It was just over 12 years ago that the Boston Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks were on top of the hockey world, clashing with one another in the 2013 Stanley Cup Final.
Things are different these days, as both clubs are currently in the basement of their respective conferences. They met each other on Thursday at TD Garden in Boston, and it was the lowly Blackhawks who dealt the Bruins with yet another frustrating loss.
With their 5-2 defeat at the hands of Chicago, Boston is now 32-39-9.
One of the few bright spots in the season for the Bruins, David Pastrnak scored his team-leading 42nd goal of the season in the first period to give his club a 1-0 lead. Ex-Bruins forward Nick Foligno, now the captain of the Blackhawks, responded in the second period with his 13th goal to knot the score.
The third period was a house of horrors for the Bruins, who surrendered three Chicago goals from Ryan Donato, Tyler Bertuzzi and Kevin Korchinski in 93 seconds.
Morgan Geekie brought the Bruins closer with his 31st goal, but Chicago salted the game with an empty net tally from Foligno, his second of the night.
3 least impressive Boston Bruins players from 5-2 loss to Chicago Blackhawks
#1. Jeremy Swayman
Once again, the Bruins’ starting goaltender makes our list of being one of the least impressive players in a loss.
Swayman has not even remotely come close to living up to the contract that he eventually signed after holding out in Training Camp and the entire exhibition schedule.
Thursday night was the latest example, as he allowed four goals on just 20 shots against a terrible Blackhawks team, finishing with a .800 save percentage.
#2. Mason Lohrei
The plus-minus rating for Bruins defenseman Mason Lohrei has been taking a beating in the second half of the regular season.
He was caught out of position multiple times yet again, finishing with a team-worst -4 rating in the loss to the lowly Blackhawks.
He skated in 20:38 of ice time and also committed four separate giveaways. The season can’t end soon enough for him.
#3. Casey Mittelstadt
Acquired from the Colorado Avalanche in the Charlie Coyle trade, Mittelstadt has been hit or miss in his brief time so far with the Bruins.
Thursday against Chicago fell into the latter category, as he finished with a -3 rating and had zero points and only a single shot on goal in 16:59 of ice time.
The Boston Bruins will hope to bounce back when they face the Pittsburgh Penguins next at PPG Paints Arena on Sunday.
alt=”Mike Whitaker” height=”72″ width=”72″>
Edited by Veer Badani
