Jim Montgomery will be back in the Bruins’ orbit Thursday night, only this time he’ll be on the other side.
Boston heads to Enterprise Center to face the St. Louis Blues and its former coach, the man who steered the Bruins through one of the most striking regular seasons the NHL has ever seen.
That reunion alone would be worth watching. Add in the fact that both teams arrive with fresh frustrations, and the matchup turns into a pretty sharp early-season measuring stick.
The Bruins and Blues both walked into Thursday with issues they need to sort out fast, but they got there in very different ways. Boston’s trouble came from the sheer lack of volume against Carolina.
St. Louis had chances piled up against Montreal and still came away empty.
The Bruins managed just 16 shots on goal in Tuesday’s 2-1 loss to the Hurricanes, a season low. Jeremy Swayman kept them afloat with 28 saves, but Boston never found enough pressure to turn the game its way. The defeat snapped an eight-game point streak and left the Bruins at 9-3-1.
The Blues had the opposite kind of night. They put 46 shots on goal against Montreal, their highest total of the season, and still lost 2-0. That made it back-to-back shutout losses after a 4-0 defeat to Carolina.
That’s the split in a nutshell: Boston needs more chances. St.
Louis needs actual goals. Something has to give Thursday.
Montgomery’s return to a Bruins game carries real weight because of what he accomplished in Boston. In 2022-23, he guided the team through a historic season that produced NHL records of 65 wins and 135 points. He also took home the Jack Adams Award as the league’s top coach.
His regular-season record with the Bruins finished at 120-41-23 before he was dismissed in November 2024. St. Louis brought him in just days later, returning him to a franchise where he had previously served as an assistant.
Now he’ll be facing a Bruins club under Marco Sturm. Boston has won nine of its first 13 games, while the Blues sit at 5-6-1.
Boston also has the recent head-to-head edge. The Bruins swept last season’s two meetings with St. Louis, winning both by 5-2 scores.
David Pastrnak leads the way for Boston with seven goals and 11 assists, and the Bruins have scored 49 goals through 13 games, which makes Tuesday’s quiet night look more like an exception than a trend.
St. Louis has some punch of its own. Mason McTavish and Dylan Holloway each entered the game with 10 points, giving the Blues enough firepower on paper to threaten if they can finally convert what they’re creating.
Thursday’s game is about Montgomery, sure. But it’s also about which team can respond cleanly after a rough night and make the necessary adjustment.
Boston has to show it can generate more. St.
Louis has to show it can finish. And Montgomery knows exactly how important that kind of correction is.
In Other News...
Bruins Face A Tough Call On A Veteran Forward Drawing Buzz
The early chatter around the Senators search for forward help has put a few familiar names into circulation, and one of them is drawing attention inside the Bruins orbit. League talk has centered on a small pool of possible trade candidates, with Teuvo Tervinen, Michael Rasmussen and Andrew Copp among the players mentioned as options as clubs try to sort through a thin market.
For Boston, the interesting part is Mikey Eyssimonts place in the mix. He is in the final year of his contract and has been thriving with Providence, which makes him a useful depth option if the Bruins need help because of injuries and a player whose status can change quickly if the trade market keeps tightening. If the Senators or another team eventually come calling for forward pieces, Boston may have to weigh whether to keep a veteran who is playing well in the AHL or turn him into part of a larger roster decision. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Send Young Defenseman A Clear Message After Rough Night
Marco Sturms decision to scratch Frederic Brunet for the game against the St. Louis Blues was a clear reminder that roster spots have to be earned every night, especially for a young defenseman still trying to settle in. Brunet had done enough in training camp to make the team and saw regular ice during Charlie McAvoys suspension, so his place in the picture has not disappeared. But after a difficult outing against the Carolina Hurricanes, Boston chose to give him a reset rather than let the struggles carry over.
For a Bruins blue line that has already leaned on several moving parts early in the season, the move fits the practical side of coaching as much as the developmental side. Sturm has shown he is willing to reward performance and pull back when needed, and Brunets situation is the latest example of that approach. The expectation is that he will get another chance soon, with Chicago next on the schedule, but for now the message from the bench is hard to miss. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Forward Suddenly Enters A Rival's Search For Scoring Help
Ottawa is already working the phones for scoring help, and a Bruins fan watching the Atlantic may want to keep an eye on a familiar name. Senators general manager Steve Staios is exploring trade options for a winger after injuries thinned out his forward group, with Warren Foegele hurt and William Eklund sidelined following ankle surgery. The list of possible targets has a few different shapes to it, from established skill to more versatile depth, which suggests Ottawa is casting a fairly wide net as it tries to stay afloat offensively.
For Boston, the intrigue is less about the Senators immediate needs than the timing of any move. Staios would rather hold off on a major acquisition until the trade deadline gets closer, and that leaves this search in an early, fluid stage for now. Still, when a division rival starts looking for help on the wing, the market can shift quickly, and a Bruins-connected name could wind up in the middle of it before long. [Read more 🡒]