Bruins takeaways: Pastrnak benched, goaltending improves in weekend wins originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The Boston Bruins hit a new low with last Thursday’s 8-2 loss to the Hurricanes in Carolina. This past weekend offered the B’s a chance to get back on track with two matchups versus lesser-talented opponents, and they took advantage.
The Bruins beat the Philadelphia Flyers 3-0 on the road Saturday afternoon before coming home to TD Garden and defeating the Seattle Kraken 2-0 on Sunday.
While the Bruins still have lots of room for improvement in just about every facet of their game, these two wins did show that progress is being made to address what has ailed this team throughout the season so far.
The Bruins are now 6-6-1 through 13 games. Here are four takeaways from their weekend victories.
David Pastrnak benched
Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery has not been afraid to send a message to his best players this season. He had a fiery outburst toward captain Brad Marchand during a loss in Utah last month, and then Sunday he benched David Pastrnak — the team’s leading scorer and highest-paid player — for the entire third period.
When asked about the benching after the game, Montgomery told reporters, “Coach’s decision, third period. That’s all I’m going to comment on.”
Pastrnak led all Bruins players with seven shots, but he also was credited with two giveaways in the 14:11 of ice time he got through two periods. One of the turnovers happened on a late second period power play that resulted in a shorthanded scoring chance for the Kraken. He also had three giveaways in Saturday’s win.
Players like Pastrnak are going to rank among the leaders in turnovers. They have the puck a lot. The top 10 players in giveaways last season included Pastrnak, Nikita Kucherov, Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon, among other elite scorers. But at the same time, puck possession is super important. Being too careless with the puck is a problem.
Despite what happened, Pastrnak maintained a positive attitude on the bench in support of his teammates.
“He wasn’t silent,” Coyle said of Pastrnak, per WEEI’s Scott McLaughlin. “He was bringing energy. He was talking. He was into it. That’s the sign of a good teammate right there. And that’s why he wears a letter as one of our captains and one of our leaders. There’s a lot to be said for that.”
Montgomery is going to hold everyone accountable, whether you’re the team’s highest-paid player or a…