BSJ Game Report: Ducks 3, Bruins 1 -- Another slow start finally catches up to Boston

The Boston Bruins aren’t in the business of making excuses. Despite the recent All-Star break, there’s no other way to describe their 3-1 loss to the Anaheim Ducks Tuesday night at TD Garden other than the Bruins weren’t ready at the start. It was the eighth consecutive game the Bruins allowed the first goal, but this time they couldn't respond.

The Ducks play a heavy game and came out fast as Anaheim gained a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes. The Bruins came to life in the final 40 minutes but still came up short.

Everything else you need to know from the Bruins' loss in quickie form, with BSJ insight and analysis. 

HEADLINES



Over but not out: The Ducks snapped the Bruins’ consecutive point streak at 18 games, but Boston has shown time and again this season the ability to quickly bounce back after a loss. It’ll be interesting to see how the Bruins perform on Thursday against the St. Louis Blues.

“I didn’t think that much about it. It’s nice to be on it, don’t get me wrong,” said Bruce Cassidy of the recent point streak. “We take a lot of pride in it. We try to win every night and it’s a credit to the guys. It’s not going to go on forever, we all know that. It’s too good a league. It certainly put us in a good position in the standings, but we’ll have to start a new one now.”

Missing in action: No doubt the Bruins miss Brad Marchand, who missed his second of a five-game suspension. Danton Heinen can play on that line with Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak, but it doesn’t have the same chemistry without Marchand, who will be back in the lineup on Feb. 7 at New York Rangers.

“Yes,” Cassidy said when asked if they felt Marchand’s absence. “Tonight, we had a tough time finding a winger for Bergy and Pasta. Heinen, earlier on, was feeling it playing against a bigger group. You lose Bjork, so maybe he could have been a fit. We tried (Tim) Schaller a little later to have a little heavier guy, so definitely (we missed Marchand). Listen, he’s a point-a-game guy, so he makes a difference.”

It also doesn’t help that the Bruins have been without rookie defenseman Charlie McAvoy the last three games after undergoing a heart procedure on Jan. 22.

“Charlie moves the puck out of our zone early, and (Noel) Acciari. We missed him tonight. It’s the type of game he’s going to excel in and be able to push back. That’s the ‘what-if’ game and you can’t worry about that stuff. But, yes, we missed them all but once we got playing we were fine.”

Bad timing: Just bad luck for the rookie forward Anders Bjork, who suffered an upper-body injury in the first period and did not return. It appeared he suffered a shoulder injury after being on the receiving end of a cross check from the Ducks’ Francois Beauchemin in front of Anaheim’s net. Bjork was recalled from Providence last week after Marchand was suspended. Bjork returned to the P-Bruins for the weekend in order to play and was back with Boston for practice on Monday. He missed seven games earlier this season due to a concussion.

“He’ll miss some time,” Cassidy said after the game.

As a result, it’s a possibility the Bruins will recall a forward from Providence, especially if Acciari isn’t ready to return for Thursday’s game.

TURNING POINT 

It’s unusual that the one of the most important stretches of the game comes within the first couple of minutes, but that was the case for the Bruins. Boston was awarded a power play only 27 seconds into the game when the Ducks’ Ryan Kesler was called for slashing. It was a golden opportunity for the Bruins to strike first for the first time in the last eight games, but they produced their worst power play of the season and couldn’t capitalize.

“It’s tough early in the game,” Cassidy said. “Killers are always fresh, you’re not really into the game. Statistically, early in periods are tougher, I’ve found over the years. But, to not generate anything was disappointing. It was like the rest of our first period – not ready, not executing, not fast, they jumped us, not winning pucks – all the above. We could have helped ourselves, there’s no doubt, but I don’t think that’s the reason why we got behind, but we could have helped ourselves.”

FOUR UP 

Matt Grzelcyk: The rookie defenseman made his presence felt early when he kept his legs moving through the neutral zone, joined the rush and drew a penalty to put the Bruins on the power play only 27 seconds into the game. The Ducks have the ability to sustain a heavy forecheck and for the majority of the game, Grzelcyk was able to move the puck and avoid getting stuck in his own zone. Defensively, he broke up a couple of would-be 2-on-1 chances for Anaheim.

John Gibson: The Ducks’ goalie wasn’t tested too often, but he made his share of timely saves to record his second shutout of the season and 14^th of his career. However, he was stunned twice during the game on shots by Zdeno Chara (slap shot in the second period) and on a one-timer by Bergeron early in the third period. In fact, a trainer needed to tend to Gibson after Bergeron’s shot, but the goalie remained in the game until Ryan Miller replaced him with seven minutes remaining in regulation.

Chara: It was a bit too late, but the captain responded in the third and took a few swings at Ryan Getzlaf with 2:57 remaining in regulation. Chara caught him with a few punches before the linesmen stepped in. Chara was only given two minutes for roughing. Getzlaf was given two for slashing and two for roughing.

Kevan Miller: Once again, he was solid at both ends of the ice. He’s having the season of his career.

TWO DOWN 

Ryan Spooner: He’s been playing so well this season. He’s been consistent, and for the most part, has not shied away from the physical aspect of the game. He did score Boston’s lone goal at 19:18 of the third period.

Power play: Boston went 0-for-4 on the man-advantage. As mentioned earlier, the Bruins’ first man-advantage was awful.

UP NEXT

The Bruins will host the St. Louis Blues at 7 p.m. on Thursday at TD Garden.