Bruins Wrap: Bad Habits Catch Up To Boston In First Regulation Loss

The Boston Bruins couldn’t extend their season-opening points streak Saturday, falling to the Detroit Red Wings, 5-4, at Little Caesars Arena.

The B’s dropped to 9-1-1 on the season, while the Red Wings improved to 7-4-1.

Check out the full box score here.

ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
The Bruins have been able to find ways to win this season, but in some cases, it seems like they’re expending more energy than necessary.

In essence, Boston is making things difficult for itself.

That unfortunate trend was bound to catch up to them, and did so in Detroit on Saturday night. The Bruins held two different leads against the Red Wings, giving them up by starting slow in both the second and third periods. In the third, Boston gave up three goals in a five-minute period that essentially put any chance of extending its points streak to bed.

If you’re going to find negatives in a team that hadn’t lost in regulation all season. you’ve got to look for them. It’s hard to ignore the Bruins’ propensity for starting slow or experiencing prolonged lulls in the middle of some of their matchups this season. That was the case Saturday, as the B’s had their worst stretch of the season and paid the price.

STARS OF THE GAME
— James van Riemsdyk opened the scoring and later had an assist, finishing with his first two points in over a week.

— David Perron had three points for the Red Wings, assisting on a pair of Detroit goals while scoring one of his own.

— Matthew Poitras scored his fourth goal of the season, adding an assist later to extend Boston’s first lead.

WAGER WATCH
van Riemsdyk opened the scoring in the first period, which could have netted you a big payday. The 34-year-old was given +1400 odds at DraftKings Sportsbook to draw first blood, which would have netted a $1,500 payout for $100 bettors.

UP NEXT ON NESN
The Bruins’ roadie continues Monday, when they travel down to Texas to take on the Dallas Stars. They’ll drop the puck from American Airlines Center at 8 p.m. ET, and you can watch the game, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.