The Boston Bruins fell to the Philadelphia Flyers in a 3-1 preseason loss on Friday. For the players battling for a playoff spot, here's whose stock went up and went down.
The Boston Bruins fell 3-1 to the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday night at Wells Fargo Center. It was Boston’s fourth preseason game, and as the regular season comes closer with more cuts made to the training camp roster by the day, this game provided some clarity about how several players are trending.
Stock Down: Patrick Brown
The initial front-runner for the fourth-line center spot, Brown had a rough showing on Monday. The 31-year-old did not record any shots on goal, went 4/11 from the face-off dot (36.7%) and had one giveaway.
At 5-on-5, Brown had a 6.67 Corsi For Percentage (1-14), which was the lowest of any Bruins player this preseason by a wide margin. The Flyers had seven scoring chances with Brown on the ice at 5-on-5 compared to just one for the Bruins.
“We just weren’t sharp,” Bruins coach Jim Montgomery told reporters in Philadelphia after the game. “I didn’t think we won enough battles. I didn’t think our puck support was quick enough offensively or defensively to get back on offense. And in turn, we just didn’t generate a lot of opportunities in the offensive zone because very rarely did we have the puck there.”
Montgomery is looking for physicality, good defense with the ability to create offense and strength at the face-off dot from the fourth line, and in this game, Brown provided none of that. With the impressive performances other centers are having so far this preseason, the former Boston College Eagle could be in jeopardy.
Stock Up: Matt Poitras
Call him Matt ‘Point-ras’ because the 19-year-old center scored again on the power play, this time a secondary assist that started a slick series of passing to Charlie Coyle then Morgan Geekie to put the Bruins ahead in the first period.
Ok, don’t actually call him that, but the conversations around Poitras making the opening night roster just got more serious. Whether he’d stick around beyond the maximum nine games he can play before burning a year off his entry-level contract would be another story, but after putting together another great performance, it will be worth monitoring.
After a rough night at the face-off dot in Friday’s loss (5/16, 31.3%), Poitras rebounded by going 8/11 (72.7%) and posting the second-highest 5-on-5 CF% of 80. He set teammates up for scoring opportunities with good passes all night, and the next few days should be telling when it comes to his standing in the organization.
Stock Down: Mike Callahan
The battle for the seventh defenseman appears to be down to Jakub Zboril and Ian Mitchell, and the latter had another solid game on Monday. Callahan, on the other hand, didn’t do anything to put himself into the conversation. In fact, he probably did the opposite.
On the ice for two of Philadelphia’s goals, including a failed clearance which led to the Flyers’ third goal on the ensuing possession, Callahan had the Bruins’ second-lowest Shots For Percentage (16.67%), with the Flyers outshooting Boston 10-2 while he was on the ice. The 24-year-old Franklin, Mass. native could very well be joining the AHL Providence camp shortly after Monday.
“We turned a lot of pucks over unnecessarily, which didn’t allow us to get to our puck-possession game and get the puck below their goal line,” Montgomery said. “They did a lot of things to us that we wanted to do to them tonight.”
Stock Up: The Penalty Kill
Last game, I listed the power play after the close-to-full-strength top unit scored a goal and created a handful of chances, but the penalty kill was the star on Monday night. They were tested early and often, but successfully killed off three penalties in the first period, and one more full penalty* across the whole game.
Despite Philadelphia controlling the puck for nearly the entirety of its power play opportunities, the Bruins allowed just four shots on goal. Boston consistently closed off passing and shooting lanes, and whenever the Flyers managed to push the puck inside, Jeremy Swayman was able to clean it up.
“I thought [Swayman] was terrific on the penalty kill,” Montgomery said. “I thought he gave us a chance early on. We got up 1-0 because he was so sharp early.”
Philadelphia scored twice in a span of 57 seconds at the beginning of the second period, both off weird bounces, and again on a shot Swayman probably wanted back, but all were at even strength. The penalty kill got tested early, and it held up well.
“It was good to get that early on, get some rubber early on,” Swayman told reporters. “In the second period, I wanted to make sure I kept that going, and I obviously didn’t. So some stuff to work on, and I know what I need to do moving forward.”
*= Dan Renouf got called for interference with less than three seconds left in the game, making up Boston’s fifth penalty.
Stock Down: Fabian Lysell
Lysell didn’t have the worst performance on the Bruins on Monday, but it wasn’t good either. He had a 34.78 5-on-5 CF% (8-15) and his effort was inconsistent. He did put two shots on goal, displaying his quick release, but the rest of his game made it obvious that he needs more time to grow in the AHL.
At 20, the winger still has that room to grow, but when it comes to what the Bruins are looking for out of young players in the bottom six – defense, physicality, etc. – Lysell isn’t bringing it. This upcoming season will be crucial for his development.