After missing their playmaking maestro and on-ice epinephrine in Brad Marchand for the previous three games, the Bruins’ top forward line sure looked like it didn’t skip a beat on Wednesday night up in Vancouver.
In the 11:58 of 5v5 ice time that Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak all logged together, the Bruins held a 21-6 edge in shot attempts against the Canucks — including a lopsided 11-1 edge in shots on goal.
Alas, despite those sterling puck-possession metrics and the assurances found in Marchand returning to the lineup, the B’s top line didn’t have a tangible 5v5 goal to show for their effort.
And unfortunately, that’s been a trend for Bergeron and Co.
Even with Marchand on the shelf for three games due to a suspension, a top line with Taylor Hall added to the equation was still awfully effective at generating chances. In total, the Bruins have outshot foes, 39-16, and generated 40 scoring chances in the 44:25 of 5v5 ice time that a Hall-Bergeron-Pastrnak line has logged together. And during that stretch? Just one 5v5 goal scored. And one goal against.
In fact, over the last 10 games, the Bruins have been knocking opponents on the ropes when their captain has been out on the ice at 5v5 action.
According to @Bruins_Stats, the Bruins hold a whopping 114-45 edge in shots on goal when Bergeron has been on the ice during that extended 10-game stretch. And yet, despite all of those O-zone reps and chances generated, the B’s have only scored three 5v5 goals in that time — while coughing up three goals down the other end of the ice.
Call it just poor puck luck or chalk it up to a myriad of other factors. But the Bergeron line — as lethal as it is — isn’t making its mark in the most important ledger of note: the scoreboard.
And if the top line isn’t getting rewarded, any battle-hardened, weary B’s fan knows where that leaves the rest of the lineup — and the fortunes of the club as a whole.
Aside from that blissful six-week spell last year in which Hall-Krejci-Smith pantsed the competition together as a leviathan of a second line, “As Bergeron goes, so goes the Bruins” has been a painful mantra that has dictated the trajectory of a team that’s routinely been scuttled by the lack of 5v5 scoring punch outside of its top triumvirate.
And on Wednesday night at Rogers Arena, there was little hope for a savior outside of that top line.
Aside from an Erik Haula danglefest tally that was immediately reeled back due to an offside review, the rest of Boston’s lineup did little to make Vancouver goalie Thatcher Demko sweat under his gear.
Charlie Coyle — supposedly boosted by the return of Hall to his left flank — failed to generate much of anything as the driver of Boston’s second line. By the time the dust had settled on Wednesday’s outing, Vancouver held a 29-9 edge in shot attempts during Coyle’s 13:57 of 5v5 ice time.
Hall’s situation was even worse, with the star forward going from top-line ace last week to getting bumped down to the third line by the end of Wednesday’s tilt. He finished with zero shots on goal on a night where Boston fired 36 (largely low-danger) pucks at Demko.
“It wasn't necessarily just him,” Joe Sacco said of Hall’s demotion. “I mean, it was the line in general. We thought that, as a group, that maybe we could just change it up a little bit and put in Haula — because that line, it did have some success the last couple games. So we'll figure out where we want to go with it tomorrow, as far as our lines. But we just thought we'd give it a chance and give it a shot in the arm and try to jolt our offense a little bit."
Put it all together, and you’ve got a familiar result for many who have watched the B’s over the years: Not enough tangible 5v5 production from the big guns, and next to no support further down the lineup on a group of combinations that seem out of whack.
With Hall and Coyle unable to generate tangible production (with some strong returns with Coyle + Haula a reminder of just how effective that duo could be if slotted down to a third-line role) and that domino effect leaving more middle-six regulars either out of position or playing above their heads, what can the Bruins do to alleviate their most recent bout of scoring woes?
Considering the high-scoring foe that awaits them next in Connor McDavid and the Oilers, perhaps now is the time to break up the Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak trio in hopes of a more sustained and balanced offensive attack.
As sacrilege as that seems to some (especially Bruce Cassidy and some of the B’s higher-ups) it sure seems like the most effective way to jolt an offense that has now scored just six goals over a four-game stretch — especially when other alternatives include adding Karson Kuhlman to the mix or reshuffling the same tired trios in the middle-six grouping.
Whether it be swapping Marchand and Hall or switching Pastrnak and Smith — both avenues seem like worthwhile risks at this point to try and draw more of a spark out of the top six.
A Pastrnak+Smith switcheroo does seem a bit more likely, even though sparking Hall might be the most pressing need on this B’s forward grouping. And even though a Marchand-Bergeron-Smith line may not elicit the same amount of dread as its usual configuration, I’ll shout into the void once again: “Any line anchored by at least two (2) of Bergeron, Marchand and Pastrnak will still be pretty damn good.”
We’ve mentioned this before, if you’re looking for tangible numbers.
yOu cAnt BrEaK uP tHa "PeRfEcTiOn lInE"
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) June 18, 2019
Over the last few years, the Bruins have done preeeeeeeeety good with whoever gets slotted in to play with Bergeron + Marchand: pic.twitter.com/eRCAqmzf3B
Of course, as has usually been the case when it comes to exploring the possibility of splitting up 63-37-88 — all of the promising metrics can fall on deaf ears when weighed against the effectiveness of that line on most nights.
Postgame, Sacco preached patience when it came to Boston shooting its way out of this latest scoring slump.
“You just have to stick with it,” Sacco said. “I think that frustration can settle in easily on a group. I said earlier, what we'd like to see from our group is just start shooting the puck a little bit more at certain times during the game.
“There's opportunities where we pass up on some shots, and we can get some two-for-one rebounds and situations like that. But as far as our group not scoring, I mean, certainly, it's an issue that we focus on. And we just want to make sure that they stick with it and don't get frustrated. And usually, good players will find a way to score if they keep putting pucks on the net. The scoring will come.”
But there are only so many more tweaks and half-measures that can be done before more significant measures must be taken.
Is splitting up arguably the top line in hockey a risk? Sure is.
But at this point, what other in-house remedies are there to help give this forward corps a shot in the arm?
