With injuries leading to frequent roster changes for Boston, one thing has remained the same: the Bruins have had very few easy wins this season. In fact, a 5-2 victory over the St. Louis Blues on Thursday was only their second by more than two goals.
Now the Bruins turn the page to a Saturday matchup against the visiting New Jersey Devils, with Boston looking to earn its first back-to-back triumphs since completing a seven-game winning streak nearly a month ago.
“Maybe we slip a little bit sometimes after one or a few wins, so we need to maintain that consistency better and have a higher low point than we have right now,” said Boston forward Viktor Arvidsson, who scored his 400th career point Thursday.
Boston scored twice in the first half against St. Louis before opening a 2-1 game with a three-goal middle frame in which Pavel Zacha scored the final two goals. Joonas Korpisalo made a season-high 37 saves.
Boston forward Alex Steeves has taken over in the absence of star David Pastrnak, who has missed four straight games with an undisclosed injury and remains day-to-day.
Steeves scored the opening goal against the Blues, his fifth goal in five games as he temporarily plays alongside Elias Lindholm and Morgan Geekie on the front line. The New Hampshire native didn’t play his first NHL game until Nov. 8 this season, working out his game with AHL Providence to earn a call-up.
“A lot of guys say it. But to Steeves’ credit, a lot of guys don’t,” Bruins coach Marco Sturm said. “He didn’t like to come down (after training camp), but I also remember him saying, ‘I’ll come back.’ …The way he said it, I believed him. I knew his time would come.”
Friday also marked Boston defender Charlie McAvoy’s second day wearing a non-contact jersey after being shot in the face on November 15.
New Jersey hits the road to complete a straight set and looks to change its luck after being swept in a four-game homestand. The Devils suffered their second straight shutout and third this season in a 3-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday.
Before the recent skid that knocked them out of a playoff spot in the very tight Eastern Conference, the Devils were 9-0-1 at home this season. They are 7-7-0 on the road.
“We need everyone on board,” Devils captain Nico Hischier said. “We have our basics, and that starts with competing. We also have to find a way to score goals. Without scoring goals, you won’t win. … We have to simplify our game and get a dirty victory.”
New Jersey was right on Friday, trailing just 1-0 after two periods before Vegas extended its lead with two power-play goals late in the third.
Devils coach Sheldon Keefe looked for answers in another late-game situation, moving his top line to feature Hischier, centering Ondrej Palat and Jesper Bratt.
Another change to the forward lineup came in the form of Angus Crookshank, who was recalled from AHL Utica and made his Devils debut on Friday. He had an even score in 10:36 of ice time.
“He skates hard and shoots the puck extremely well,” Keefe said. “We think if he can have a chance to score, he can shoot in the net. We’re just trying to give him a chance.”
Crookshank had scored five goals in 17 AHL games at the time of his call-up. The first 21 games of his NHL career were with the Ottawa Senators over the past two seasons.
–Field level media
