Bruins’ DeBrusk down but not out
Opening night for Jake DeBrusk was quite literally a dream come true. With his family in attendance, the rookie helped usher in the new NHL season with a goal and an assist in the Bruins’ 4-3 victory against the Nashville Predators that felt like the dawning of a new era.
But DeBrusk is learning that everyday life in the NHL is not always so dreamlike. He hasn’t been a plus player since that first night, though he did have a goal and an assist in a road win against the Arizona Coyotes, and he hasn’t liked his last couple of games in particular. At one point during the Bruins’ 5-4 overtime loss Saturday at the Garden to the Buffalo Sabres in which he was minus-2 and played a seasonlow 12:35, he was bumped down from the David Pastrnak line.
The 21-year-old knows he needs to pick it up.
“My last two games have not been where I wanted them to be, personally,” DeBrusk said yesterday. “I’m trying to figure out how to stay consistent and not try to do too much or too little. I think at certain times I’m trying to do too many things and at other times I’m thinking too much. Right now, it’s just about trying to play the game and be mentally strong. I’ve always believed in myself and believed I am mentally strong. It’s been a challenge these last two games.”
Coach Bruce Cassidy sees DeBrusk’s recent struggles as typical of any younger player and, in the last game, the loss of the right-handed stick of David Krejci (replaced by lefty Tim Schaller) made life especially difficult for him.
“Jake’s been good in terms of puck pursuit. He’s had some games where he’s had some looks at the net and finished. Sometimes that goes as a centerman goes with Krech because he’s a right stick and Jake plays a straight line, so he relies on some of that playmaking from the middle,” Cassidy said. “It’s just been a matter of some nights he’s been harder on pucks than others. There are expectations that he’ll have some issues with that, like all of our young guys until they mature a little bit. Some pick it up quicker than others, so we’re going through that. But I think his mind’s in a good place.
“He’s holding himself accountable and working hard in practice, all good things for a young guy. So he’s fine at the end of the day in the big picture.”
DeBrusk believes the secret to his success is in his legs and, for whatever reason, he wasn’t skating as well as he’d hoped the last two games.
“I think when I’m playing well, I’m hard on pucks because I’m usually the first one on pucks, so you have to have speed to do that,” DeBrusk said. “I need to have my legs jumping, especially where I am and where I will be. I need to have that jump. It’s disappointing I didn’t have it and I’m counting on it this week.”
At the end of practice, there was an interesting sight. Zdeno Chara was having an animated discussion with the three highend rookies in the lineup — DeBrusk, Anders Bjork and Charlie McAvoy. Fellow veterans Kevan Miller, David Backes and Matt Beleskey were with Chara, but the captain was doing most, if not all, of the talking.
Asked if it was a pep talk, DeBrusk chuckled at first.
“Just kind of chatting with us young guys. It was more about practice habits and being ready on time and on drills and certain things, just the little details. That’s just Z being the leader that he is,” DeBrusk said. “That’s how you get better every day and it’s how you be a good pro. It’s the little things that add up to big things. Obviously when he’s talking, everyone’s dialed in and listening. It wasn’t necessarily a pep talk, but just about what can help us to maintain and get to the next level. It was encouraging and all something that we can do.”
Bruins notes
Tuukka Rask skated on his own prior to practice and Cassidy said, if all goes according to plan, the goalie could join the team for its session today. While returns from concussions are difficult to predict, Cassidy said Saturday could be a reasonable target date.
The Bruins host the San Jose Sharks on Thursday and the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday . . . .
Miller (hand) and Krejci (back) also skated before practice. For the team portion, Miller wore a noncontact sweater while Krejci did not skate again.
Cassidy is holding out hope for both to return against the Sharks . . . .
Patrice Bergeron, who missed the first five games with a lower-body injury and played the past two, was given a maintenance day.