The Boston Bruins endured a painful 2024-25 season. After years of handling their business in the NHL as one of the elite Eastern Conference teams, age, retirements and injuries caught up with the team and the Bruins fell all the way to last place in the Atlantic Division. Two years before that, the Bruins had set the regular-season record for wins and points, but those days are ancient history.
As the current season got underway, many of the league's experts — media members and former coaches — looked at the Bruins and chuckled. They thought that first-year head coach Marco Sturm would have a season with one of the worst teams in the league. The Bruins had traded their former captain Brad Marchand to the Florida Panthers at least year's trade deadline and many thought that the only solid asset that Sturm would take into battle was high-scoring David Pastrnak.
The Bruins were able to start the season with three straight victories over the Capitals, Blackhawks and Sabres, but those wins did not convince their critics that Boston would be able to overcome the preseason predictions.
Troubling losing streak wakes up players, with the help of their coach
A six-game losing streak would follow that appeared to bury the team. Most had expected the Bruins to be a team that would regularly struggle to score, but during that losing streak the problems were primarily on the defensive end. Thy gave up six goals to the Golden Knights, four to the Avalanche, four to the Panthers and seven goals at home to the Ducks. The losing streak ended with a surprising home win over Colorado, but the Bruins went on the road in the following game and took a 7-2 hammering from the Ottawa Senators.
Sturm had seen enough and he lit into his players. He didn't like their wide-open style and he reminded them of how it felt to finish in last place last year and said “it has to stop now.”
Sturm's lessons and emphasis in practice with his team had been to the Bruins' long-time identity. Boston was never a pretty team with fancy passing and artistic goals. The Bruins have long been about excellent defense and punishing opponents with a hard-hitting game.
Somehow, the message from Sturm has gotten through to his players. After that brutal loss to the Sens, the Bruins have reeled off six consecutive victories and they will take a 10-7-0 record into Tuesday night's home game against the struggling Maple Leafs. Suddenly, the Bruins are playing tough and confident hockey, and they are showing the defensive structure needed to win tight games.
“We don’t have a lot of goal scorers,” Sturm said, per Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic. “So we have to work for it.”
Pastrnak, Geekie are key offensive contributors
The Bruins are getting scoring from Pastrnak, their superstar right wing. He has 8 goals and 11 assists in his first 17 games, but he is not alone. Morgan Geekie has demonstrated that he has one of the hardest shots in the league. He has found the back of the net 11 times and added 4 assists for 15 points.
Pavel Zacha is playing well after a mediocre start. He has 4 goals and 10 assists while winning 55.2 percent of his faceoffs.
Defenseman Charlie McAvoy appears to be rounding into top form. His 2024-25 season ended after a shoulder injury and subsequent infection knocked him out of the lineup in the 4 Nations Face-Off. McAvoy has yet to score a goal but he has contributed 12 assists and is delivering thudding hits that regularly separate opponents from the puck. McAvoy has been paired with Nikita Zadorov and the big defenseman is punishing forwards on a regular basis.
Defense and goaltending is the key to continuing winning ways
The Bruins don't have the flashy talent that many of their rivals in the Eastern Conference bring to the battle on an every-night basis. But they do have players that are bigger and stronger and willing to go into the corner and win puck battles. This has allowed them to create scoring opportunities in the high-danger areas.
One of the keys is a return to top form of goaltender Jeremy Swayman and continued sharp performances from backup Joonas Korpisalo. Swayman has a 6-4-0 record with a 3.09 goals against average and an .898 save percentage. Korpisalo is 4-3-0 with a 3.24 GAA and an .885 save percentage.
Swayman struggled badly last season and he was not supported by his defense during the team's losing streak. However, he has picked up his form during the team's six-game winning streak with timely saves at crucial moments.
This team has shown it knows how to compete and it is surprising the competition. The fan base is suddenly excited by the surge and the winning ways should be able to continue.
