Boston Bruins Practice Notebook: Injury Updates, In-Game Adjustments And Lacrosse Goals

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BRIGHTON, Mass. – The Boston Bruins have just three games left in the regular season, where they’ll look to refocus after falling 4-1 to the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday.

Bruins coach Jim Montgomery met with a small media contingent on Wednesday. Here are the main takeaways:

Injury Updates:

Bruins fans are waiting with much anticipation for the debut of Pat Maroon, the hulking forward whom general manager Don Sweeney acquired at the trade deadline on March 8. Maroon remains on track for playing on Saturday against the Pittsburgh Penguins, with Montgomery listing it as a “75-25” chance that he does suit up vs. not. Should Maroon enter the lineup on Saturday, Montgomery was non-committal on naming who would exit.

Meanwhile, Justin Brazeau, who sustained an upper-body injury against the Nashville Predators on April 2, is back to skating but remains “nowhere close” to returning. Additionally, defenseman Derek Forbort, whom Sweeney previously ruled out for the season, is working to get back in shape but does not have a timeline for return.

Tinkering the Power Play:

After Tuesday’s loss to Carolina, Montgomery said the biggest focus for his team is getting back to its identity. Part of that entails improving the power play’s confidence, to make it more “threatening” and “cohesive.”

The power play is 2-for-27 (7.4 percent) in the last nine games. With the game out of hand at 17:23 of the third period against Carolina, Montgomery ran out players like Jesper Boqvist, Jakub Lauko and Trent Frederic while holding out the typical first-unit forwards on the final opportunity.

Montgomery said he liked what he saw from those players, and that he’ll continue to tinker with things, but when Game 1 rolls around, he won’t get too fancy with it.

“I thought Lauko looked really good. I liked the breakout on one unit,” Montgomery said. “But [David Pastrnak’s] still gonna be out there. [Brad Marchand’s] gonna still be out there.”

Bringing Physical Play:

The first period against the Hurricanes was extremely physical, with the Bruins delivering 18 hits to Carolina’s 15 while the shot counter was just 4-4. Then, the Hurricanes started to take over. Montgomery said he could feel his side losing energy, and that continuing to bring that physical game will be key to success moving forward.

“It gives the bench energy, is big hits. Or hits, finishing checks, being hard to play against,” Montgomery said. “Gives excitement to the group, but what it does to the other team is they know they’re gonna get hit. So now, they go to a confrontational area and they might not get there as quick. They might panic, and that leads to turnovers, it leads to offense, it leads to territorial advantage. And [in the playoffs], those things matter over the course of the series.”

Andrew Peeke delivered eight hits on the night, while Lauko was right behind with six. Montgomery named those two players specifically as guys who the team relies on to bring that physical presence, and he also stated other players needed to augment that part of their game as well.

Lacrosse Goals:

It was Hurricanes forward Andrei Svechnikov that broke open the scoring at 10:55 of the second period, and he did so in spectacular fashion. Although it wasn’t called a goal at first, officials eventually confirmed that the 24-year-old cashed in on a “lacrosse-style” shot. It was the third such goal of his NHL career, which ties Anaheim Ducks forward Trevor Zegras for the most.

In previous generations, that type of goal would appear disrespectful, but in recent years, the league has developed an appreciation for it, which Montgomery agrees with.

“If you have the ability to, in game, that quickly like Svechnikov did, as soon as he beat his man, he was going for it. … You want to encourage players to be creative,” Montgomery said. “There’s a play to make and that’s a hard play to stop. Like watching a replay of it, Peeke did a good job getting there to try and stop him. It takes a certain skill set.”

Other Links:

Boston Bruins Fall 4-1 To Carolina Hurricanes

What Jake DeBrusk Has To Say About New Third Line

Amid Shuffling Defensive Pairs, Brandon Carlo Focusing on Personal, Team Growth