Boston Bruins
Morgan Geekie, Jeremy Swayman, and several depth players helped Boston survive during this wave of injuries.
The 2025 Boston Bruins had a template for success before the puck dropped on a new campaign in October.
A lot of it involved two of their franchise fixtures in Charlie McAvoy and David Pastrnak doing plenty of the heavy lifting, night in and night out.
Such was the case for most of the first six weeks of the season. Through 25 games, Pastrnak posted 11 goals and 29 points — with his playmaking capabilities spurring a power play that has largely held court as a top-10 unit in the league this season.
McAvoy recorded 14 assists in his first 19 games this fall, with Marco Sturm’s decision to pair the BU blueliner up with Nikita Zadorov helping to shore up Boston’s porous D-zone play.
On Nov. 15 — the last time both McAvoy and Pastrnak were in the Bruins lineup — Boston sat atop the Atlantic Division at 12-8-0.
Since then, the Bruins have had to trudge forward without their two top talents. McAvoy has missed 10 straight games after taking a slap shot to the jaw, while Pastrnak has been ruled out for five consecutive matchups with a lower-body ailment.
Those extended absences could have easily spelt doom for a Bruins team operating with little margin for error given the state of their depleted roster.
Instead, the Bruins have gone a respectable 3-2-0 in the five games since both McAvoy and Pastrnak landed on the shelf.
It’s an impressive feat, considering that the team they beat on Saturday in the Devils have plummeted in the standings (five straight losses) since their star in Jack Hughes went down with an injury of his own.
With Pastrnak and McAvoy now on the cusp of returning to game action, how were the Bruins able to remain competitive and gut out these points without their two top skaters?
Geekie, other top-six forwards stepping up
Morgan Geekie was candid last month when asked about how he’s handled the praise — and criticism — that has come his way amid a breakout season.
“People think that I’m still a Pasta merchant,” Geekie told Boston.com on Nov. 25. “So it is what it is. I mean, that’s always gonna be the shtick when you score 30 goals with a good player like that.
“But I know what I can do and the player that I’ve grown into. … . I know that I can be a good player in this league, and then when people are, ‘Ah, he’s only good because [Pastrnak’s] good. “He’s a world-class player, and everyone knows that. But it does take a good player to click with a great player.”
With Pastrnak on the shelf, Geekie’s offensive surge hasn’t slowed down at all.
In the five games since Pastrnak went down with an injury, Geekie has scored five goals to go along with four assists. His blistering shot hasn’t quieted down, with Geekie scoring his 22nd goal of the season on Saturday night against the Devils.
But, the shot-first forward has also taken on the onus as a playmaker over this latest stretch — helping to set up linemate Alex Steeves in Thursday’s win over St. Louis with a slick feed through the slot.
Geekie’s continued emergence as a legitimate top-line weapon and 40-goal talent has been a major factor in Boston’s strong results this year.
But, a Bruins lineup that opened the year with plenty of question marks across its top-six grouping have all stepped up as of late.
After navigating their own injury woes over the last few weeks, Boston’s second line of Pavel Zacha, Viktor Arvidsson, and Casey Mittelstadt is also starting to catch fire again.
The case can be made that the trio has been Boston’s best offensive line this season, with the Bruins outscoring opponents, 11-6, in the 166:07 of 5-on-5 ice time that the line has logged together.
After combining for three goals in Thursday’s win over the Blues, this second line teamed up for a tic-tac-toe tally on Saturday against the Devils.
Elias Lindholm has also started to find his game since returning from injured reserve, recording eight assists over his last seven games while winning 51 percent of his faceoffs.
The Bruins are awaiting the day where Pastrnak’s blistering one-timer and seam passes are once again dicing up defenses. But for now, the Bruins’ other top forwards are doing their part to keep this offense humming.
Depth scoring
As Nikita Zadorov noted after Saturday’s win, the Bruins’ solid play isn’t just because of the Morgan Geekie Show.
“It’s depth. Obviously, all the guys showing up,” Zadorov said. “I mean, Geeks is really hot right now. Steeves is playing well. Our third, fourth line is playing really well as well. So, I think every guy chipped in. Obviously, there was a message in here that you don’t need to do extra. You just got to be yourself. You got to play your own hockey.
“And we are good enough to win games like that. I think when those guys, the skilled guys, the top guys, they’re out, you got to rely on your system a little bit more, and I think our system sets us up really well for the future and for the present.”
In what has been a recurring theme all season long, Boston’s offense (11th in NHL with 3.13 goals per game) has been bolstered by several secondary scorers stepping up when called upon.
On Saturday, it was the third line of Tanner Jeannot, Fraser Minten, and Mark Kastelic who delivered, with Minten firing home his fourth goal of the year following another effective forechecking sequence.
That group has been Sturm’s most trusted shutdown line last season, often tasked with tenderizing top opposing lines with suffocating puck pressure and a relentless cycle game. Over their 166:37 of 5-on-5 reps so far this season, the Bruins have only coughed up two goals … and scored six of their own.
“I trust them when they play against the big boys. I trust them in any other situation,” Sturm said last week of his third line. “That’s what I’m looking forward for in a third line. We’re still not there yet, but they definitely create their own identity, a little bit.”
It’s not just that grouping.
Other players like Mikey Eyssimont and Marat Khusnutdinov have also left their fingerprints over critical wins this season, with Alex Steeves (five goals in his last six games) the latest unsung hero who is making good on the opportunity offered by Sturm.
One could argue that the Bruins banking on top talents like Pastrnak and Geekie to keep the offense rolling across 82 games was an unsustainable approach. It does become a lot easier when several other players oblige with pulling on the rope.
Nikita Zadorov continues to step up
An ill-advised penalty aside on Saturday against New Jersey, Zadorov has continued to be a difference-maker on a Bruins D corps that has had to fight on over extended stretches with both McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm.
As impressive as a Zadorov-McAvoy pairing was last month, one had to question just how effective a reworked defense would be with Zadorov paired next to a rookie in Jonathan Aspirot.
But in what has been a recurring theme all season long, Zadorov has been a stabilizing presence whenever he’s been out on the ice — with Aspirot also holding his own as a steady, no-frills lineup regular.
In the 117:55 of 5-on-5 reps logged by a Zadorov-Aspirot D pairing, the Bruins have still outscored opponents, 8-3.
With McAvoy nearing a return at some point during this road trip, Sturm has plenty of options when it comes to reuniting Zadorov and McAvoy, pairing Aspirot with a mobile D partner like Mason Lohrei, or keeping the Zadorov-Aspirot tandem intact.
A peek under the hood at Boston’s defensive metrics still has a few troubling signs — with the Bruins currently last in the NHL in terms of expected goals against per 60 minutes at 3.71.
That points to a Bruins team that, even when they aren’t coughing up goals, are prone to letting opponents generate Grade-A scoring chances with some regularity.
But amid those growing pains, Sturm noted on Saturday that he’s been impressed with the buy-in he’s seen from his players as the year has gone one.
“For me, it’s all about structure. That’s what it is,” Sturm said. “I personally experienced that in Los Angeles with the Kings. I experienced that in the minors. It’s just that the system we play, the structure we play in, and when everyone buys in, a lot of times, it doesn’t matter who’s in and out.
“Of course, you still need good players, don’t get me wrong, but I’ve seen that movie before. There’s nothing we can do with injuries, but I think the guys know it too now, that they can rely on that system, and it works, especially when guys are out.”
Stout goaltending
Of course, the greatest equalizer for the Bruins when it comes to stacking wins and defying those poor defensive metrics has been the play of their netminders as of late.
Even with a poor outing against Detroit on Dec. 2, Jeremy Swayman has still gone 9-3-0 over his last 12 games with a .928 save percentage.
According to MoneyPuck, Swayman ranks third among the 80 qualifying goalies in the NHL with a goals saved above expected rate of 18.8.
Swayman’s strong play between the pipes has helped cover some of Boston’s flaws so far this season.
The task of beating Boston becomes far more daunting when an already competitive, stingy roster brings back a former 60-goal scorer and one of the most complete blueliners in the league.
“We’re a good hockey team,” Fraser Minten said on Saturday of the statement the Bruins made overcoming these injuries. “And we’re here to compete this season and push to be a playoff team. We got all the confidence in this room that we can do that, and hopefully can continue to play like that.”
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