Boston Bruins ‘Impressed’ With Orlov, Hathaway In Debut

It’s one game into the new Boston Bruins careers for the newly acquired Garnet Hathaway and Dmitry Orlov, and so far, so good for the newest members of the Black and Gold club. It certainly wasn’t highlight reel stuff in the Boston Bruins 3-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks that was much more memorable for Linus Ullmark’s empty net goal than anything else that happened on the ice.

But that’s highly appropriate for blue collar players like Hathaway and Orlov were brought in for their solid all-around games rather than anything that’s going to show up on the highlight shows. Hathaway skated 17 shifts and 11:40 of ice time with a couple of hits and a giveaway, and seemed to slip into a physical forechecking role as the game played out with his new teammates.

None were as big as this Connor Clifton hit on Hathaway from a couple of weeks ago, but give him some time.

Garnet Hathaway scores, takes a huge hit, then does his celly from the ice 🤣 pic.twitter.com/q15gGDalng

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) February 11, 2023

Orlov finished with three shot attempts and a hit while topping 20 minutes of ice time, and was on the ice for Vancouver’s only goal when both he and Derek Forbort left the front of the net open for a quality scoring chance. The coverage seemed to be more with Forbort being tardy getting back to net-front coverage than anything Orlov did or didn’t do, so in most every way it was solid, mistake-free hockey from both new players.

“I’m really impressed with Hathaway’s details and penalty killing and seems like he understands our D-zone coverage already,” said Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery. “And Dmitry Orlov made some special plays, special passes on breakouts, in neutral zone and in the offensive zone.”

For a Maine native that played four years at Phillips Andover Academy as a teenager, Hathaway in particular has an understanding of what it means to play for the Boston Bruins, and an appreciation for putting on the Black and Gold.

“You know, I talked a lot about the locker room already, how welcoming they are, but it’s kind of the whole Bruins Nation, the whole Boston area, all of New England,” said Hathaway to reporters after the Vancouver win. “It kind of feels like day one, part of the team and just a lot of support.

“We learned a couple of things about the system and then it’s a bit of going with the flow. You just play and don’t think so much, and then go over some video and fine tune details.”

Orlov has played his entire NHL career with the Capitals to this point, so it’s a whole new world putting on the Black and Gold. There’s no confirming if he spray-painted his Capitals gloves like Hathaway did when joining up with the Bruins, but it’s pretty clear both players were ready to jump right in with the new group.

“I played for only one team for 11 years,” said Orlov. “It’s a different system, but I appreciate the help from the boys and the coaches. So, it wasn’t easy, but it was fun to get the win.

“It wasn’t a clean game, but we got the win so it was good. There are little things you’re not sure about, but you communicate it on the ice. You just make simple plays and not try to do too much. It’s a good and special group here.”

It was a solid start both Orlov and Hathaway, but it’s only the beginning of what these two hardnosed, talented veteran NHL players can bring to a Boston Bruins team that was already a wagon before they even got there.