The Bruins are back on the ice today with a chance to finish off a clean sweep of their four-game road trip tomorrow night, and they’re doing it with plenty going right. Boston sits alone atop the Atlantic Division, two points clear of the Lightning, Senators, and Panthers, and its current five-game winning streak has pushed the club to second in the NHL with a plus-15 goal differential.
A big reason for that surge has been the younger players stepping in and delivering. Matt Poitras has made the most of the opening he’s been given, and that has come at a cost for Sean Kuraly, who found himself on the outside looking in.
Poitras has six games under his belt and already has five points, with three goals and two assists. Marco Sturm’s decision to give him the chance has paid off so far.
For Kuraly, the situation has been unfamiliar. He has been a healthy scratch for the first time in his career before getting back into the lineup after five games.
On Saturday, he logged 14:29.
Boston will practice this afternoon at American Airlines Center in Dallas, then hold a morning skate at 12:30 PM local time before its 8:00 PM game.
There’s also a bright spot in Providence, even if the season has started slowly for the Baby B’s. The Providence Bruins are 2-5-0, but they picked up their second win of the year yesterday against Hershey.
Mikey Eyssimont was the headline act, scoring his second hat trick of the season. Jake Schmaltz, Brendan Gaunce, and Brian Halonen also scored.
Eyssimont’s start has been eye-catching. He has seven goals through four games, putting him tied for second in the AHL.
Around the league, the Maple Leafs are still hunting for help on defense after their big trade for Kirill Marchenko. The new GM, John Chayka, is reportedly not finished, and the search is not for a quick patch. Elliotte Friedman said that if Toronto believes it has found a difference maker, “they will pay a premium asset,” and that could mean a significant price.
That kind of return is exactly what Brandon Carlo brought the Bruins in their deal, which netted Boston a first-rounder, Fraser Minten, and a fourth in Vashek Blanár.
Elsewhere, Connor Hellebuyck is back in the rumor mill, with Sportsnet raising the possibility of the Utah Mammoth as a fit. Michael Amato noted that neither Karel Vejmelka, who has an .879 save percentage, nor Sebastian Cossa, at .839, has numbers that leap off the page, and wrote that Utah is a goalie away from being a championship contender.
The Penguins remain in a rough spot, and Pittsburgh Hockey Now says Kyle Dubas stocked the organization with young talent while also leaving those prospects without much room on the NHL roster after his offseason moves. The Penguins are reportedly exploring ways to move on from some veterans, and Dan Kingerski argues Dubas deserves both praise and criticism for the bind he created.
In New Jersey, the Devils have been getting shots on goal in bunches. They’ve outshot every opponent in their first eight games, and James Nichols examined what that means for a team that is sitting at .500 while leading the league in that category.
The Rangers, meanwhile, are off to a 6-3-1 start and have gone 5-0-0 at home, a sharp improvement from where they were at this point last season even with injuries in goal. Jim Cerny handed out grades for that group.
And in Carolina, the Hurricanes’ seven-game win streak came to an end with a 3-2 loss to the Flames at the Saddledome. The Hurricanes were dealing with injuries, including one to Taylor Hall, and their final game there ended with Calgary snapping the streak.
In Other News...
Bruins Just Turned A Zadorov Scratch Into A Bigger Problem
Nikita Zadorovs night on the bench against the Kings was already notable because it came after a double-minor penalty in the previous game against Anaheim, and Bruins coach Marco Sturm made it clear the decision was about discipline as much as anything else. For a team trying to keep its footing, a healthy scratch for a veteran defenseman is never just a routine lineup call, especially when it follows a lapse that drew attention in the first place.
The situation got more awkward when a social media exchange involving Zadorovs agent and a fan started feeding speculation about where things might be headed next. No formal trade talks have been reported, but the chatter added another layer to a story that began with one bad penalty and has now turned into something bigger for Boston to manage. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Roster Crunch Is Turning One Forward Into Trade Bait
Matthew Poitras being cleared to play has only tightened the squeeze on Bostons forward group, and the Bruins responded by placing Mikey Eyssimont on waivers and sending him to Providence. It is the kind of roster move that says as much about logjams as it does about performance, because Eyssimont has been productive in the AHL and still found himself on the outside looking in when the Bruins had to make room.
The problem for Boston is that there is simply no easy path back into the lineup right now, even with Eyssimont doing enough in Providence to keep his name in the conversation. When a player is producing down below but has no obvious opening upstairs, that is often where trade chatter starts to build, and the Bruins appear to be there now with a depth piece who may be more valuable as an asset than as a spare forward on the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Suddenly Have A Matt Poitras Problem They Might Welcome
Matt Poitras has gone from a low-profile one-year, two-way signing to a player the Bruins have found ways to fit into the lineup almost immediately. After getting past a lower-body injury, the young forward has suited up for six games and chipped in five points, enough to draw steady praise from coach Marco Sturm for handling his assignments and taking advantage of the openings created by injuries around him.
The bigger wrinkle for Boston is what happens when the lineup gets healthier. Sean Kuraly was scratched while Poitras kept earning looks higher up the board, and Kuraly has since been preparing to return, which only tightens the competition for ice time. For a team trying to sort out its depth on the fly, Poitras has given the Bruins a useful problem, even if it is one they may have to solve sooner rather than later. [Read more 🡒]