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3 possible lineup tweaks for Bruins entering Game 4 vs. Sabres
"We’re not a fancy team, we’re really not. And that’s what we have to remind ourselves.”
The Boston Bruins are going to need to right the ship in short order if they want to return to Buffalo with their best-of-seven series knotted up at two games apiece.
After seemingly shifting momentum in their favor with a Game 2 victory at KeyBank Center, the Bruins’ offense flatlined on Thursday — with Buffalo regaining control of the series by way of a 3-1 victory.
Marco Sturm harped on the need for Boston’s top forwards to pull on the rope moving forward — especially on a power play that went 0-for-4 on Thursday with eight shots on goal over eight minutes of 5-on-4 action.
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But as Boston tries to even this series up at 2-2 on Sunday, here’s a look at some possible lineup reshuffles that Sturm could turn to for Game 4.
Breaking up the top line
If the Bruins are going to counter Buffalo in this series, they can’t just rely on only the fourth line to both dole out punishment and generate offense.
Boston is going to need more from its big guns, especially a top line anchored by David Pastrnak.
Even though Pastrnak has five points (one goal, four assists) through three games against Buffalo, he’s only generated two high-danger scoring chances across 40:13 of 5-on-5 ice time so far in this series.
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Beyond harping on a higher shot volume from their top forward, Sturm might want to reshuffle his top line — a trio that has struggled to gain sustained offensive-zone traction this season.
Despite carving up the competition last spring in the final weeks of a miserable 2024-25 campaign, a line of Pastrnak, Morgan Geekie, and Elias Lindholm hasn’t moved the needle as much this season.
During regular-season play, the Bruins were actually outscored, 19-16, in that trio’s 347 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time.
So far against Buffalo, the Bruins have actually outscored the Sabres, 2-1, in the Lindholm line’s 29:40 of 5-on-5 reps. But Buffalo has largely controlled play over that stretch, holding the advantage in both shot attempts (32-19) and scoring chances (19-8).
If Sturm wants to get Pastrnak going, a lineup reshuffle might be in the works.
Sticking Pastrnak back with a pair of youngsters in Fraser Miten and Marat Khusnutdinov could work — considering that Boston held a 15-6 edge in goals scored when that forward line was out on the ice for 188 minutes of 5-on-5 reps.
Of course, that revamped line runs the risk of putting Geekie in no-man’s land further down on the depth chart — when his blistering shot will be needed if Boston wants to punch against the Buffalo.
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One potential tweak for Sturm might be to simply swap out centers in the top line, replacing Lindholm with 21-year-old Fraser Minten to see if that gets both Pastrnak and Geekie rolling with a younger pivot that operates with more pace.
A Geekie-Minten-Pastrnak line only recorded 48 minutes of 5-on-5 reps together in the regular season. But over that stretch, Boston outshot opponents, 23-13, and outscored them, 4-1.
That reworked top line could give both Geekie and Pastrnak a spark midway through this series, while also potentially coaxing more offense out of a youngster in Minten.
Add another puck-mover on the blue line
Buffalo’s speed and skill were expected to be a matchup issue for Boston throughout this series.
That was reinforced in Game 3, where Buffalo largely dictated play by sticking to their strengths and giving Boston little room to operate — rather than get dragged into scraps by a pugnacious Bruins roster.
Boston’s second D pairing of Hampus Lindholm and Mason Lohrei, in particular, had a night to forget.
On paper, a pair of mobile blueliners like Lindholm and Lohrei would be adept at moving the puck in short order to limit taxing D-zone reps and duck self-inflicted miscues.
But the duo was often tentative with the puck and slow to react on Thursday, resulting in turnovers and failed clears that eventually manifested in Alex Tuch’s go-ahead tally at 4:03 in the third period.
Considering that Boston needs to prioritize crisp first passes and faster reads to avoid those extended D-zone shifts, it wouldn’t come as much of a surprise if Sturm turns to another D-man like Henri Jokiharju or Jordan Harris for a different look next to Lindholm.
Add more sandpaper to the bottom-six unit
As evidenced by the play of Boston’s fourth line on Thursday, Sturm harped on the need for his skaters to play more direct entering Sunday’s matinee matchup.
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“We definitely played simpler, I would say, in Games 1 and 2. Yesterday, it took us a while,” Sturm said Friday. “It took us a while to get going. It shouldn’t change, because when you’re at home, you should feed off the crowd and the energy.
“We just have to simplify a lot of things; just keep it very simple. Because that’s more us, anyway. We’re not a fancy team, we’re really not. And that’s what we have to remind ourselves.”
If Boston is looking for a bit more straight-line play — and especially if a player like Minten is pushed up the lineup — it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Bruins potentially slot in a forechecking asset like Mikey Eyssimont or Alex Steeves for a game to muck things up around Alex Lyon.
That could potentially mean a night off for a player like James Hagens, who struggled to find his footing in Game 3.
The potential is evident with the 19-year-old forward. But beyond the bad luck of having Bowen Byram’s shot deflect off his stick and past Jeremy Swayman for a goal on Thursday, Hagens was a bit more tentative in Game 3, while also flubbing on a few O-zone looks. He logged 9:53 of ice time in the loss.
There’s some risk of putting a blue-chip talent up on the ninth floor, especially on a Bruins team that could conceivably use some skill in search of an offensive spark. But if Boston is trying to manufacture some greasy goals, Eyssimont or Steeves might be called upon to simplify things further down the depth chart.
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“So far, he’s been, it’s been really good,” Sturm said of Hagens. “He gives us everything he has. And you’re right — he made more mistakes probably [in the] last game than he’s done in the past. So we’ll see. We’re going to analyze this and then go from there.”
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