Bruins still searching for offensive spark after coaching change originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
BOSTON — The Bruins have played better since firing Jim Montgomery and elevating Joe Sacco to interim head coach last week. But one glaring issue that has remained despite the coaching change is a lack of consistent goal scoring.
And in an NHL where speed and skill are absolutely essential to winning games for prolonged stretches, the Bruins have fallen short again and again during the 2024-25 season.
Tuesday night’s 2-0 loss to the Vancouver Canucks at TD Garden was just the latest example. Not only did the Bruins fail to score against the Canucks, the winning goal was tallied by Jake DeBrusk, whom Boston let walk in free agency after he averaged 23.6 goals over the last three seasons.
The Bruins were shut out for the fourth time this season, something that happened just twice in 82 games last year. This shutout was a little different from the previous three shutout losses, though. The Bruins actually generated a ton of opportunities to score, they just couldn’t finish.
“We just have to start burying our chances,” Sacco said postgame. “I think we’re giving ourselves a chance to compete in games now. The guys are defending hard, but offensively we have to get some guys going and find their scoring touch.”
Here’s the final tally on important shot metrics (5-on-5 numbers in parentheses):
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Shot attempts: 72-31 (57-23) Bruins
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Shots on net: 33-15 (25-12) Bruins
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Scoring chances: 36-11 (27-8) Bruins
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High-danger chances: 18-2 (13-1) Bruins
This heat map, via Natural Stat Trick, shows how dominant the Bruins were in the attacking zone (the more red the better) and how non-existent the Canucks offense was throughout the game, with the exception of one power-play goal.
“I think we’re creating a lot of chances,” Bruins defenseman Mason Lohrei said. “We’re playing the right way. It’s going to come.”
The Bruins played a nearly flawless game defensively. They gave up season lows in shots on net (12), scoring chances (eight) and high-danger chances (one) at 5-on-5. The Canucks were very lucky to leave Boston with two points after generating almost nothing at even strength.
“We just have to keep playing the right way,” Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy said. “We’re stressing defense in here, and we’re doing a great job of it. I think it has helped our offensive game, we just can’t score.”
The Bruins haven’t scored more than two goals in six straight games. They’ve hit the…