Games 2-3: Tough First Week

When a team has to play six games in nine nights to start the year, that immediately puts the pressure on you to do well from the get-co. 

Well, the good teams thrive under that type of pressure.

The Boston Bruins just so happen to be placed in that exact scenario this season. They are looking to respond in the right way to close out this busy start to the 2014-15 campaign. The B's were right back in action on Thursday night for the first road game of the year. They took on the Detroit Red Wings.

Despite Boston being short handed, this was a very winnable game. Wings' Pavel Datsyuk was placed on injured reserve to begin the year, so any type of playoff revenge planned by Detroit took a major hit right off the bat. 

The Bruins sent out the same lineup as they did on Wednesday hoping for a repeat performance. Unfortunately, that did not come to fruition. The Red Wings powered their way to a 2-1 victory on home ice. Patrice Bergeron was the lone goal scorer for the B's. Although Tuukka Rask was great in goal, he just could not get the help he needed. Those back-to-backs are killer, especially the second half of them. The second period has always been the Achilles heel of the Black and Gold since the dawning of the "Claude Julien" era in Boston...things were no different on this night.  

The Bruins closed out the week on Saturday night against the Washington Capitals, a team that gutted their core and underwent a major overhaul during the offseason. 

The new look is paying off, and it showed on this night. The Bruins got spanked by the Capitals in a 4-0 blanking at the TD Garden. Alex Ovechkin (WSH) recorded a pair of goals. The bigger problem here is that this Boston team looks inept and deficient in many areas. When you score three goals in three games as a team, everything needs to be reevaluated.  

The Black and Gold will play their first matinee game of the year on Monday afternoon against the Colorado Avalanche.

Gold Star (combined): Patrice Bergeron...This is a default selection, considering how bad the team is playing right now. However, he is the lone spark on the offensive side of things. 

Black Star (combined): Milan Lucic...His play is horrendous, not to mention that he is getting thrown around out there with ease. Something drastic has to happen here.

Game Two Box Score

Game Three Box Score