BSJ Game Report: Flyers 3, Bruins 2 - B's can't bury Philly in East Division race

Everything you need to know from the Bruins’ 3-2 loss to the Flyers in quickie form, with BSJ insight and analysis:

Box Score

HEADLINES

B's can't finish off Philly

Despite being handed a prime chance to dispatch a divisional foe nipping at their heels for the fourth and final playoff spot in the East Division, the Bruins were unable to land a knockout punch against the Flyers on Saturday — with Philly posting a 3-2 win at Wells Fargo Center in their eighht and final regular-season meeting against Boston.

With the loss, the Bruins fall to 21-11-6 on the season and now sit four points ahead of the Flyers in the East Division — albeit with two games in hand on Philadelphia.

Patrice Bergeron and Jake DeBrusk both lit the lamp for Boston, while Jeremy Swayman — starting his third straight game — was tabbed with the first loss of his NHL career after relinquishing three goals on 23 shots.

Another quick start for Boston, with Bergeron snapping one past Brian Elliott 5:38 into the contest, was negated as time dragged on — with Travis Konecny potting a rebound at 11:51 and Shayne Gostisbehere giving Philly the lead on the power play at 17:46.

DeBrusk's fourth tally of the season gave the Bruins' new life in the second period, but Philly took the lead for good in the third period, with Sean Couturier firing one home into a largely empty B's net to close out the scoring on the afternoon.

B's lose Grzelcyk

Well, when it rains, it pours as far as the Bruins' injury situation goes.

Already without two of their top-four defenseman in Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo — the B's were dealt another major blow after the first period of play on Saturday, as Matt Grzelcyk exited the contest due to an upper-body injury.

It appeared as though the blueliner took an elbow up high during the opening 20 minutes of action on Saturday, putting him on a "day to day" status moving forward, per Bruce Cassidy.

https://twitter.com/dafoomie/status/1380963505575243778

Obviously, this is just the latest in a continued slew of injuries that have afflicted the B's D corps, with no immediate relief in sight. Not only are McAvoy, Carlo and now Grzelcyk not expected to suit up for Sunday night's home matchup against the Caps — but Kevan Miller will also likely not play in the second leg of a back-to-back slate as the club looks to manage his minutes and look out for that surgically repaired knee.

It might be a long night at the office for Dan Vladar tomorrow against a high-powered Caps offense.

THREE UP

Craig Smith: Don't look now, but Smith continues to stay red hot — regardless of what line he's on. After recording the primary assist on Bergeron's opening tally, Smith (bumped down to the third line following a power play) helped orchestrate DeBrusk's equalizer in the second with a nifty, behind-the-back feed. Over his last 11 games, Smith has has racked up 12 points (three goals, nine assists).

Jake DeBrusk: After shaking off the rust following more than two weeks in COVID-19 protocols, DeBrusk finally broke through with his fourth goal of the season — snapping a puck past Elliott in the middle frame. Along with his tally, DeBrusk was active in puck pursuit and board battles on that third line. Fair to say, Boston needs more of this from their young winger, especially in that bottom-six spot in the lineup.

Patrice Bergeron: Count Bergeron among the many Bruins likely bummed out that there aren't any more games on the docket against the Flyers this season. With his first-period goal, Bergeron closes out his eight-game set against Philly with eight goals and 14 total points.

https://twitter.com/ConorRyan_93/status/1380948906729746436

THREE DOWN

Power play: After tallying 10 power-play tallies against the Flyers during their first seven matchups of the regular season, Boston couldn't generate much of anything on the man advantage Saturday — going 0-for-4 on the afternoon. With McAvoy and Grzelcyk both out, there was an awful lot of stagnant puck movement, especially up high.

David Pastrnak: While the Marchand-Bergeron-Smith line looks awfully legit, the Bruins still aren't getting remotely enough from David Pastrnak on that second line. Pastrnak has now been limited to just two goals (both in the same game on 4/3) in his last 10 games. Not good enough, especially for a winger of Pastrnak's caliber.

Jeremy Swayman: It's tough to really knock a guy who was clearly playing with a heavy heart on Saturday, but Philly managed to capitalize against Swayman on Saturday thanks to a few rookie miscues. Poor rebound control in the opening period gave Konecny a Grade-A look that he promptly buried for the Flyers' first goal, while Swayman's efforts to challenge Philly shooters backfired when he was caught out of position on Couturier's game-winning strike.

PLAY OF THE GAME

https://twitter.com/ConorRyan_93/status/1380966043489812481

PARTING THOUGHTS

https://twitter.com/ConorRyan_93/status/1380945273615233027

QUOTE OF THE DAY

https://twitter.com/ByLoganMullen/status/1380985748325855240

LOOKING AHEAD: The Bruins will now return to TD Garden for a five-game homestand — starting with a rematch against the Capitals on Sunday evening. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.