The Boston Bruins have lost four games in a row, and this losing streak could extend further as the Original Six franchise begins a brutally tough stretch in their schedule over the next two-and-a-half weeks.
Beginning Tuesday with the defending Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers at TD Garden, the Bruins play nine games over the next 18 days, and six of them are against teams currently in a playoff spot. Two of the other three matchups are against the Ottawa Senators, who entered Tuesday just one point out of a wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.
Included in this difficult part of Boston's schedule are matchups versus the Oilers, Tampa Bay Lightning (twice), Florida Panthers, New Jersey Devils and Colorado Avalanche.
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Not only is this part of the schedule a good opportunity for the Bruins to show they are still a force to be reckoned with in the East, it's vitally important that they collect as many points as possible to remain in a playoff spot.
The Bruins currently sit in third place in the Atlantic division, but they have just a three-point lead over the Lightning despite having played five more games than Tampa Bay.
What do we need to see from the Bruins over this tough stretch to be convinced this team is legit? Let's break down three key areas.
Jeremy Swayman continues to build consistency
Swayman has played a little better since Joe Sacco took over as Bruins interim head coach in November, but his performance is still below where Boston needs it to be.
He has a 13-13-3 record with an .891 save percentage and a 2.91 GAA over 29 starts, and he ranks 81st out of 90 qualifying goalies with minus-8 goals saved above expected, per MoneyPuck. The UMaine product has never had a season with a sub-.914 save percentage, although that will change at the current pace. Swayman had some lackluster outings in December and posted a .889 save percentage and a 2.58 GAA for the month. He gave up three or more goals in five of his 10 starts.
That said, he's played better of late. Swayman allowed two or fewer goals in four consecutive starts from Dec. 23 through Jan. 2, along with a .918 save percentage during that span. It was the first time all season he went more than three starts in a row allowing two or fewer goals.
Swayman's last start was a step back -- four goals against on 27 shots versus the Maple Leafs in Toronto -- but there's been signs of optimism in his performance the last few weeks. The question now is can Swayman build on this and establish some real consistency?
The Bruins are not defending at a high level in front of Swayman (more on that in the last section). And the team's scoring has been inconsistent, too. In other words, he's not getting a ton of help. But Swayman just signed one of the richest goalie contracts in history (eight years, $66 million).
He's been a top 10 goalie for much of his NHL career, and like we saw in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, he has the ability to put the Bruins on his back and carry them to victories.
Given this roster's weaknesses, the Bruins will need that kind of dominant Swayman to show up a lot more often in the second half of the regular season. It's a lot to ask of one player, but the Bruins aren't going to be much of a factor in the postseason -- assuming they even make it there -- without Swayman playing at an elite level consistently.
Scoring production from Trent Frederic
Frederic has been one of the most disappointing Bruins players this season. After setting career highs in goals, assists and points each of the last two years, Frederic is on pace to regress quite a bit.
After two seasons of producing two or more points per 60 minutes at even strength, Frederic is barely above one point per 60 minutes at even strength this season.
Overall, Frederic has 12 points (six goals, six assists) in 42 games after tallying 40 points (18 goals, 22 assists) in 82 games last season.
Frederic scored Saturday against the Leafs, which ended an 11-game goal drought for him. He also has goal droughts of nine games and 17 games this season.
Frederic is capable of being a very effective player. He can provide valuable scoring in a middle-six role. He sets a physical tone with his energy each game, and he's always willing to step up and fight when needed. He's capable of killing penalties, and he has the versatility to play center or on the wing.
Frederic is still bringing plenty of toughness to the ice each game, but the Bruins are desperate for scoring depth right now. If Frederic isn't able to establish some consistency offensively, then the Bruins should bring up a few guys from Providence (Fabian Lysell, Matthew Poitras, etc.) and see if that provides a spark.
Better team defense
Swayman has to play better in net, but the Bruins' overall team defense must improve if they're going to remain in the playoff race.
The last two games, in particular, have been rough for the Bruins defensively. The Leafs defeated the Bruins 6-4 at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday, and then the New York Islanders beat the B's 5-4 in overtime at TD Garden on Sunday.
Over the last six games, the Bruins have allowed the third-most shot attempts (339), the fifth-most shots on net (152), the fifth-most scoring chances (144), the most high-danger chances (68) and the fourth-most goals (17) at even strength. Several of the goals the Leafs scored over the weekend happened way too easily.
"We didn’t do a good enough job tonight," Bruins interim coach Joe Sacco told reporters after Saturday's defeat. "Not hard enough in certain areas of the game tonight. Give Toronto credit. They played hard, especially below the tops of the circles. We knew going into the game it was going to be like that. We just have to be harder to play against down low.”
The Leafs, as you can see in the chart below from Natural Stat Trick, lived in the low slot most of the game Saturday.
The amount of high-danger chances against is concerning. If the Bruins continue to give up Grade A scoring chances at this rate against the likes of the Lightning, Panthers, Oilers, Senators and Devils -- it could get ugly for Boston over the next two weeks.
