The Boston Bruins power-play unit has taken a toll as of late which brings some concern as the NHL playoffs come onto the horizon.
On their past four-game road trip, the Bruins went 0-for-16 on the power play. In their two losses in that stretch, they went scoreless on eight power-play chances. That’s only the tip of the iceberg, though. Over the past 14 games, they are an abysmal 6-for-46 (13%) on the man advantage. One can see how those numbers could raise some concerns about the team’s performance.
What’s seemingly the breaking point for Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy was an 0-for-4 performance in Sunday’s 4-2 loss to the Capitals, in which just one goal on the man advantage would have earned them a point (Washington’s fourth goal was an empty-netter).
“Lack of execution. I’ve seen it for a while now,” said Cassidy after the team’s defeat Sunday. “We don’t execute well enough right now to expect (results) — by that I mean, the pace of your execution, hitting the net when you do get your opportunity. We missed an empty net today again. Those numbers get skewed.
“But at some point, the execution will turn because they’re good players and they have produced on the power play,” Cassidy added.
It might not be time to panic as injuries have played a factor in this. David Pastrnak, who’s tied for seventh in the NHL with 14 power-play goals, has been out of the Bruins’ lineup. An undisclosed injury has left Pastrnak sidelined for the last three games which certainly made it a more difficult task for the power-play unit.
Hampus Lindholm, the veteran defenseman who the Bruins traded for on March 19, also has been dealing with an injury. The 28-year-old blue-liner got injured on last Tuesday’s game against the Red Wings and has missed the past two games.
Once the whole team is back and healthy, the power play should improve. Without Pastrnak and Lindholm, it may be a challenge to get the power play going. The Bruins will hope to get their mojo back against one of the top penalty-killing teams, the St. Louis Blues, on Tuesday at TD Garden.
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