The Bruins fell 4-3 in their fifth straight loss to the Islanders Thursday night, once again starting out with so many positives, but finishing in disappointing fashion. As secondary players Karson Kuhlman, Steven Kampfer and Anders Bjork stepped up to score, the Bruins' stars couldn't find a way to contribute.
That's something Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy noticed.
"Guys that we rely on, leaders that I've praised for years here, disappointed," Cassidy said. "I expect better."
While the B's third line of Anders Bjork, Charlie Coyle and Karson Kuhlman produced two goals and two assists, their top line of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak was held off the board entirely. Marchand didn't record a single shot in his 18 minutes of play.
Cassidy disclosed that he most noticed his top players underperformance on the power play, specifically in their inability to capitalize on a four-minute double-minor that resulted from a high sticking call on Islanders center Casey Cizikas early in the second period.
"It was a bad change and we got frustrated late in it," Cassidy described. "Not just being able to grind it out, change when you're supposed to, make the plays you're supposed to on that power play. They need to be better in that situation. I expect better."
Cassidy identified that poor power-play execution and the Jean-Gabriel Pageau goal that followed as the turning point of the game.
"That to me gave the Islanders some life that really wasn't necessary," he said. "Obviously they're going to get a bit of juice out of it from killing the penalty, but now they kill the penalty and cut the deficit in half all in a quick strike."
The Bruins then gave up the next two goals of the game in the third period, faltering after a 2-0 start to trail 3-2.
Fourth-year Bruins winger Anders Bjork, who was a healthy scratch in Boston's last game against the Buffalo Sabres, crashed the net and potted his second goal of the season to give the Bruins hope and send the game to overtime. However, that hope was short lived as Anthony Beauvillier tapped in the game-winner 21 seconds into the extra frame.
Bruins secondary players steal the spotlight
While the Bruins' top players struggled, their depth shined.
With fans back in the Garden cheering on the team for the first time since March 7, 2020, Karson Kuhlman and Steven Kampfer received the first ovations, sparking the Bruins' offense in the first period when they each contributed their first goal of the season to give Boston a 2-0 lead.
It had been over a year, 397 days to be exact, since Kuhlman had recorded his last NHL goal. For Steven Kampfer it was a staggering 732 days (or about two years) since his most recent tally
Charlie Coyle screened Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov on both the Kuhlman and Kampfer goals and assisted on Bjork's game-tying goal in the third period. His helper snapped his eight-game pointless streak and gave him his first point in the month of March.
Bjork's goal was his first in 13 games, and his performance Thursday night marked one of just four multi-point games of his career.
Charlie McAvoy also ended his seven-game point drought with two assists in the 4-3 loss.
The Bruins will be back on Garden ice for their next six games, in need of a boost from fans to get them back on track.
