Boston Bruins

Bruins Tank Keeps Rolling In Loss To Sharks

Published

1 month ago

March 23, 2025

The Boston Bruins had to decide which direction they were heading in as they approached the NHL trade deadline. Now that the deadline has passed, it’s clear which way they’re going.

The tank is in full effect for the Bruins, who’ve lost 13 of their last 16 games after falling to the San Jose Sharks 3-1 at SAP Center on Saturday night.

Boston was in position to win the game with the score tied 1-1 in the third period but gave up the go-ahead goal to Lucas Carlsson with 3:23 left to play.

A replay appeared to show that the Sharks were offsides as they entered the attacking zone prior to scoring, but Bruins interim coach Joe Sacco thought otherwise and opted not to challenge the play.

“There was some discussion when we looked at it with our crew,” Sacco told reporters in San Jose. “We just decided the player that was entering the zone with the puck didn’t have possession of it as soon as he crossed the blue line. Therefore, he allowed his teammate the ability to tag up there.”

Sure looked like he had possession pic.twitter.com/lP4PC5bHDO

— Mr. Tenkrat (@PeterTenkrat) March 23, 2025

The loss extends Boston’s losing streak to five straight games. The team has been outscored 23-9 over that span. While each defeat has been more disparaging than the last, this one, in particular, was a new low, as it came against a San Jose team that sits dead last in the league standings as they entered action with just 18 wins all season.

“We played way better and had some decent zone time,” said Joonas Korpisalo. “We just lost it in the end once again, so you can’t be happy.”

Jakub Lauko did his best to wake the Bruins up by squaring off with Barclay Goodrow in the opening minutes of the first period, only for the rest of the team to hit the snooze button.

A scoreless tie was broken early in the second period when William Eklund scored for San Jose. As Macklin Celebrini skated the puck through the neutral zone in transition, he drew the attention of three Bruins defenders, leaving Eklund wide open to collect a cross-ice pass and snap a wrist shot through Korpisalo’s legs.

Korpisalo, who has seldomly been used in net this season, was steady all night and finished with 19 saves on 21 shots.

It wasn’t until late in the middle frame that the Bruins knotted the score again.

Boston was merely going for a line change as it dumped the puck deep into the San Jose end from the neutral zone. However, Sharks netminder Alexandar Georgiev mishandled it behind his own net. With a heavy forecheck coming off the bench, the Bruins created a turnover that led to Casey Mittlestadt scoring his 13th goal of the season.

Mittsy knots it up. pic.twitter.com/77hSMNEUBF

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) March 23, 2025

“Great forecheck by Cole [Koepke],” Mittlestadt said. “I pretty much just looked up, and the puck was sitting there for me. You don’t get too many like that, so you’ll I definitely take it.”

Mittlestadt has been one of the few bright spots on the Bruins roster in the last few weeks, as he’s accounted for four points with two goals since being acquired at the deadline. However, outside of him, Morgan Geekie, David Pastrnak, and Korpisalo, when he gets the rare chance to play, it’s hard to identify many other players who’ve made a consistent impact during this miserable stretch.

Following the loss, the Bruins’ record sits at 30-32-9 with 11 games left to play on their schedule.

Boston will visit the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday night.