The Bruins are off to a 3-0-0 start to the season, and Jake DeBrusk was a big presence in Monday's 5-3 win over the Florida Panthers.
DeBrusk had three points -- including two goals -- for Boston in a surprise return to game action after suffering an upper-body injury during the season opener against the Washington Capitals last week. He didn't miss a beat and through the Bruins' first three games, looks like a completely rejuvenated player.
It's clear DeBrusk is playing with more confidence than last year and is ready to put the struggles behind him and whatever head coach Jim Montgomery has been saying to DeBrusk and his teammates is resonating loud and clear.
"I think the biggest thing for myself is confidence, obviously new message and new focuses," DeBrusk told reporters after the game. "I think that every player tries no matter what coach is there, but I obviously like what he's saying. And it's been working for these three games. And it's one of those things that you want to buy into and obviously make good first impressions and go from there and just build relationships."
Making a good first impression was crucial for DeBrusk despite being a veteran on the team. He requested a trade from the Bruins last year and rescinded it during the offseason. Many questions surfaced about whether Bruce Cassidy being relieved of his head coaching duties had anything to do with it, but DeBrusk didn't confirm nor deny that notion.
But at the end of the day, DeBrusk believes everything he went through last season helped shape him into the player he is this season.
"So that's kind of how I approach that in the sense I think it just goes around my overall game," DeBrusk told reporters. "I think last year freed me just in general of going through the ups and downs. It's one of those things where it's time to put it all together and it's one thing to do it for one game, but we got 79 left. So it's a challenge (Tuesday) night against a good Ottawa team and just keep on rolling from there."
DeBrusk probably won't put up three points in every game but it's clear he's ready to be an impact player for every game he's in. Now it's just a matter of sustaining this effort.
We'll see if DeBrusk can replicate Monday's effort Tuesday night when the Bruins travel to Ottawa to take on the Senators. Puck drop from Canadian Tire Centre is set for 7 p.m. ET and you can catch all the action beginning at 6 p.m. on NESN.
