Bruins Notes: Boston Got ‘Punched’ By Hurricanes In Playoff-Type Game
BOSTON — The Boston Bruins lost just their fifth regular-season series when they were dealt a 4-1 defeat by the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night at TD Garden. Even though the Hurricanes only registered three more shots on goal than the Bruins, 26-23, Carolina controlled the majority of the game. “I loved our first (period). […]
BOSTON — The Boston Bruins lost just their fifth regular-season series when they were dealt a 4-1 defeat by the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night at TD Garden.
Even though the Hurricanes only registered three more shots on goal than the Bruins, 26-23, Carolina controlled the majority of the game.
“I loved our first (period). I thought we were really physical. I thought we were engaged. (We had) a couple of good scoring chances, they had a couple,” Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery told reporters following the loss. “Second period, I thought they came out; they pushed hard. They were overtop of us. I thought their checking skills were superior to ours, and it led to a lot of us playing in our (defensive) zone.”
The Bruins had won four straight games, including wins over the Capitals, Predators, Hurricanes, and Panthers, before falling to Carolina on Tuesday. Boston struggled to generate offense in the second of the two games against Carolina.
“We really had no transitional offense,” Montgomery said. “Again, I give them credit, they checked, and that’s what we’re going to see in the playoffs.
“We had a good stretch here, and we’ve been playing well. We got a couple of days off. We’ll reset, and we’ll come back to work on Pittsburgh.”
Defenseman Charlie McAvoy added playing a team like Carolina twice in a span of six days is a lot like the postseason.
“We just played these guys four days ago, so that’s playoff hockey,” McAvoy said after the game. “We beat them, and then we lost to them. That’s how a seven-game series works. If there’s anything to learn about this or to use, sort of in context, it’s that this is playoff hockey.
“This was the same thing with Florida except it was a week apart. But we’re going to see these teams again. It’s who’s going to be able to adapt and who’s going to be able to elevate.”
Jeremy Swayman made 22 saves in the loss, after stopping 28 shots in the Bruins’ 4-1 win over the Hurricanes last week. The Bruins goaltender said it’s not the type of game they want to play on home ice but feels it’s a good learning tool.
“I think it’s good for us moving forward, understanding that no team is going to be soft on us just because we have four games left in the season,” Swayman told reporters. “It’s our job to get punched in the face and get back up … that’s what we did tonight.”
Here are more notes from Tuesday night’s Bruins-Hurricanes game:
— Andrei Svechnikov scored his third “Michigan” goal of his career to open the scoring for Carolina in the second period.
“He’s so good at that, I couldn’t believe it,” Swayman said. “It was my goal to never get “Michiganed,” so that was put in the toilet today. It’s something I’ll work on in the skills practice tomorrow.”
— With three games remaining in the regular season, the Bruins have completed 27 regular-season series. Boston has won 12, lost five, and tied 10. Six of the 12 wins were series sweeps against the Panthers, Maple Leafs, Blackhawks, Predators, Stars and Sharks.
— Boston has 107 points trailing only the New York Rangers (110 points) in the Eastern Conference. Carolina moved up to second place in the East after defeating Boston. Even though the Bruins and Hurricanes both have the same number of points, Carolina earns the tie-breaker with more regulation wins.
— The Bruins return to game action Saturday when they travel to Pittsburgh to take on the Penguins. Puck drop from PPG Paints Arena is slated for 8 p.m. ET, and the game will air on ABC. The Black and Gold return to NESN with their penultimate regular-season game on April 15 when they match up against the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena.