The Bruins are back in brown, and they’ll need that look to come with a response.
Boston hosts the Minnesota Wild tonight at TD Garden in the final game of the season series, with the Bruins trying to shake off Thursday’s 5-2 loss to Montreal. The Wild arrive as one of the league’s hottest teams, sitting atop the Western Conference and carrying points in their last 10 games. Boston, meanwhile, saw its seven-game home winning streak end against the Canadiens.
The first meeting between these teams this season went Minnesota’s way, too. The Bruins dropped a 4-1 decision in St.
Paul on Oct. 3, their first loss of the year. Tonight gives them a chance to close the book on the matchup a different way.
Marco Sturm made a tweak to the blue line at practice yesterday, but he stopped short of saying those pairings would stick for game time. Jonathan Aspirot skated on the left side of Mason Lohrei, while Connor Clifton and Frederic Brunet formed the fourth pair. Sturm also said James Hagens is “getting better every day,”
The Bruins will hold a morning skate at TD Garden today, then stay off the ice Sunday before returning to Warrior Ice Arena Monday morning.
Around the league, one of the biggest names in the rumor mill is Erik Karlsson. Pittsburgh Hockey Now reported that the Carolina Hurricanes are “very interested” in the Penguins defenseman.
Pierre LeBrun said Karlsson is “playing on a team that’s pretty much headed nowhere,” and the Penguins could move quickly if they decide to sell. Karlsson has 19 points in 19 games this season, with three goals and 16 assists.
There’s also uncertainty surrounding Simon Edvinsson. NHL Network’s Elliotte Friedman had updates yesterday on several players, and reporters in Sweden believe Edvinsson is prepared to play in his home country if a deal with Detroit is not completed before Dec. 1 at 5:00 PM.
In the expansion picture, PuckPedia reported that the NHL is strongly likely to extend the initial six-month evaluation process for a possible franchise in Texas. The league and The Friedkin Group entered that process in June.
Philadelphia remains a mess, and Matvei Michkov is still part of the conversation. Danny Briere said on Wednesday that the rumors had been put to bed, but Will James noted the Flyers still have work to do to keep the 21-year-old happy in Philadelphia. Briere also said there are no plans for a coaching change and essentially challenged Tocchet to “find solutions and turn this thing around.”
Detroit is another stop on Boston’s upcoming schedule, and the Red Wings are coming in at 7-10-3 through 20 games. Max Smith wrote that structure changes have helped them look better than expected, though three wins in their last 10 have dropped them to the bottom of the division. The Bruins visit Detroit on Wednesday night.
None of today’s NHL games are expected to be affected by yesterday’s nationwide ground stoppage. The Sharks were cleared to fly Friday night, and the league’s schedule rolls on with a full slate, including Wild-Bruins, Oilers-Maple Leafs, and Avalanche-Canadiens.
In Other News...
Bruins Prospects Are Giving Fans Plenty To Watch Right Now
Bostons prospect pipeline has been giving fans plenty to track lately, with production popping up across college hockey, juniors and Europe. Chris Pelosi had the loudest night of the bunch for Quinnipiac, scoring a hat trick in NCAA play, while Elliott Groenewold delivered an overtime winner and Cole Chandler kept his own momentum going by extending his point streak in juniors.
The encouraging part for the Bruins is how wide the contributions have been. Yuri Ivanov and Matvei Kotkov both helped their teams to wins in Europe, and the scoring touch has carried into Providence as well, where Riley Duran and Ivan Ivan have each extended their point streaks in recent games. For a system that is always under the microscope, it is the kind of across-the-board progress that keeps the conversation going well beyond the NHL roster. [Read more 🡒]
Marco Sturm Sends Bruins A Clear Message Before Crucial Response Game
The Bruins did not have long to sit with a 5-2 home loss to the Canadiens, but they did have a clear reminder of what needs tightening up. It was only Bostons second home defeat of the season, yet the way Montreal controlled enough of the night to leave TD Garden with a convincing result made the response matter just as much as the setback.
Marco Sturm used the next practice to make that point, holding a video session to go over the areas that need to improve before Minnesota comes to town. With the Wild up next, the Bruins are already in a spot where the tone of their response will say plenty about how they plan to handle a rough night and whether the lesson from Montreal sticks. [Read more 🡒]
Casey Mittelstadt Is Forcing A Bruins Decision They Can't Ignore
Casey Mittelstadt has given the Bruins something they did not have much of last season: a legitimate reason to pause before deciding what comes next. Since arriving in the Charlie Coyle trade, he has settled in well and has been producing at a level that makes him look more and more like part of the solution rather than a short-term add-on. For a team trying to balance present competitiveness with a longer view, that kind of progress matters.
The timing only sharpens the issue, because Mittelstadt is playing his way into a conversation Boston cannot keep postponing. His contract is expiring, and the Bruins have to weigh his fit against the push to keep younger players moving into bigger roles and shape the roster around a broader strategy. He has earned a real look, and the next step will say plenty about how aggressively Boston wants to build around what he has shown so far. [Read more 🡒]