Boston will need others to step up to break out of its slump
The Bruins are slumping since beating the Colorado Avalanche, but a fourth-line center remains a bright spot for the team.
Boston suffered its third straight loss when it fell 5-2 against the Dallas Stars at TD Garden. The Black and Gold have struggled to stay out of the box during their losing streak, and the middle-six lines are still looking to find consistency.
However, two Bruins players stood out during that stretch in terms of physicality. Let’s look back at the best hits and fights from the past week.
Welcomes To Utah
The Bruins played their inaugural game against the Utah Hockey Club at Delta Center last Saturday. Boston only came away with a point, and Mark Kastelic got the B’s going in the second period when he laid in a crushing hit on Logan Cooley on the boards. Robert Bortuzzo didn’t take too kindly to it, and the Utah defenseman and Kastelic ruffled each other onto the ice.
Total Annihilation
Kastelic entered the fighting picture again when he dropped the gloves against Nashville Predators defenseman Luke Schenn. It was a total one-sided encounter in favor of Kastelic, who’s been one of the top free-agent signings for Boston.
Laying Out Stars
Nikita Zadorov needs to do a better job staying out of the penalty box because the Bruins need his physical presence. The blueliner laid in two big shots on Dallas skaters Thursday night. He tagged Jamie Benn with a hard hit in front of Boston’s bench. And Zadorov dropped the hammer on Evgenii Dadonov.