Bruins Notes: ‘Desperate’ Teams Causing Boston Trouble

Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery isn’t a fan of how physicality has slowed his team down recently, particularly in Boston’s two consecutive losses.

The B’s have a playoff spot locked up, and while positioning is still yet to be determined, the final stretch of the regular season means a bit more for those fighting for their postseason lives. The Philadelphia Flyers, for example, defeated Boston on Saturday thanks to added physicality.

“I think we’re starting to see — the last two games — tight checking from teams that are either in the playoffs or desperate to stay in or get in,” Montgomery told NESN’s Andy Brickley following the game. “I thought our checking was really good, too, but we had a couple mistakes there. It cost us.”

The Bruins haven’t been able to find consistent offense, with both scoring outputs in their recent losses coming thanks to quick spurts.

“It’s the checking of other teams,” Montgomery admitted. “I thought the Rangers checked really well, and I thought the Flyers today checked really well. It was five guys together in every picture, in every zone. It makes it hard to score, that’s why the shots were so low for both teams.”

Here are more notes from Saturday afternoon’s matchup between the Bruins and Flyers:

— Justin Brazeau is the first Bruins rookie to score in three straight games since Brad Marchand in Jan. 2011, according to Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub.

— Boston, after losing both Thursday and Saturday, has suffered back-to-back regulation losses since prior to the Christmas break.

— The Bruins will continue their six-game roadie Tuesday, as they take on the Panthers at Amerant Bank Arena. It’ll be Boston’s penultimate game against Florida, with puck drop scheduled for 7 p.m. ET, following an hour of pregame coverage on NESN.