Sports. Honestly. Since 2011

Boston Bruins Off to Best Start in 86 Years

Bruins Hot Start

The Boston Bruins are off to their best start in 86 years. Even with all the records they broke last season, they have a better record through five games at 5-0-0 this season. It’s the team’s Centennial season, as they’ve reached the century mark. So this Bruins hot start seems fitting.

There are a lot of new faces in the lineup, but the team culture seems to be driving the success this far. New leaders and players are stepping up, and the goaltending has been lights out.

Team Strengths Contribute to Bruins Hot Start

The team has only allowed a combined seven goals through the first five games. They haven’t yielded more than two in a game. Furthermore, they have only allowed one power-play goal and are 95.5% on the penalty kill. Their defensive scheme has been a big factor, keeping their opponents to the perimeter with possession.

The five-on-five offensive production still has room for improvement. It’s apparent they are still trying to find consistent continuity within their forward lines. Players who have stood out so far include UFA acquisition James van Riemsdyk. The big forward has three goals and an assist through the first five games, including two power-play goals.

Player Contributions

Another free agent signing paying dividends this far is forward Morgan Geekie. He’s been playing in the third-line right-wing spot and has a goal and an assist with a +5 rating. Unsurprisingly, David Pastrnak was fired out of a cannon coming off a 60-goal year last season. Through the first five games, he has five goals and three assists.

However, the biggest standout surprise has been rookie centre Matthew Poitras. After an impressive preseason, the Bruins 2022 second-round pick made the team out of training camp. He led the team in points and was very sound positionally in both ends. The 19-year-old is skating as the third-line centre and recorded his first two NHL career goals Sunday night in a 3-1 win against the Anaheim Ducks.

There have been talks about whether or not Poitras should be sent back to his junior team in the OHL. The young centre has nine games to prove he belongs in the NHL, and through the first five, it’s safe to say he’s here to stay with Boston.

Goaltending

The biggest standout factor for the Bruins so far has undoubtedly been the goaltending. Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman have shut the door in between the pipes. Ullmark is coming off a Vezina Trophy, and the pair together are coming off a William Jennings Trophy. The two have picked up right where they left off from last season.

The netminders have faced a combined 150 shots and have stopped 143 of them. That is a .953 SV% through the first five games. A great amount of credit should also be given to goaltending coach Bob Essensa. The man they call “Goalie Bob” has the two Bruins goalies ready to play every night.

Going Forward

It would be hard to believe that the Bruins will come close to what they did last year in the regular season. But through the first five games, they’ve surprised a lot of people. Losing Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci to retirement put two large vacancies at the centre position. That led to speculation the team would enormously regress for their centennial season.

So far, they have been able to overcome that, looking once again like a pretty good hockey team. How sustainable this start is will remain to be seen. It’s still very early in the season, and there’s a lot of hockey left to be played. But through five games, General Manager Don Sweeney and head coach Jim Montgomery have this team trending in a better direction than many initially thought.

Main Photo Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports

Andrew Bluestein

Andrew Bluestein

Andrew Bluestein is a hungry and motivated freelance sports journalist. He has an extensive hockey background, playing for 14 years, including four years of juniors. Andrew has experience doing play-by-play and covering the Boston Bruins as a writer.

Share:

More Posts

Send Us A Message