What Joe Sacco Believes Bruins Must Focus On To Break Slump

BOSTON — It was a day of reflection and moving forward for the Bruins.

Boston relieved Jim Montgomery of his duties and named Joe Sacco interim head coach. The 55-year-old commanded his first morning skate Wednesday and wanted to see two things from the B’s: energy level and execution.

Sacco believes the roster can play at a high level and it’s up to the staff to get the best out of the group. He also pinpointed one of his primary goals as Bruins bench boss.

“It’s being harder to play against,” Sacco said. “I want teams to know it’s going to be hard to score goals against us. Our offense will come. There’s enough players in here that are going to score goals. I think the focus has been too much on that. Let’s focus on keeping the puck out of our net, being hard to play against and I’m very confident this group will score goals.”

Boston ranked bottom five in goals against when Sacco took over. That’s a steep drop-off from when it was top-five in goals against last season. The loss of Hampus Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov’s inconsistent play hasn’t helped matters. However, Sacco is confident players can turn things around and get back to the style of Bruins hockey fans are accustomed to.

Sacco’s first test as interim head coach is Thursday when the B’s take on the Utah Hockey Club at TD Garden.