The squad from Boston, the Bruins, is excellent. If that weren’t the case, they wouldn’t be tied for first place in the Eastern Conference standings thus late in the season.
So are the Bruins among the top three or perhaps the top four teams vying for the Stanley Cup?
As of right now, the inability to protect late leads is the main reason the answer is no.
For the Bruins, this isn’t a novel issue, despite its recent prominence. In four of its previous six games—including Monday night’s away defeat to the Seattle Kraken—Boston has wasted a third-period lead. Last week, they led the Edmonton Oilers 4-1 and needed overtime to win 6-5. The Bruins finished the difficult road trip with five out of eight points (1-0-3) overall, but their failure to close games stands out.
Following Monday’s defeat, Bruins captain Brad Marchand told reporters, “You want to look at it both ways.” “You ought to be pleased that our road trip was enjoyable. There are a few advantages. In a couple of the games we lost, we were ahead. The fact that we lost both games and should have done a better job of finishing them off is undoubtedly a drawback.
We could have had a much better road trip, so that’s where the expectations are, so it’s a little frustrating. You expect to win the game going into the third quarter, and we need to. You need to be able to win those games as you approach the final stretch and the playoffs. There, we must perform better.”
Last season, the Bruins were 47-1-2 while leading after two periods. With 37-2-5, the Toronto Maple Leafs were the next closest team. The opponent was essentially out of the game once the B’s took the lead. However, during the playoffs, everything began to fall apart, especially in their first-round matchup against the Florida Panthers in Games 6 and 7. Most famously, with less than a minute left in regulation time in Game 7, the Bruins let the Panthers level the score after holding a 3-2 lead in the third period. To upset Boston and put an end to its historic campaign, Florida prevailed in overtime.
In the years 2023–2024, the issue is still present. Blown leads were a problem, even in the early part of the season when the Bruins were winning games quickly. This season, the Bruins are 25-1-8 when leading after two periods. Their victory percentage of.735 in those contests is the lowest of any club presently holding a postseason place, ranking them 28th out of 32 teams.
Why do the Bruins blow so many opportunities to close games?
The main problem is definitely special teams. With a 73.3 percent success rate in the 11 games following the All-Star break, Boston’s penalty kill is ranked 26th in the league. The Bruins are taking too many penalties (they rank 11th in terms of penalty kill time over this time period), and they are not playing well in either zone clearing or front-of-the-net defense. After the All-Star break, the power play has been even worse. With a dismal 11.3 percent conversion rate, this unit is ranked 31st over that time. They’ve only been worse than the New Jersey Devils.
The Bruins’ issue of protecting the front of the net extends beyond penalty kills; it occurs in all circumstances. After the All-Star break, they have given up the fourth-highest number of high-danger shot attempts across all scenarios. Over the entire season, they have forfeited the seventh-highest number of high-danger shot attempts.
The Bruins have allowed the fourth-fewest high-danger goals thanks to their goalie, which illustrates how terrible this team would be without Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman. It also demonstrates why it’s not a good idea to trade one of them throughout the season.
