Road trip begins with California dreaming
Let the bonding begin. The Bruins begin their first extended road trip on Thursday in San Jose and, as they do annually, they talked about the importance of getting away from home and getting into that road bubble to become a more cohesive team on and off the ice.
Some years, it can be more true than in others. But it’s a good bet the 202324 version of the Bruins are a team that could use a little bit of away time. Boston’s roster has eight players who were not on the team last year, including a pair of rookies. Call it a transitional year or a rebuild-on-the-fly type of season. But who exactly the B’s are is still a wide-open question and any positive vibes they can bottle on the road will be needed if they’re to get back to the Stanley Cup tournament in April.
“To me it’s nothing but positives — and it’s not because I’m a positive person,” said coach Jim Montgomery before hitting the road. “It’s early in the year, these guys have got to get to know each other, they get to have dinner with each other, they get to walk around LA on their day off together, wherever they choose to go. It’s more about bonding time. You learn more about yourself as a hockey player and as a team when you’re on the road, in tough environments.”
There’s no doubt they will be rested when they face the Sharks after having played just two games in eight days Here are a few thoughts on what to look for on the trip:
Offense from defense
The B’s need continued production from the back end, especially on the power play.
It’s still not known what James van Riemsdyk will be able to provide at 5-on-5 — he’ll be on a new heavy line with Charlie Coyle and Trent Frederic — but he certainly still seems to have it on the power play. He scored two PP goals in the B’s win over Nashville. The first one was an ugly bank-shot off the defenseman, but the second was a vintage JVR tip in front of the net.
Charlie McAvoy, still growing into his role as quarterback of the first power play unit, delivered the puck to van Riemsdyk. That must continue. Getting McAvoy to shoot the puck more has been a minor theme in McAvoy’s still young career, but he’s got even more incentive now with van Riemsdyk in the lineup.
“I’ve got to get it there for him,” said McAvoy after the 3-2 win. “He’s made a career in this league out of getting (to the front of the net) and he’s shown in practice that he can do it and get his stick on it. I’ve got to keep working on my chemistry with him and I’m really happy to see him tip that one in.”
For Jake’s sake
Jake DeBrusk was once a player who, if he wasn’t showing up on the scoresheet, he wasn’t doing much for the team. He’s not the same player. DeBrusk played a key part on the penalty kill that catapulted the B’s to their victory over the Predators.
That said, he does need to get on the board, and the sooner the better. He now has a great chance to do so. After a year-plus of playing on his off wing with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand, he’ll be moving back to his natural left side to play on the top line with center Pavel Zacha and David Pastrnak. All three players can skate and Zacha is good at the dirty work of winning battles along the boards.
The B’s need to find a legitimate first line and this grouping is not only their best shot at having one but the new configuration of the top nine forwards puts a scoring threat on the first three lines. Theoretically, at least.
Nothing’s easy
This B’s team has no right to expect any easy games. They had to grind out two wins on home ice against teams in the Blackhawks and Predators that were not in most prognosticators’ playoff picture. But the game Saturday night against the Los Angeles Kings should go a long way toward telling us who the B’s are, or at least who they are at the moment.
The B’s are expected to go into battle with 19-yearold centerman Matt Poitras skating on a second line while Zacha, back playing center after a year on the wing, will center the top line and Coyle back at his familiar third line role. The Kings will counter with perennial Selke candidate Anze Kopitar, newly acquire Pierre-Luc Dubois and Philip Danault, who himself has good Selke bona fides.
This will be an intriguing challenge, especially for Poitras.
Take their shots
Opportunities to create offense should present themselves on Thursday. The 0-2-1 Sharks come into the game having allowed 42 shots per game in their first three.