When the Bruins found themselves struggling with an underperforming offense and a mini-slump for top goal-scorer David Pastrnak, coach Bruce Cassidy knew it was time to shake up his usual lines. They just weren't working.
He tried calling out his top line and the team's veterans, but he still wasn't getting enough out of his top players, who he knew were capable of a higher level of offense.
To try to get Pastrnak's offense going again he moved him to the second line, alongside fellow Czech David Krejci and Nick Ritchie. In turn, Craig Smith was elevated to right wing on the top line with Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron.
Cassidy rolled with those lines in five of the team's six periods against Pittsburgh over the last two games. The result was an outstanding burst of offense from those players in the latter of the two games. Each of those six players contributed at least one point and combined for 14 of the team's 17 points in the 7-5 win Saturday.
Once again on Monday against the Flyers, Cassidy will roll with Pastrnak on the second line. Jake DeBrusk, who's been out in COVID protocol since March 19, will join Charlie Coyle and Zach Senyshyn on the third line.
"We changed up the lines a little bit and it paid off," Krejci said Saturday. "I always like playing with Pasta, he's such a gifted player.
"Seems like he's always in the right spots, especially in the offensive zone. He makes things happen, so it's fun to play with a guy like that."
As for the first line, Bergeron addressed what it's been like adjusting to having Smith on his wing.
"Any player kind of plays a different style, different game, positions themselves differently, but you have to adjust to that and talk. It all goes down to communicating," Bergeron said.
"To me he's going down on the forecheck hard and he's creating a lot of turnovers and I really like his game you know. He's a very smart player, been around for a while, lots of experience and you can really tell, so it's been an easy transition so far."
It would have been hard for Cassidy to move away from his line combinations that were so effective against Pittsburgh on Saturday. That game, the Bruins' Marchand-Bergeron-Smith line combined for seven points (4g, 3a). Bergeron had the goal that sparked the Bruins' seven-goal performance and was plus-3 on the night. Marchand completed a hat trick and assisted on a power-play goal from Krejci. And Smith assisted on two of Marchand's three goals.
The newly formed Ritchie-Krejci-Pastrnak line did equally well, also contributing seven points as a line with three goals and four assists. Ritchie had the primary assists on both of Pastrnak's goals. Krejci scored his second goal of the season and notched his 500th career assist.
Why the Bruins needed to shake things up
The need to rearrange the Bruins' lines came after players like DeBrusk and Krejci's struggles to score became apparent in March. When they finally both cashed in on March 11, it was followed by the Bruins' top line fading off of the score sheet, including most noticeably in their 4-3 overtime loss to the Islanders on March 25, a game in which the top line didn't have a single point. Pastrnak's five-game drought without a goal was the final push Cassidy needed to change the dynamic on offense.
Heading into Saturday, the Bruins ranked 22nd in the NHL in goals per game (2.74), as compared to last year when the team finished with the ninth-most goals per game (3.24).
Another sign of Boston's inability to finish or create quality scoring chances can be seen in its low shot percentage. The Bruins went into the weekend 29th in the league (or third-worst) in shooting percentage, scoring on 8% of their total shots. In that category they are tied with Ottawa and only ahead of Buffalo and Detroit, which puts them in the same company as three of the league's worst offensive teams.
Are the new lines more than just a short term adjustment?
It was time to change the dynamic in order to get the team back to what Cassidy knew it was capable of. But now that it has proven successful in one big win, how long will Cassidy feel the need to keep Pastrnak on the second line?
Cassidy has indicated that pairing Pastrnak and Krejci has had its short-term benefits in the past, but it's probably not a combination that he plans to run with as a permanent solution.
He was initially reluctant to split up the Ritchie-Krejci-Smith line last week, saying at the time, "I've moved them around, but I like Krejci and Richie and Smith. They've strung together some decent outings here. We've been searching for that for a while, so we don't want to disrupt that."
Cassidy generally doesn't take Pastrnak away from the top line with Bergeron and Marchand for long. However, another explosion on offense against the Flyers Monday could work to keep the new top line combinations going beyond just one big win over the Penguins.
