bruins lose 4th straight game

While the Bruins may be sitting atop the League in points, and may have only registered 11 regulation-time losses all season, the fact remains that they have lost four straight games, most recently, last night to Nashville.

As previously posted, I missed the game against Philly, but watched the Sharks come back to win, and watched highlights of the 1-0 loss to New Jersey and the 3-2 loss to Nashville. I find it is hard to really assess how dire the situation is, frankly. All four of these teams are either at the top of their game (SJ or NJ) or on a bit of a run recently (Philly is streaky and Nashville are starting to put it together). Is there shame in being beaten by these clubs?

I don’t know if that is even the right question to ask.

A few weeks ago, I was posting about how the Bruins were winning games – sometimes against clubs at the top of their division, sometimes against clubs outside the playoff picture – without really deserving the win. A lucky bounce, a phenomenal save (or ten) at just the right time, or a particularly soft goalie on any given night became the difference maker for a Bruins club that really was not playing that well. Sloppy passes, poor execution, scrambly play, lackluster defensive coverage, etc., were the norm.

For several games in a row I pointed out how the B’s were scored on inside the first or last minutes of a period (sometimes both!), or how they had consistently coughed up the first goal of the game for weeks on end.

None of this seemed to matter in Bruins Nation, beyond being quietly disconcerting, because the Bruins were still winning. In fact, they had a spectacular record despite the above statistics.

But now the season has come into the home stretch. Most clubs have less than 30 games remaining, and are ramping up, as the Bruins are beginning to show some weaknesses. By losing by a single goal against Nashville, New Jersey and Philadelphia, the B’s have shown that they are competing on par with their adversaries in each game – but the difference of one goal IS that first-goal-against, or goal in the last minute of a period.

In a reversal of fortunes, in last night’s game, the Bruins erased a two goal deficit against the Predators, and were able to score the tying goal inside the final 2 minutes of the game. I would like to think that this latest run of losses, coupled with the fight-til-the-end attitude shown in last night’s match, are enough to jumpstart the Bruins out of their recent complacency.

However, for a team that was recently 15 points ahead of everyone in the League, boasting the numbers that they do, the B’s should not require any jumpstart at all.

What will it take to be reassured that this Bruins team is playing to its potential and will make appropriate noise when the post-season rolls around?

It starts with some wins.

bruins 2 - sharks 5

The much ballyhooed First-in-East-versus-First-in-West, or if you prefer, Joe-Thornton's-Return-to-Boston game happened last night, and the Sharks came out on top.

The Bruins led the game 2-1 entering the third period, but two lucky bounces gave the Sharks the tie and the lead, and they eventually iced the game with an empty net goal.

Which is not to say the Sharks did not deserve the win - they absolutely did. The Bruins were hitting and getting tons of shots in the first period, which diminished in the second, and diminished further in the third. The Sharks, for their part, seemed surprised to find their effort matched in the first period, and by sustaining their offense as the Bruins dipped, they were able to mount the comeback.

This was only the second Sharks game I had seen this year, and they are an impressive bunch. Goalie Evgeni Nabokov was equal parts blase and amazing, and Dan Boyle is worth all the hype he's received this year.

As for the battle between Chara and Thornton, it's hard to say who won. Chara had an alright night, but became more scrambly as the game went by (primarily due to an increased level of forecheck pressure), while Thornton got a goal, but one that merely deflected off his foot.

Making matters worse, the Bruins lost Chuck Kobasew for a good portion of the game, and lost Pettri Nokelainen with a serious eye-injury (he was high-sticked by Dan Boyle, and the play was not called).

The Bruins players see the game as a lesson learned, according to Coach Julien:

"That’s the way our players react. They look at it as lesson learned, I think they were disappointed because when we went into the third period with a lead and thought we could continue to compete. But it took a few mistakes and again just not having enough, I guess enough energy to push back, having to play with a short bench and they just didn’t have it tonight. And unfortunately against a team like that it’s already pretty hard to play against them with a full lineup and when you have to shorten your bench because of injuries, [that] certainly doesn’t help matters. Give them credit, guys, they played a real good game, they played a patient game. We had a good first period, but as the game went on they started picking up their game and we had our hands full."

This was the Bruins second straight loss. I realize I didn't post anything about Saturday night's loss to Philly, but I was away for the weekend. It felt like old news by the time I had returned.