BSJ Game Report: Predators 2, Bruins 1 - B's lose at home to depleted Predators

Everything you need to know from the Bruins’ 2-1 loss against the Predators, with BSJ insight and analysis:

HEADLINES

B's fail to clinch Presidents' Trophy in loss to Preds: David Pastrnak scored the only goal for the Bruins in their 2-1 loss to the Predators on Tuesday at TD Garden.

Pastrnak potted his 52nd goal of the season at the last second of regulation, but it wasn't enough as the B's win streak came to a close at seven games.

"We didn't have our A-game tonight," Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery said after the game. "It wasn't only the power play that stunk tonight. There were a lot of facets to our game that weren't at the level and the standard that we expect. For whatever reason, we laid an egg tonight."

Nashville received goals from Cody Glass and Jeremy Lauzon while goaltender Juuse Saros secured 35 saves for the victors.

Bruins goalie Linus Ullmark finished with 21 saves in the defeat. A victory would have secured the Presidents' Trophy as the Hurricanes were shut out by the Lightning, 4-0.

Glass put the Predators ahead in the second period on a snap shot from the slot following a point shot from Ryan McDonagh. The tally came at 18:11 of the middle frame and proved to be a critical goal in the game.

The B's never found their rhythm on offense despite five power-play opportunities throughout the game. The Bruins didn't score on any of the power plays and only threw five shots on goal while on the man advantage.

Lauzon, a former Bruins draft pick, netted the deciding goal with a lengthy empty-netter at 18:41 of the third. Pastrnak roofed one before the buzzer to spoil the Predators' shutout while earning his 98th point of the season.

"It was a weird one, that's for sure" Ullmark said to reporters. "It wasn't our best, it wasn't our cleanest game. We made an effort, had a push in the third period, unfortunately we scored just a little bit too late."

TWO DOWN

Power outage: It's nothing new, but the Bruins power play is really struggling. Another scoreless effort on Tuesday furthered the downward trend.

The Bruins are now seventh-worst in the NHL on the power play with a 21.6 percentage.

"I think we're forcing plays, we're disjointed, we're disconnected," Patrice Bergeron said. "I think we have to go back to hard and simple, same thing 5-on-5, I think the power play is no different. You actually have to work for loose pucks and retrieve pucks. When you're one and done it's hard to really capitalize on your chances."

McAvoy scare: The Bruins' star defenseman took an apparent cross-check to the face during the second period. Predators forward Egor Afanasyev caught McAvoy up high and received a minor penalty.

ONE UP

Pastrnak inches closer to 100 points: Pastrnak's last-second goal was too late to stir a comeback for the Bruins, but it still held some meaning.

The B's sniper is now just two points away from hitting triple digits for the first time in his career. His previous career high came during the 2019-20 season when he scored 95 points in 70 games.

Pastrnak would be the 11th Bruin in team history to reach 100 points in a season, should No. 88 accomplish the feat over the last eight games.

PLAY OF THE GAME

In a game that didn't feature a lot of energy from the Bruins, Connor Clifton was the exception. Clifton concluded the night with three hits, including this hard one in the third:

LOOKING AHEAD

The Bruins will welcome the Blue Jackets to the Garden on Thursday. Columbus is tied for last in the NHL in points with 53 and lost to the Rangers on Tuesday, 6-2.

Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.