Hall comfortable on the top line
Skating has picked up since move
For the previous two games going into Saturday’s tilt against the Tampa Bay Lightning, there has been a noticeable jump in Taylor Hall’s step as he’s utilized his speed up and down the left wing.
BRUINS NOTEBOOK
It’s pretty obvious what’s brought that out.
With Brad Marchand serving a three-game suspension, Hall has filled in for the B’s best forward and, though he’s got just one assist to show for it, he’s enjoying his chance to play on the B’s marquee unit with Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak.
“I think we’ve had two good games, not much to show for it on the scoresheet. Hopefully we can do a couple things (Saturday) to make that change but I think we’ve played well and controlled play to a certain extent,” said Hall on Saturday morning. “It’s frustrating, especially in that Detroit game (a 2-1 loss) for us to play those minutes and come up shorthanded and lose a game like that because we weren’t able to produce, but those are great players and I’m relishing the opportunity for sure.”
Hall said the key to playing better has been playing sound hockey no matter which way the play is going.
“Just support all over, reloading out of the O-zone and making sure that we try to cut off the other team by the red line. We haven’t played in our end a whole lot and when we do, we seem to be able to move pucks and get pucks out of our end, quickly. That’s the name of the game,” said Hall. “With Bergy, he’s so good defensively, he’ so easy to read off as a winger. And Pasta, I feel over the past couple of years we’ve had a limited number of shifts together, but we seem to read off each other well on the rush and create speed coming over the blue line, which is something that I love to do and kind of what my game’s based around, so that’s been fun.”
Hall said Bergeron’s twoway game that has won him four Selkes (and should have won him a couple of more) allows him to think offense a split second quicker.
“If the puck’s in his vicinity, he’s coming up with it. If there’s battle that he looks like he’s going to win, he wins that battle. That affords you the ability to get on your horse and get moving and react a little but quicker than say a guy that has a lot of 5050 battles around the ice,” said Hall. “Bergy puts himself in really good spots. He doesn’t take a lot of penalties in doing that. And faceoffs, too. You start with the puck a lot, which is huge and allows you to play with the puck and feel good about your game right off the bat. I think his career speaks for itself and it’s been a lot of fun playing with him.”
Whether Hall’s work on that line has been interesting enough to cause the coaching staff to examine the unthinkable — splitting up Marchand and Bergeron — remains to be seen. But even before Marchand’s suspension, head coach Bruce Cassidy had tried Pastrnak with Hall and Charlie Coyle for a few shifts to see if that could jump start his offense.
Assistant coach Joe Sacco, filling in for Cassidy (COVID protocol), has liked Hall’s game — and not just the way he has been using his speed.
“And in the offensive zone, when Marchie’s in there, they do like to play down low, they like to cycle the puck, they like to protect. And I think that’s been a better part of his game the last couple, as far as protecting the puck, being able to cycle it with those two plays, being able to hang on to it a little longer than maybe normal and he’s been effective in that role,” said Sacco.
McAvoy out with illness
The B’s were without top defenseman Charlie McAvoy for Saturday’s game with what Sacco described as a non-COVID illness and he was a game-time decision. Brought up to fill in for McAvoy was undersized offensive defenseman Jack
Ahcan, who has been playing well for Providence (2-8-10 in 17 games).
“He’s just going to have to be solid defensively and then obviously on the offensive side, make the plays when they’re there, because that’s what he does well,” said Sacco. “He moves the puck well, he transitions it well and he should be able to join the rush for us at the appropriate time and maybe create some opportunities there for us.”
Sacco said that Ahcan and Oskar Steen, who was also recalled, had been separated from the group in Providence, where they’ve had a COVID outbreak, and undergone daily testing so they could be eligible for recall.
This and that
Despite the spike in COVID with the Omicron variant, Hall said he didn’t sense there was any hesitance from players wanting to go to the Olympics in Beijing in February. McAvoy (U.S.), Pastrnak (Czech), Bergeron, Marchand and Hall (Canada) would all be under consideration to from their respective countries.
“I haven’t heard anyone being tepid about it,” said Hall. “With the new variants ... COVID’s not going away. And that’s why you get vaccinated. I haven’t heard anyone. We’ve got a lot of guys on our team that are going to be on the Olympic teams and they’re excited to go and play and do whatever they can to represent their country. I’m no different. It’s a great opportunity. If you have to go and stay in a bubble for a couple of weeks and get an Olympic medal out of it, I think guys are willing to do that.”...
There was no update on
Jakub Zboril, who suffered what looked like a knee injury on Thursday in Nashville. Sacco said that Zboril, he needed help off the ice, will be re-evaluated in a couple of days.
Anton Blidh, out with an apparent shoulder injury he suffered when he was boarded by Oliver Ekman-Larsson last Sunday, skated prior to the morning skate but was not available for Saturday.