The Boston Bruins kick off a four-game Western Conference road trip against the high-scoring Colorado Avalanche on Monday.
The Boston Bruins head out west for a four-game road trip, starting at Ball Arena against the Colorado Avalanche on Monday.
Johnny Beecher is rotating back into the lineup in place of Jakub Lauko, and Bruins coach Jim Montgomery cited the need for improvement at the face-off dot. The Bruins won 52.8 percent of face-offs in their 7-3 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday, but struggled in the four games prior with an average of 33.3 percent. Beecher is tied with Pavel Zacha for highest face-off percentage on the team this season (53.2%).
Colorado has won six of its last eight games, and sit second in the Central Division behind the Winnipeg Jets. Loaded with star power such as Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Mikko Rantanen, the Avalanche sit as high in the standings as they do for a reason.
“Their rush is attack is really good, so is their O-zone play,” Montgomery told reporters in Denver on Monday. “And one thing that they do really well is they win goal line races, and what I mean by that is they usually have three [defenders] or two at both goal lines, so they break out quick and their forecheck is very good.”
Brandon Carlo, who is a Colorado Springs native, went more in-depth on what Makar and Devon Toews possess leading the Avalance’s back end.
“[Makar’s] always up in the rush. Him and Toews,” Carlo told reporters. “Those guys are very good at finding their opportunities to be that fourth man into the rush, so you gotta be aware of those higher plays coming into the zone, and definitely try and navigate with your forwards to track those guys well to make sure that you can take them out of the play, even though they are kind of that second layer of offense.”
Carlo also pointed out the offensive threat on the Bruins side, especially players that have stepped up their production from last year. Eight different players have scored five points or more over the past five games, including Trent Frederic and Morgan Geekie, each of whom entered the season with limited expectations for their offensive upside.
With the Bruins winning of five of their last six, and having scored four or more goals in all six games, they’re prepared for a high-octane battle.
“Avalanche are one of the best teams in the league the last four years, and for sure, for us to measure up against them, especially on the road, it’s going to be a good battle for us,” Montgomery said.
Five Things to Know About the Avalanche:
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