Right around the holidays, everybody associated with the Bruins was wondering what was up offensively with a struggling David Pastrnak.
His goal-scoring and production were way off, and it seemed like generally speaking his overall game was in a bad place with ill-advised penalties and a slew of sloppy, costly turnovers. Some of that is always going to be within the DNA of Pastrnak’s game in terms of risk/reward with a playmaking kind of offensive player, but the game-breaking right winger was off to his worst offensive pace in over a decade.
Right around the holidays, everybody associated with the Bruins was wondering what was up offensively with a struggling Pastrnak.
His goal-scoring and production were way off, and it seemed like generally speaking his overall game was in a bad place with ill-advised penalties and a slew of sloppy, costly turnovers. Some of that is always going to be within the DNA of Pastrnak’s game in terms of risk/reward with a playmaking kind of offensive player, but the game-breaking right winger was off to his worst offensive pace in over a decade.
It led some to wonder if the burden of shouldering so much of the B’s offensive load was becoming too much, and others speculated that strife in the dressing room was behind the struggles.
When asked if the locker room knowing Pastrnak would eventually get hot was giving this team optimism that the season would eventually turn around, Jeremy Swayman said “there’s an endless belief in this room.”
— Tom Carroll (@yaboiTCfresh) January 25, 2025
“…to not let the adversity of results dictate how we play and how we… pic.twitter.com/z9Zn9JUwRY
Well, all of that has changed after a torrid month of January that continued this weekend with a goal and three points in Boston’s 3-1 win over the high-powered Colorado Avalanche on Saturday afternoon. Pastrnak got the primary helper in both of Morgan Geekie’s third-period scores, to tie the game and ultimately take the lead, and then No. 88 added the cherry on top of the sundae with an empty net score to clinch the victory.
“I feel like my game has come back a little bit. I think having chemistry with your linemates is important,” said Pastrnak. “I think all of [players on] our line is playing the right way the last few games and we’re getting rewarded.
“Early on in the season, you are all around it. But if you don’t score, that can take your mindset away from it. Sometimes your mindset can go somewhere else [for a while]. But right now, we’re sticking with it. We are connected, we are close to each other, and we are clicking. It’s always fun to have that chemistry with your linemates.”
Pastrnak now has 11 goals and 22 points in 12 games during January while averaging 21 minutes of ice time per game, and he’s now on pace for 39 goals and 95 points for the season. The Bruins, as a team, have scored 37 goals in the 12 games during the month of January and are now averaging over three goals per game this month after being amongst the NHL’s worst offensive teams all season.
The Bruins were counting on Pastrnak to carry the team a bit offensively as he did last season, and he’s doing that now with the B’s in a situation where they need to keep scoring, and keep winning, if they are going to push for a Stanley Cup playoff bid.
The biggest difference with the right winger is the eye test where he’s playing with energy and drive when the puck is on his stick, and he’s finding a much better balance of shooting the puck and feeding red-hot teammate Geekie for a slew of goals this month as well.
“He’s just finding his game and getting his confidence level up where it usually is. He’s a talented player and he’s competitive, and he wants to help the team offensively. That’s how he feels he helps the team in most cases, and he takes it upon himself to produce at a really high level,” said Joe Sacco. “He’s going to find his offensive sooner or later…he’s just too talented of a player and he’s feeling good about himself again.”
ONE TIMERS
*Full credit to Franklin, Mass native Michael Callahan, who has done a solid job for the Bruins on the back end when called upon over the last couple of games. The 25-year-old made his NHL debut a couple of a weeks ago amidst all the Bruins injuries on the back end and was inserted back in for the last couple of games as the Bruins ripped off wins over Ottawa and Colorado with strong defensive efforts.
Callahan was placed back in the lineup after a complete penalty kill breakdown in the road loss in New Jersey earlier this week and helped the B’s penalty kill step up and perform in a must-have home win over the Senators. Callahan was lauded for his predictable, defensive style of play as he certainly isn’t flashy, but he keeps it simple and gets the job done while logging 16 plus minutes of ice time in important games for the Black and Gold.
“When you are minus [Charlie] McAvoy and [Hampus] Lindholm, you need all of your defensemen to step up,” said Sacco. “All six of our defensemen have stepped up.”
*The Morgan Geekie-Pavel Zacha-David Pastrnak line has established itself as Boston’s top line over the last month, and that has allowed the Bruins to finally score enough to be an offensively dangerous team. Geekie (seven goals and 10 points in 12 games this month), Zacha (two goals and 11 points in 12 games this month) and Pastrnak (11 goals and 22 points in 12 games this month) have taken their chemistry to the next level, but the biggest factor behind that has been No. 88 driving that line with relentless, committed play at both ends. He is moving his feet in the offensive end and creating plays with his skating and skills and is back where he’s expected to be among the NHL leaders in scoring over the last month after a very slow start to this regular season.
"That line has developed some chemistry [in] the last little while. They're finding their spots in the offensive zone and reading off each other well,” said Joe Sacco. “[Morgan Geekie] is doing a good job, finishing his chances. And 88's playing pretty good hockey right now.”
*A big response for Jeremy Swayman after not being able to play physically on Thursday night against the Ottawa Senators, as he stopped 26-of-27 shots including 12 saves in the first period where it really felt like the Bruins did not have their skating legs against the speedy Avalanche playing their third game in four days.
“He gave us a chance to win…no question,” said Sacco of Swayman, who has a .913 save percentage in nine games during the month of January and has been strong just like everybody else in Black and Gold. “When he got called upon, we got the timely saves from Swayman. There’s no doubt about it that he was a difference-maker.”
