Following a strong opening week in which they won three of four games, the Bruins struggled on their recent three-game road trip. Boston dropped all three of its road matchups against the Vegas Golden Knights, Colorado Avalanche and Utah Mammoth, with two of those losses ending within fewer than one goal.
David Pastrnak (4G, 4A) leads the club in points and is tied for the fourth-most shots on goal in the NHL, with Pavel Zacha (1G, 5A) acting as Boston’s primary playmaker. While the Bruins failed to secure a win last week, the club saw production from its middle and bottom six roles, a promising development that must continue as the season progresses. Jeremy Swayman (2.76 GAA, .917 SV%) came out of the gates with two strong starts, but struggled against both Vegas and Colorado, allowing at least three goals in each game. Joonas Korpisalo (3.36 GAA, .875 SV%) hasn’t been great as a backup, either, posting a 1-2-0 record thus far.
Looking ahead to this week’s matchups, the Bruins will play host to the Florida Panthers, Anaheim Ducks and Colorado Avalanche, then hit the road for an Atlantic Division tilt against the Ottawa Senators.
Bruins upcoming schedule for the week of October 21
- Tuesday, October 21 vs. Florida Panthers
- Thursday, October 23 vs. Anaheim Ducks
- Saturday, October 25 vs. Colorado Avalanche
- Monday, October 27 at Ottawa Senators
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Tuesday, October 21 vs. Florida Panthers
- The Florida Panthers are in fourth place in the Atlantic Division and 10th in the Eastern Conference with a 3-4-0 record, six points and a -5 goal differential.
- The back-to-back Stanley Cup champions have struggled to find consistency to start the new season, as the club navigates its new life without both Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk. Florida ranks 30th in goals per game (2.14), 15th in goals allowed per game (2.86), 16th in PP% (19.4%), and 11th in PK% (83.3%). The Panthers may rank 10th in penalties taken (28), but the club has also drawn the most penalties (35), so discipline must be a primary focus for Boston.
- 10 different skaters have netted at least one goal for Florida, which showcases its quality of depth. However, it has failed to receive much consistent production from its top dogs like Brad Marchand (3G, 3A) and Sam Reinhart (2G, 1A). Marchand leads the team in points, with Anton Lundell (2G, 3A) and Evan Rodrigues (2G, 2A) rounding out the top three. 2025 Conn Smythe Trophy winner, Sam Bennett (1G), has just one goal and zero assists through Florida’s first seven games. Even in the midst of Florida struggling offensively, Sergei Bobrovsky (2.02 GAA, .917 SV%) has stood tall between the pipes, although his underlying metrics could improve.
- It is the return of Marchand to Boston after spending 15 seasons with the club. These two teams split the season series at two wins apiece in 2024, with Boston winning all four matchups in 2023. It is not often that the Bruins get to face a Panthers team that is without two of its best players in Tkachuk and Barkov, though. Boston is 0-2 at home to start the season and will want to secure its first win against the reigning champions.
Thursday, October 23 vs. Anaheim Ducks
- The Anaheim Ducks are in fourth place in the Pacific Division and 12th in the Western Conference with a 2-2-1 record, five points and a -4 goal differential.
- While they’re still considered a bottom team in the NHL, the Ducks seem to be taking a step in the right direction. Anaheim ranks 21st in goals per game (2.80), seventh in goals allowed per game (3.60), 10th in PP% (25.0%) and 19th in PK% (76.9%). The club may be average, but its underlying metrics suggest positive regression soon. The Ducks rank fifth in 5v5 Corsi% and have been one of the more disciplined squads in the new season, ranking second-to-last in penalties taken (16).
- Anaheim has received steady production from its top-six and middle-six roles, with Leo Carlsson (2G, 4A) and Chris Kreider (4G, 1A) leading the way in terms of points. Only seven Ducks’ skaters have netted at least one goal, however, which has resulted in low-scoring games. The goaltending hasn’t been much better, with Lukas Dostal (3.02 GAA, .898 SV%) ranking 27th in goals saved above expected and 31st in SV% above expected. Petr Mrazek (6.02 GAA, .739 SV%) sports a 1-0-0 record, but he allowed a whopping six goals on just 23 shot attempts in that lone start.
- The Bruins sport a 19-21-2-3 all-time record against the Ducks and even dropped both matchups in 2024. Anaheim has dropped back-to-back games against Colorado and Chicago but secured wins over both San Jose and Pittsburgh, suggesting that the club can still beat inferior opponents.
Saturday, October 25 vs. Colorado Avalanche
- The Colorado Avalanche are in first place in both the Central Division and Western Conference with a 5-0-1 record, 11 points and a league-leading +11 goal differential.
- The Avalanche may be a wagon all season long if the club keeps up this consistent play at each level of the ice. The club has scored the eighth-most goals per game (3.50) while allowing the fewest goals per game (1.50). Colorado ranks ninth in PK% (87.5%), but its once-elite powerplay unit has mightily struggled to start the new season, ranking 28th in PP% (12.0%). Considering the Avs are still rolling teams with little-to-no powerplay success, that is concerning news for the rest of the league.
- It certainly helps that Colorado has two skaters with at least 10 points on the season, Nathan MacKinnon (6G, 4A) and Martin Necas (4G, 6A). MacKinnon is tied for the second-most goals in the league, and the club has seen at least 10 skaters net at least one goal. Colorado may have finally found its star goaltender in Scott Wedgewood (1.48 GAA, .938 SV%), too, as he has been top-notch in all six games this season. He is the only goaltender with five wins, and he ranks seventh in goals saved above expected.
- All in all, the Bruins have found a ton of success against the Avalanche in the past, winning six of the last eight meetings, including three of four games in 2024. These teams just faced each other last week, with Colorado winning 4-1. Boston logged just 14 shots on goal compared to Colorado’s 37, a recipe that almost never results in wins.
Monday, October 27 at Ottawa Senators
- The Ottawa Senators are in seventh place in the Atlantic Division and 15th in the Eastern Conference with a 2-4-0 record, four points and a -10 goal differential.
- Following a season in which they clinched a postseason berth, the Senators have started the new season off on the wrong foot, scoring the 11th-most goals per game (3.17) while allowing the most goals per game (5.00). One positive is the club’s powerplay unit, which ranks eighth in the NHL in PP% (25.0%) and sixth in powerplay goals (5). However, the Senators’ PK% ranks second-to-last (60.9%), and they’ve averaged the 11th-most penalty minutes per game.
- Despite playing without their captain, Brady Tkachuk, who is expected to be sidelined for the next 6-8 weeks, the Senators are still finding success offensively, thanks to contributions from the club’s young depth. 24-year-old Shane Pinto (7G, 1A) leads the team in points and is tied for the most goals in the NHL. Dylan Cozens (3G, 2A) and Jake Sanderson (1G, 4A) have excelled as secondary options, but Ottawa’s real Achilles heel has been its goaltending. 2022 Vezina Trophy winner, Linus Ullmark (3.99 GAA, .848 SV%) has been abysmal across five starts, and ranks 61st out of 62 eligible goaltenders in goals saved above expected. The club tried a vibe change between the pipes by starting 24-year-old Leevi Merilainen (7.23 GAA, .731 SV%) for one game, but he allowed seven goals on just 26 shot attempts.
- These two teams have gone back and forth over the past few seasons. The Senators won three of four games in 2024, and the Bruins won two of three matchups in 2023. A divisional matchup against an injured and struggling Senators’ squad is a game that the Bruins must come out on top in.
