The Bruins were honest after another terrible loss.
BOSTON – While the Boston Bruins extended their losing skid to five games with a 4-0 loss to the Edmonton Oilers Tuesday night at TD Garden, at least fans received a bit of a jolt when Boston Bruins forward Trent Frederic dropped the gloves and put a beating on the Oilers’ Corey Perry during the second period.
Other than that, Boston’s longstanding identity as one of the toughest teams in the NHL is a bit foggy at the moment.
It’s also not a good sign when forward Elias Lindholm, who signed with Boston for his offensive prowess, finished second on the team with five registered hits against the Oilers. Only Mark Kastelic had more with six. In fact, Lindholm has ramped up his physical play the last few games, which is both positive and negative. The Bruins need him to provide offense, which has been lacking, so he’s decided to play a more physical style to help both his game in hopes of putting a charge into his teammates.
Mark Kastelic “I was hoping for that,” he said. Kastelic “had a big hit at the beginning and then Freddy has a fight, but we were pretty dead tonight, not much energy. Our whole group wasn’t feeding from anything. It was a pretty terrible effort from everyone.”
Bruins coach Joe Sacco was clearly frustrated after the loss, and when asked about Lindholm’s increased physical play, he gave a simple answer.
“We like that, but we’d like to see that from other guys, too,” he said.
No doubt Lindholm is the toughest Swede to ever play for the Bruins and he provided some big-time hits against the Oilers. He applied a few teeth-shattering checks Mattias Ekholm and wasn’t shy against Connor McDavid.
Elias Lindholm“It’s part of my game,” Lindholm said. “Since the Seattle game when I left the game, I haven’t done as much as I would like, but tonight I was trying to create some sort of energy. I’ve got to be better.”
The Bruins have a big lineup, but it didn’t matter when a team like the Oilers moves the puck as quickly as they did Tuesday, basically rendering Boston’s physical game null and void. Lindholm signed a seven-year deal worth $7.75 annually with the Bruins during the offseason and it’s evident he’s trying to fit into the Boston style of play. When he’s at his best, he’s an all-around solid player at both ends of the ice.
“I chose to come here because there’s a good chance to win here,” he said. “For me to come here was a good fit and nothing has changed. It’s still a good fit, but it hasn’t clicked for me yet. I’ve got to be better, but my mindset hasn’t changed. I want to be here. I want to be part of this. I want to be a difference-maker whether it’s hitting people, giving energy, or scoring goals, or win a big faceoff. I try to bring something every night, but right now it’s frustrating. We’re not playing to our level. We’re not competing hard enough and that’s a standard (Bruins) created here for a long time. It’s disappointing we’re not bringing it every night and we’re making it easy for other teams to win games.”
Maybe when the Bruins regain their identity, Lindholm can find his offensive game and not focus all on the physicality.