Bruins @ Capitals, 04/10/22

  The Washington Capitals beat the Boston Bruins 4-2 on Sunday afternoon, completing Boston’s four game road trip.  Heading into the match, Washington looked to further themselves in the standings from the New York Islanders and secure their playoff spot.  Boston, Toronto and Tampa Bay continue to fight for better positioning, more favorable matchups, and home-ice advantage where possible as the season comes to a close.  Currently, the Toronto Maple Leafs hold a five point lead on the Boston Bruins who in turn hold a tentative one point lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning; Tampa also holds one game in hand over Boston.  Based on recent play, it’s likely, though not certain, that the current standings will resemble those at the end of the season, matching Boston up against the booming Toronto Maple Leafs and their generational talent in Auston Matthews.  

Linus Ullmark was back in net coming off a great performance against Tampa Bay, and was far and away the best Bruins player on the ice against Washington.  Making several remarkable glove saves on higher danger scoring chances, Ullmark was able to keep Boston in the game until the closing seconds.  Bruins fans should find reassurance in knowing that Ullmark has shown he is more than capable of sustained, excellent play under immense pressure: an outright necessity for any legitimate Cup contender.  

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The score held at 0-0 through the first twenty minutes of play, with both Linus Ullmark and Capital’s goaltender Vitek Vanecek making big saves to deny their opposition.  A potential Trent Frederic goal was waved off, as it was the result of a distinct kicking motion.  In typical Bruins/Capitals fashion, the opening period had plenty of physicality, with big hits coming from Washington players Tom Wilson, Garnet Hathaway, and Dmitry Orlov, including one that sent Orlov to the penalty box for boarding Marc McLaughlin. 

The Capitals broke open the scoring 4:11 into the second period as a full weight John Carlson slapshot beat Ullmark on the glove side.  About four minutes later, the Bruins tied the game following a fourth line effort that saw Foligno pull Vanicek out of position while feeding the puck back through the crease to an awaiting Curtiz Lazar for Lazar’s second goal in the last twenty-one games, and his eighth on the year.  Exactly sixty seconds later, the Bruins struck again as Erik Haula teed off from the faceoff dot, his slapshot going post and in.  Some lackluster defending from Brad Marchand and Derek Forbort saw the Capitals score to tie the game 2-2, with Tom Wilson burying a puck that was resting at the edge of the blue paint.

During the third period, an unfortunate deflection off the stick of Erik Haula gave Washington a 3-2 lead, and an empty netter from Alex Ovechkin would seal the Bruins’ fate with a 4-2 loss.  

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Never finding any semblance of a rhythm, the Bruins lack of execution and attention saw them drop two points to the Capitals.  Boston’s defense was lazy, their passing was sloppy, and the power play failed to generate anything other than disappointment; the Bruins have now gone sixteen consecutive power plays without scoring a goal.  While the Bruins’ record for the remainder of the regular season is not terribly significant, it is still concerning to see the team struggle as they did this afternoon.  Without David Pastrnak, Hampus Lindholm, and now defenseman Matt Grzelcyk who left the game due to injury, the roster is thinning out in areas where Boston desperately needs it to remain robust.  The eventual return of David Pastrnak will surely be a shot in the arm for Boston’s offense, but there is too much offensive talent throughout the roster to excuse the passage of fifteen power plays without a single goal.

The Bruins return to Boston to face the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday night.  The Blues are currently on a five game winning streak, during which they’ve scored twenty-five goals.  If Lindholm or Grzelcyk are unable to return Tuesday night, Boston will once again need a game-stealing effort from their netminder and a flurry of offense to give themselves a fighting chance.