The Boston Bruins have been a dominant force in the NHL since the beginning of the season. So dominant that they clinched a playoff spot with 20 games remaining.
Unfortunately for the Bruins, they began to get complacent and stopped playing the style of hockey that propelled them to the best in the league.
"I don't think we've stayed in the moment lately. All year we've stayed in the moment," Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery told reporters Thursday, per team-provided video. "We understand why we didn't stay in the moment. We've got to get back to being in the moment."
The two-game skid Boston is on heading into Thursday's game is the first time the Black and Gold have lost two straight games in regulation this season.
Uncharacteristically, the Bruins have found themselves playing from behind lately, and captain Patrice Bergeron told reporters the systems and changes Montgomery has put in place this season have helped the team, but the players have to "stay in the moment."
"I think it's realizing that we have to be in the moment, and that's something we've done all year," Bergeron said. "Adversity is always good. It makes you stronger as a team and individually as well. I think we have to obviously be better as far as our process. I think we got away from that.
"We're maybe a little too bit result oriented instead of staying in the moment and in the present, and when you get away from that, you're not playing your best."
Bergeron added that while adversity is a good challenge for the team, getting back to playing their game is critical to their success.
Montgomery said he and his staff talked to the captains of the team regarding the recent struggles, and the consensus comes back to one point: When they clinched a spot in the postseason.
"Players' honest feedback, which I really value, was we've never been in this situation where we have 20 games left, and you've clinched a playoff spot," Montgomery explained. "It's human nature a little bit to take your foot off the gas pedal, and that's what happened to us, and we're trying to find the right message altogether to put our foot back on the gas."
Bergeron added staying in the moment, rather than focusing on results, means focusing on the team they are facing on any given night.
"I think this league is going to humble you if you don't take teams seriously, and that's what we saw against Detroit and Chicago. Teams are giving us their best every night, which is a good challenge for us."
Bergeron and his teammates look to get back to the win column when they face a Winnipeg Jets team that is trying to secure its place in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
