The Boston Bruins opened the 2023–24 season with a different set of expectations than last season. As several players from the Bruins’ 100-year history strolled out onto the ice in pregame ceremonies, Bruins fans were eager to see if their team was ready to transition from the losses of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. The first test was against the Chicago Blackhawks and phenom Connor Bedard, who were playing on the second night of a back-to-back. Bedard showed his enormous potential with a goal, but Boston revealed their own potential to possibly be a strong playoff contender again. Here are three takeaways from Boston’s 3-1 season-opening victory at TD Garden Wednesday night.
Matthew Poitras Is Looking To Stay In Boston Long-Term
The 2022 second-round draft pick has expedited his NHL career by making the opening day lineup after a strong preseason. The Bruins were pleasantly surprised at Poitras’ development and made some roster moves to give him at least an early season look. The centermen showed his great vision and playmaking skill by helping to set up Boston’s first goal with his first NHL assist. The 5-foot-11, 177-pound forward played 14:50 of ice time with just under three minutes on the power play, collecting two shots and winning five of seven faceoffs.
However, Poitras’ best play might have been with about 11 minutes to play. The skillful center made a rush up ice to get a shot on net, then raced back defensively to break up an ensuing Blackhawks’ chance with a great back check. It was the type of two-way play the Bruins love from their centers and exactly what will keep Poitras in Boston for a long time.
Brandon Carlo Played His Best Game In a Long Time
The big veteran defenseman is known for his solidnstay-at-home defensive work and terrific penalty-killing prowess. There isn’t much flash to his game, but on Wednesday, Carlo showed why he is so valuable as a second-pair defenseman. In just under 19 minutes of play, Carlo had two blocked shots in 27 shifts and did what he does best by shutting down several transition opportunities for Chicago. Other than an unlucky sequence where Carlo got his feet tangled, resulting in a chance for Bedard, the 6-foot-5, 212-pound blue liner was stout defensively and playing with the type of confidence offensively that will make him extremely valuable this season.
The Bruins Still Dominant At The Faceoff Circle
Without Bergeron, Krejci, and the dependable Tomas Nosek, the Bruins will need their centers to win important faceoffs this season. Last night, Boston dominated the faceoff dot with a 63 percent success rate, led by Poitras and Pavel Zacha, who won eight of his eleven draws on the night. Morgan Geekie was also effective, with six of eight wins. This will need to continue as Boston figures out who replaces Bergeron and Nosek with defensive zone draws, particularly late in games. For now, Boston is just fine in the faceoff circle and on the scoreboard.
