Kalman: Julien Went Offline, Players Lacked Heart In Bruins Loss to Capitals
BOSTON (CBS) - Eddie Olczyk is an astute color commentator on NBCSN broadcast games, and toward the end of the Bruins' 3-0 loss to the Washington Capitals on Wednesday the former Winnipeg Jets star said he witnessed Boston forward Chris Kelly make contact with Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby in the second period.
If Olczyk says he saw it, it must be true. But, as the astute "Eddie O." pointed out, that was the only time anyone in black and gold bothered to make life even the slightest bit difficult on Holtby.
Now the Bruins are down to two games with their hopes of making the Stanley Cup Playoffs resting on their ability to win two (against the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning), with one victory coming in regulation or overtime. Or they could get some help from the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers against the Ottawa Senators.
The Bruins could've helped themselves by showing a pulse against the Capitals. Instead they let Holtby shut them out for the third time in three tries this season. The Bruins sent 89 shots, including 27 on Wednesday, in Holtby's direction this season and didn't score a goal.
Worst of all, knowing their track record against Holtby this season and their precarious situation in the playoff race, the Bruins continued their season-long performance of a play in three acts called "The One And Done Boys." Sure, Holtby made a couple difficult saves. Loui Eriksson and Milan Lucic tested him on breakaways, and David Pastrnak had an in-tight chance. But for most of the night the Bruins took a shot from the perimeter and then turned to head back down the ice to play defense.
Maybe Holtby is a marvel at rebound control. But the Bruins haven't scored on many rebounds all season long. And they haven't gotten in the face of many goaltenders, including Holtby. Credit goes to Olczyk for noticing and remembering that historic occasion when Kelly touched Holtby.
Often this season the Bruins have bounced back when counted out, and they're liable to play their best two games of the season in the Sunshine State and earn a spot in the postseason. Still it's troubling that it's come down to the last two games. It's disturbing that in the last three games of the Bruins' recent five-game winning streak they played well in just three periods, and then played well in no periods in the streak-busting loss in Washington.
It's difficult to know where to start when divvying up blame for this latest debacle. You can start with coach Claude Julien, who picked his line combinations out of a hat to start the game, switched them up after 13 minutes of play in the first period and then didn't return to the lines that had been working during the winning streak until one shift into the third period, when the game was already decided.
Both sets of new lines that skated through the first two periods featured some amazing decisions, including playing Gregory Campbell, the worst possession player in the NHL, at left wing instead of his natural position of center. Codependent Carl Soderberg had the cord cut from Eriksson and instead had to center Campbell and Reilly Smith at the start. After one shift, Pastrnak was sentenced to right wing on that line and somehow the disengaged Smith earned a promotion to playing with Ryan Spooner and Kelly. That Spooner line actually created some chances, except it lacked the necessary jam to make those opportunities count.
In the third period, Spooner and Pastrnak were finally reunited with Milan Lucic, and Smith was back with the Swedes, and David Krejci was back on right wing with Bergeron and Marchand. Pastrnak, though, couldn't escape the shackles of Campbell and Kelly. When Julien shortens his bench late in tight games in order to keep Pastrnak and Spooner away from defensive situations, it makes sense. When the Bruins are down 2-0 after 7:06 of playing time and Julien still doesn't give Pastrnak and Spooner (especially Pastrnak) enough ice time and capable linemates to possibly make a difference in an important game, well then he probably deserves to have his team get shut out. The Bruins' best defensive lineup still lost 3-0. If he put Pastrnak and Spooner out there together and out there more, would the Bruins have lost 4-0 or 5-0? Or would they maybe pull within 3-1 or 3-2, or even get back in the game when down 2-0? We'll never know, but that seemed like a risk worth taking on a listless night for the Bruins.
You can't blame everything on the line changes. If nine guys show up at the local rink, they can choose up three lines and forge chemistry in minutes. NHL players should be able to do the same thing. Soderberg and Campbell combined for no shots on net. Pastrnak had one. Marchand had two shots on net and had five attempts blocked. How's that for getting outworked?
Both of the Capitals' first two goals came as a result of Washington forwards outworking Bruins defensemen on the forecheck. Throughout the first 40 minutes all the Capitals had to do to dislodge the puck from Bruins players' sticks was take a one-handed poke or swipe. No one on the Bruins was bearing down, no one was crashing the net and no one seemed to think that the playoffs might actually happen with Boston. The sense of entitlement seems everlasting with this bunch.
It doesn't take the keen eye of Olczyk to notice the Bruins have lacked the commitment it takes to get to the playoffs, let alone make a run to the postseason, for much of the season. It's also obvious that the Bruins' offense, which has been ranked in the bottom third of the League all season, could use more Pastrnak and Spooner and less Campbell and Kelly. The players and the coach are running out of time to figure out what we all see clear as day.
Matt Kalman covers the Bruins for CBSBoston.com and also contributes to NHL.com and several other media outlets. Follow him on Twitter @TheBruinsBlog.