BOSTON — The Boston Bruins are 5-7-0 following a 5-2 win over the New York Islanders on Tuesday. At times, the Bruins showed thoroughness in the neutral zone and stiffness in their end. These have not been qualities in abundance thus far, but that should improve with more repetitions.
“You will see more and more of the structure we play, it’s going to turn at one point to our advantage,” coach Marco Sturm said. “Teams are getting sometimes frustrated in that. It’s still early in the season. Everyone is still very, very fresh. The mind is still fresh. Let’s see how it is in 30, 40 games. We’re still figuring that out.”
Sturm may be right. It’s possible his players master his hybrid system by the halfway point of 2025-26.
The trouble is, it will be too late by then. It’s not just that the Bruins are in 15th place in the Eastern Conference. There are too many lights blinking bright red on the dashboard to ignore.
FIVE STRAIGHT GAMES FOR GEEKS 🔥 pic.twitter.com/piFhUhJouz
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) October 29, 2025
Consider the following:
1. The Bruins are allowing 65.29 shot attempts per 60 minutes of five-on-five play, per Natural Stat Trick. It is the second-highest rate in the league. The Bruins are playing with fire by not possessing the puck.
They have already gone two deep with AHL callups: Michael Callahan and Jonathan Aspirot. The latter made his NHL debut against the Islanders, logging 14:41 of ice time while playing on the No. 3 pair with Henri Jokiharju.
2. They are the runaway NHL leaders with 56 minor penalties taken. The Chicago Blackhawks are second with 48. Teams that take penalties are chasing the puck. The Islanders scored one of their two goals during a delayed tripping call on Nikita Zadorov.
3. The Bruins lead the league with 306 hits and 215 blocked shots. It is a good thing they are willing to bash bodies and eat pucks. But both statistics underscore how often the Bruins are chasing the game.
4. Mason Lohrei’s game has crumbled. Lohrei started the year on the No. 1 pairing with Charlie McAvoy. He cannot play there anymore. In fact, Sturm decided Lohrei could not play at all against the Islanders.
“We expect more from him,” Sturm said of making Lohrei a healthy scratch. “Sometimes we have to press that reset button. It’s not like we want to bury him. No. I want to help him. That’s part of the process. He did some good things. But too many mistakes lately.”
Lohrei had taken backward steps in multiple areas prior to his banishment. He was overthinking instead of playing instinctively. He was making soft mistakes. His porousness had bled into McAvoy’s game. McAvoy has been on for 14 five-on-five goals against, most of any NHL defenseman.
Charlie McAvoy, center, picked up two assists against the Islanders. (Maddie Meyer / Getty Images)
McAvoy, paired with Zadorov against the Islanders, recorded two assists in 24:06 of ice time. Neither defenseman was on for either of the New York goals.
“He was excellent today,” Sturm said. “He just did whatever needed to get done. Same with Zadorov.”
The Bruins are allowing 16.81 high-danger attempts per 60 minutes of five-on-five play with Lohrei on the ice, per Natural Stat Trick. It is the highest HDCA/60 rate of any Boston defenseman.
Tuesday’s sitdown was a teaching moment for Lohrei. But it also may not be an exception. Lohrei may have to stay out of the lineup until he straightens out his game.
5. Elias Lindholm has zero five-on-five points. As of Tuesday, Lindholm was one of 120 forwards with at least 125 five-on-five minutes. He was the only one without a five-on-five point. Nathan MacKinnon leads this group with 10.
Lindholm is third on the team with four goals. All of them have been on the power play. The No. 1 center has done nothing to drive offense at five-on-five, yet Sturm prefers to keep Lindholm with David Pastrnak.
Morgan Geekie, meanwhile, the team’s leading goal scorer, was moved to the third line with Tanner Jeannot and Fraser Minten against the Islanders. Geekie played 13:59, landing three shots and ripping home a PP one-timer.
“He skates well and hunts a lot of pucks for those guys,” Sturm said of Marat Khusnutdinov, his new No. 1 left wing.
Conclusion: Twelve games is not a significant sample size. But the Bruins have done enough bad things during this stretch to paint themselves in a corner. Extracting themselves will not be easy.