Ullmark shaking off rust, Studnicka’s chances of cracking lineup and other takeaways from Bruins’ preseason loss to Rangers

The Bruins continued their preseason slate of games with a 4-3 overtime loss to the Rangers on Saturday night at TD Garden. David Pastrnak, Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand all scored for the B’s — while Linus Ullmark stopped 15 of 19 shots in the loss. Here are four takeaways from the contest.

Box Score

Not a banner night for Ullmark

Well … it’s better to relinquish goals like this in the preseason as opposed to when points are actually up for grabs.

What once looked like an easy victory for a Bruins lineup featuring plenty of NHL regulars went downhill over the closing minutes of play on Saturday — with Linus Ullmark relinquishing a penalty-shot tally to Canton’s own Kevin Rooney to force overtime before handing Alexis Lafreniere a layup in the extra frame with this flub. 

The optics of coughing up an OT winner like that in what was a 4-3 loss for the B's is obviously a tough look, but perhaps the more concerning takeaway is the overall body of work that Ullmark has put forward through two games of action with the B’s this preseason. 

In those two appearances, Ullmark has relinquished six goals on just 32 shots (.813 save percentage), with the veteran running into some issues with rebound control throughout his time in net. 

While it’s easy to brush off the OT winner as just a preseason blunder, Bruce Cassidy did note that Boston’s presumed No. 1 netminder still has some work to do when it comes to shaking off some rust and getting back up to speed. 

"Well it needs work,” Cassidy said of Ullmark’s game, adding: “All in all, it's preseason for him as well and right now I'm sure he'd be the first to tell you he needs some more reps and he'll get more reps and we'll see where he's at after the Washington game (on Wednesday)."

Of course, patience should be prescribed at this point of the season for a guy still learning a new system in Ullmark — so there’s no need for B’s fans to start pulling Tuukka Rask’s medical records, at least not yet. However, Ullmark’s so-so play in the early going could create an interesting situation as far as who gets the first dibs in net when the B’s open the season on Oct. 16 at the Garden. 

At this point, Jeremy Swayman sure is making a pretty compelling case. 

Jack Studnicka should earn a spot in Boston’s lineup … in some capacity

With Charlie Coyle expected to return to the lineup in Boston’s preseason finale on Wednesday night, Studnicka’s time at the 2C spot (at least to open the season) might be coming to an end. 

But that doesn’t mean the young forward hasn’t done enough to warrant a spot in Boston’s lineup. 

Barring a disappointing debut for Coyle next to Taylor Hall and Craig Smith next week, it sure seems likely that the Weymouth native will open the season in the top-six. But that’s not to say that Studnicka hasn’t shown flashes during this preseason — with Saturday’s loss to the Rangers standing as another encouraging outing. 

Sure, Studnicka didn’t exactly light up the scoresheet during these last two games as the man in the middle of Hall/Smith (one secondary helper) — but after getting some solid reviews from Cassidy on Thursday for the finer details of his game, Studnicka was much more aggressive on Saturday, tying for the team lead with four shots on goal. 

Despite once again reiterating the uphill climb Studnicka faces when it comes to bumping Coyle or Erik Haula out of the center spot, Cassidy again handed Studnicka a passing grade in another preseason outing. 

"There's some difficult decisions to make,” Cassidy said. “We just ask him to play at the best of his ability. He's playing with two good wingers that can score and create offense, so make sure you're the guy that's taking care of business away from the puck as well. And I like that part. 

“He's been a more responsible player. Today he attacked a little more, shot the puck. He's starting to buy into that philosophy as well. So he's doing what's asked — which is a good thing.”

Now, Studnicka may not open the year down the middle — and with the DeBrusk-Haula-Foligno line gelling, he may not have a spot on the third line either. But … could starting on the year on a fourth line be the best move for all involved? 

Sure, Studnicka’s offensive ceiling might be best utilized higher up in the lineup, but given the young forward’s strides in his 200-foot-game, his talent on the PK and some disappointing preseasons for other fourth-line contenders like Trent Frederic … perhaps it’s not as crazy of a move as one might initially think. 

We’ll see what happens on Wednesday when Coyle is back in the top-six unit — because I wouldn’t mind seeing Studnicka get a few reps with another straight-line skater in Tomas Nosek. 

"That's my goal. At the end of the day, I'm not gonna worry about that,” Studnicka said of forcing the Bruins’ hand when it comes to making room in the lineup for him. “I'm just gonna play hockey and put my best foot forward — which obviously there's always room for improvement. 

“But up to this point, I'd say I'm satisfied with a majority of my hockey and there's so much room to grow, no matter who you are. So I’m always going to be looking to improve but hopefully there's some conversations that are being had."

Mike Reilly flexes muscles in transition

For as much as Reilly’s return this offseason had some mixed reactions from fans in terms of the puck-mover’s potential redundancy on the left side of Boston’s D corps — it’s tough to ignore the impact that the blueliner had in terms of spurring Boston’s even-strength offense. 

Reilly, who paced all NHL blueliners in 5v5 assists with 20 last year, was an effective weapon both in the O-zone and in transition for the B’s in 2021 — especially when it came to orchestrating quality looks via a well-placed stretch pass. Whereas Matt Grzelcyk’s strength in transition often comes from moving his feet to jumpstart breakouts, Reilly’s passing adds another effective wrinkle to a B’s D corps that should be putting opposing teams on their heels early and often this season. 

Saturday was a signature showing from Reilly in terms of sizing up his unique contributions on Boston’s defense — with the 28-year-old blue line setting up the 5v5 tally for Bergeron with a nifty drop pass in transition. 

Skating next to Brandon Carlo, that projected second pairing for the B’s was as advertised when it comes to playing to their respective strengths – with Carlo shutting down scoring chances and Reilly getting the play started down the other end of the ice.

While Reilly is obviously more skilled in the O-zone, both him and Carlo were handed plenty of tougher starts out on the ice Saturday — with just 44 percent of their faceoffs at 5v5 play coming in the offensive zone. An unorthodox "shutdown" pair, but one that could be effective if Reilly is regularly pushing the puck out of danger. 

Jesper Froden, Brady Lyle impress

With the B’s projected third line of DeBrusk-Haula-Foligno getting the night off, if did open the door for a few players on the roster bubble to make a good impression — with Jesper Froden, in particular, standing out on a line with Karson Kuhlman and Nosek. 

A start down in Providence still seems like the likely scenario for the 27-year-old Swede, but Froden was noticeable on a number of shifts by moving his feet and creating puck battles along the wall. Don’t rule him out in terms of making a debut in the NHL ranks later this year, especially if this fourth-line carousel continues. 

Brady Lyle, while likely not pushing Connor Clifton out of that third-pairing spot on the right, also bounced back from a few so-so performances last month in both the Prospects Challenge and preseason play — setting up Marchand’s shorthanded strike by lofting the puck out of Boston’s own zone. 

"He's a smart player," Cassidy said of Lyle. "He's willing to get up the ice, make plays. He's got certainly an offensive slant to his game. Got some size, he was competing. I think with Brady, it's just about understanding that the game moves quicker and so he has to be in motion a little more. He doesn't have the quickness of a Grizz or the powerful stride of Charlie (McAvoy). So for him, it's about finding ways to stay assertive and stay in motion. And when you get the puck, get going.  Make your plays, look while you're moving, like a lot of young guys. There's just less time. Guys are quicker, they have better sticks.

“But I liked his willingness to get up the ice and add a layer of offense. So for me, this was much better than the first game he played and nice to know we have a guy like that — that can bring offense from the back end that's close. We'll see again in a little bit where he's at. He's a right shot, we're missing a few of those. So might not be as far away as we think, simply because of that. If we want to keep guys their true sides. But a good performance for him and he looks like he's a guy that is very close."