But the 2-1 victory certainly had meaning to the handful of hopefuls desperately battling to claim one of the few jobs available on the Boston roster this preseason and the Bruins brain trust trying to make those decisions.
The bad news is that Monday's game didn't provide much separation in those battles. The good news is the reason for that is that none of the competitors for the seventh defenseman's spot or the final jobs up front did anything to hurt their chances.
"At times it was good, at times we turned the puck over a lot and there was some sloppy play," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "But overall we're here to evaluate individuals, our young guys especially. [Jordan] Caron to me was really good for us and certainly earned some good points."
Julien also praised Max Sauve's effort and added that "Clarkie [Chris Clark] continues to fight for a spot."
Those forwards, along with Jamie Arniel, Zach Hamill, Lane MacDermid and Trent Whitfield are battling for the final one or two spots available up front.
Caron, who made the team out of camp last year and played 23 games in Boston, and Clark appear to have the inside track for now. Caron had a particularly strong performance in his home province on Monday. He assisted on Tyler Seguin's early third-period power-play goal that tied the game at 1-1. Caron also added four shots in 16:06 and was a consistent threat offensively, especially in the third period when Julien moved him up to the top line with David Krejci and Seguin.
Caron's biggest competition for a job with the big team could be Clark, who bolstered his case to earn a contract with a solid game of his own. Clark, a veteran of 11 NHL seasons, has struggled with injuries in recent years but is healthy now and could add some experience and grit to the third line.
Clark scored the game-winner with 6:45 left, tapping in a feed from Sauve just after a Bruins power play ended. Clark finished plus-1 with two shots in 16:15.
Seguin's spot on the roster isn't in doubt, but it is still to be determined where exactly the talented second-year player will end up. After playing center on Sunday, he moved to right wing on the top line on Monday, skating with Krejci and Milan Lucic before Caron moved into Lucic's spot.
The Bruins aren't likely to mess with the chemistry Krejci, Lucic and Nathan Horton displayed together last year, but Seguin is showing he could be worthy of playing a bigger role in the offense this season. Rich Peverley clicked immediately with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand in Mark Recchi's old spot in Friday's win over the Islanders, but Seguin could get a look on that line as well.
Regardless of where he ends up, Seguin looks poised to improve upon his modest rookie numbers and is willing to line up wherever he's needed to do it.
"I don't think so," Seguin told 98.5 The Sports Hub after the game. "I think maybe going into last year I was more comfortable at center just because I played it really growing up my whole life. But last year I played wing pretty much the whole season and got comfortable at that position. I definitely want to be a diverse player, so I'm comfortable at either position."
