The Bruins comfortably sit in the conference’s second wild card spot, nine points ahead of the Detroit Red Wings.
Yet, there’s plenty of work left to be done.
The Bruins are far from a finished product, they know that. As the Bruins enter the All-Star break, there’s still many flaws to their game and holes on their roster that need fixing in the second half if the Bruins are to go on any sort of deep playoff run.
Tuesday’s 3-2 win over the Seattle Kraken was evidence that the Bruins are not close to where they want to be.
“The inconsistencies tonight is a good example. This is a game that—ok first period, we had some good looks, [Kraken goalie Chris Driedger] made some saves around the front of the net, but a little loose, [we] gave up some odd-man rushes by not managing the puck,… head coach Bruce Cassidy said.
“We get the lead in the second period, a little bit of physicality in the game. Our guy goes down, we respond and then we take our foot off the gas and play loose again. It’s about that recognizing where you’re at in the game. No team is going to be perfect for 60-minutes, you’re going to have situations where playmakers are going to make plays that don’t work out, but that’s an area you have to fix.…
For the second time in four games the Bruins blew a third period lead, this time, however, they were able to get that final goal they needed, David Pastrnak’s second of the night, this one coming on the power play.
Against a team like the Kraken, the Bruins can get away with lackluster efforts throughout patches of the game, but that type of game is certainly not sustainable. The Bruins were sloppy for most of the night, mostly in their own and more so, with the puck on their stick.
“We weren't very respectful of the game in a number of instances with the puck, for whatever reason. Could be you get off the road, first game back. Maybe you're looking forward to the break. I don't know,… said Cassidy. “And it was some of our veteran guys that typically don't fall into that category. At the end of the day, they got it back. Got a big goal for us on the power play and we held on and got some saves and got the win.…
The two points is the important part to come out of Tuesday, but the bigger picture is more of a concern.
The All-Star break is coming at the right time for the Bruins. With players like Tuukka Rask, Nick Foligno, Trent Frederic and others working their way back from injuries, a little rest here is not a bad thing.
Most Bruins will trade their skates and sticks for rest, relaxing and I am sure, plenty of sunshine away from Boston. Tuesday’s game certainly felt like a case of doing whatever it takes to get two points and running into the break with it.
“I think everyone could see we didn’t play our best tonight. There were a lot of mistakes tonight that were self-inflicted,… said Taylor Hall who scored one of the Bruins’ three goals. “It wasn’t pretty, and it wasn’t out best night, right? But we’ll take the two points and go on vacation here.…
The Bruins will return to the ice next Tuesday when they host the Penguins in what will be the start of an all-out sprint to the finish line. Providing the Bruins don’t have to deal with any more COVID related cancelations, the Bruins will be playing pretty much every other night until the season concludes on April 29.
A lot of hockey awaits.