Avalanche boast one of the most skilled rosters in the NHL, headlined by reigning Hart Trophy winner Nathan MacKinnon and 2021-22 Norris Trophy winner Cale Makar.
But Colorado could be a tantalizing matchup for a Bruins team in need of a scoring surge. The 0-3-0 Avalanche have been hampered by porous defense so far this season, relinquishing 6.67 goals per game.
Even with several of Boston’s top forwards slumping through four games, Coyle isn’t sounding the alarm at this early stage of a new season.
“No concerns at all. It’s a long year,” Coyle said. “You slowly build and build and build. As long as you correct these things, then you’re on the right track. … It’s always about that next practice, that next game to get better at what you need to do.
“But there’s never any concerns, never any doubt. It’s a long year, and you should keep building and building all the way to the end, come playoff time.”
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