Troiani Rink Report

The Boston Bruins were off to an impressive start to begin the 2025-26 season under new head coach Marco Sturm.

The Black and Gold won their first three games beginning with a gritty road win over the Washington Capitals in the season-opener, followed by two home wins over the Chicago Blackhawks and Buffalo Sabres, before dropping their final home game against the Tampa Bay Lightning before heading out west for a three-game road trip.

Boston returned home without a win and now sis 3-4-0, good for fifth in the Atlantic Division. It’s really not all that surprising that the Bruins lost to the Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche — both clubs have yet to lose in regulation this season.

Despite scoring five goals against Vegas, Boston’s lack of offensive power was certainly exposed against Colorado and the Utah Mammoth.

David Pastrnak scored twice in the road trip finale, but it was the Mammoth skated that away with a 3-2 win.

After the loss, Pastrnak acknowledged the trip did not go the way the Bruins’ planned.

“Obviously, a tough result at the end,” Pastrnak told reporters, per team-provided audio. “I actually thought our game was pretty good, much better than previous games on the road trip. So, a tough road trip for us. We’re going to have to go back home in front of our fans and regroup.”

Franchise defenseman Charlie McAvoy echoed Pastrnak’s thoughts regarding the three-game stretch.

“This was a tough trip. We didn’t play our game,” he told reporters, per team-provided audio. “We did in pockets, but we weren’t able to get the results. It’s still very early. We’re still going to be getting better every day (…) I don’t think we need to be discouraged just yet.”

The Bruins were outscored 13-8 on the trip, and while they only surrendered three power-play goals on 16 opportunities to their opponents. In other words, the Black and Gold committed far too many infractions (17) across the three-game span.

“It’s killing us right now, it’s killing us,” McAvoy said of all the time Boston has spent on the penalty kill. “We talk about it. It’s a very fast game, right? I don’t think anyone’s trying to take penalties. But I’ve been one of the biggest ones. I lead our team in penalties.”

Here are more notes from Boston’s three-game road trip:
— Hampus Lindholm returned from a three-game absence in the B’s loss to the Avalanche. He recorded 20:44 of ice time across 28 shifts, and registered three blocks.

— Jeremy Swayman got the first two starts and fell to 2-2-0 on the season. After surrendering just one goal in each of the first two games he started, Swayman allowed nine goals on 74 shots in the last two. He posts a 2.76 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage.

— Boston’s top forwards — outside of Pastrnak — failed to make an impact on the trip.

Morgan Geekie registered just one point on the trip — an assist on Pastrnak’s goal against Vegas. He has two goals and two assists in seven games this season. Pavel Zacha also tallied just one assist across the three games. He has one goal in seven games, which came in Boston’s last win on Oct. 11. Elias Lindholm, like Geekie and Zacha, had one helper on the road trip. He has three goals and two helpers in the B’s first seven games.

— The Bruins will be back on TD Garden ice Tuesday when they host former captain Brad Marchand and the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN and 98.5 The Sports Hub.