The Bruins lay an egg in Nashville and lose 4-0

With the exception of Mark Kastelic's line, chemistry has been elusive across all of the Bruins' forward lines. Spending an excessive amount of time in the penalty box won't help them.

The B's went into the box six times in the first two periods Tuesday in Nashville, handing them their second straight loss, this time a 4-0 loss to the previously winless Predators.

“I saw the work ethic was really good today, but part of the process is to be disciplined and not take as many penalties as we did. And part of the process is sticking with it. I thought we did a great job in the first seven minutes of the second period, wearing down the goal line and the back of the net and getting away,” coach Jim Montgomery told NESN.

Jeremy Swayman was solid (38 saves) but too busy, while Juuse Saros (33 saves) was good when he needed to be.

They come home with a 1-1-1 record on the three-game road trip, but things don't get any easier with Dallas (Thursday) and Toronto (Saturday) on board.

The B's have now signed a league-leading 40 players and have scored one goal in the last six periods.

“You have to find ways to get to the net more,” Charlie Coyle told reporters in Nashville. “Usually it’s a simple solution. You are watching a video. We may not come inward as much, especially when we need to. Sometimes you have to push through to score those goals, the second, third, fourth attempt, the rebound. Get to the net, simplify things and put yourself in a position to make shots, receive passes and get to the net. Usually it's just a matter of simplifying things. Sometimes you can think about it too much.”

Montgomery changed his top nine forwards, fielding a front line with Brad Marchand, Elias Lindholm and David Pastrnak and adding Max Jones to the lineup on a line with Charlie Coyle and Trent Frederic.

But there wasn't much spark early on, and it didn't help that Pastrnak took an offensive zone hooking penalty 13 seconds into the game that rattled the lines from the start. The B's couldn't withstand the 5-on-5 pressure in the offensive zone, while the Predators had numerous high-danger chances in the first 20 minutes. Swayman had to be sharp early on (13 saves in the first period).

Kastelic tried to get the bench going with a challenge on defenseman Luke Schenn – repeatedly peppering the veteran with rights until he collapsed on Schenn – but the balanced offense remained limp.

The B's had a good power play in the first game, but Saros parried Pavel Zacha at the top of the goal area with the B's best chance.

When Jones picked up his second minor violation of the period – and third B violation of the period – the Preds finally made them pay. Just 11 seconds after Jones took his spot, Ryan O'Reilly deflected a shot from Roman Josi past Swayman to give Nashville a 1-0 lead at 17:16. That was all they needed.

Pastrnak had the opportunity to burst the Preds bubble immediately on the next shift when he made a clean breakaway, but Saros read his backhand move well and redirected it wide of the goal.

The B's entered the second period as if they were determined to take the lead. They put their first five shots on net and had good offensive zone time for the first time.

But then their season-long penchant for taking penalties canceled out their good performance and they found themselves 2-0 down before the end of the half.

First, Nikita Zadorov scored his seventh penalty in as many games.

“I have seven in a row. I don't know what to say. It's up to me. Of course I have to get better with these penalties,” Zadorov said.

The B's were able to eradicate that. But later in the quarter, Charlie McAvoy was hit with a double minor when he caught Steven Stamkos in the nose with his stick on a clear backhand attempt. McAvoy had resorted to what he thought would be icing on the cake, but it was rebuffed and he found himself in a fight he wasn't ready for.

The B's did an excellent job of eliminating both minors players, but just as McAvoy left the box, a clumsy rebound led to Tommy Novak's goal at 16:55. Luke Evangelista attempted a backdoor pass through the goal crease, but Swayman deflected it into the slot to Novak, who just fired a shot through Swayman at 16:55.

Similar to the second third, the B's were also strong in the third third. But as an indication of how things are going offensively for the B's, Pastrnak was able to break away again, somehow went to the ground and crashed into Saros. The B's also had another power play that was effective in all areas except putting the puck in the net.

Finally, with the B's pushing for something, anything, they gave up a 2-on-1 duel and Gus Nyqvist held on to beat Swayman with 7:13 left to seal the Preds' first win of the season.

Montgomery then pulled Swayman for a Hail Mary, or maybe just a little 6-on-5 practice, and it didn't take long for Evangelista to hit the empty net.

Originally published: October 22, 2024 at 11:21 p.m