Boston Bruins must fix early season offensive struggles soon

The Boston Bruins have started off slow to kick off the 2021 season and need to fix it fast.

Through three games in the shortened 2021 NHL season, the Boston Bruins sit at 1-1-1. As you see the record, there should be no reason for fans to panic.

As you look deeper into their performances through the three games, you begin to see that maybe there should be a little bit of panic as the early season struggles are real. Through three games, they have scored three goals (and one shootout goal). Not a great statistic to live by with hopes of going far into the playoffs again this season.

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The Bruins currently have scored zero of their three goals in five-on-five play, something that they have continuously struggled with in seasons past. Now, the anger has to be real for Bruins fans considering the difficulty to score and the struggles they have had needing to be fixed fast with only 56 games as opposed to the usual 82 game season.

There is good news for the black and gold through the first three games as the defense has been impressive and the goaltending remains among the league’s elite.

And knowing the Bruins, the offense should come around when Bruce Cassidy doesn’t have to play with the lineup every single game.

What is important to remember is that the shortened training camp and non-existent exhibition and preseason make it feel as though this should have been expected.

Torey Krug is gone and his production isn’t going to be made up in a day or by one player. David Pastrnak is nearing closer and closer to his return and a spark on the offense should follow. There’s hope for this offense and it should be expected that Don Sweeney and the front office try and bring in some help later on in the season.

The injury to Ondrej Kase only continues the problem Kase has had his entire career. He cannot stay healthy. Nick Ritchie has actually looked the part this season and has earned a spot on the top powerplay because of his recent play.

His continuous work near the crease allows him to fill the role he was brought on the team to fill — the big, physical player that can finish in the front of the net. He still has a ways to go, but it seems that he is on track to be more useful than fans had thought.

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Looking ahead, Cassidy is going to be forced to put together a lineup that can score and not only depend on Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand.

Jake DeBrusk and Charlie Coyle should pick up their offensive play to reform that secondary scoring the Bruins have depended on them to deliver in the seasons past. But these are not the answers Bruins fans are looking for.

It’s still early but unfortunately, they need to figure it out before it is too late. It’s easy to jump on the team as a whole offensively, but through three games it is easier to breathe and let things figure themselves out before panicking too much.

The defense has shown that they are not going to be the weak link like many expected. The young guys like Jakub Zboril and Jeremy Lauzon have shown promise while Kevan Miller, while healthy, has been nothing short of excellent in his return to the lineup.

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The Boston Bruins have a lot of work to do and they should not get an easy “pass” because of the COVID-19 shortened offseason. There are teams playing as if nothing changed. But it’s good to be mindful it takes time for this team to build and soon enough, it will be clear who this team really is.

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