BOSTON — The Boston Bruins knew they were going to have a difficult time returning to TD Garden on Friday after spending more than a week on the road.
With both David Pastrnak and Pavel Zacha unavailable due to injury, it was even harder than they expected.
As for the Bruins who did take the ice, they looked as if they were still digesting their Thanksgiving dinners as they turned in a 6-2 losing effort against the New York Rangers.
“It’s got to be the same as any other day,” Morgan Geekie said. “Obviously, we know the firepower that we lost, but I mean–at least for me– games like this are an opportunity for a lot of guys to step up and seize an opportunity. That’s how you kind of make it in this league.
“I think up and down the lineup, we didn’t show up to start the game. They got ahead quick, and we battled back a little bit, but it just was not a very acceptable effort today.”
It took just 3:28 for the Rangers to grab the game’s 0pening goal, as Artemi Panarin capitalized off an odd-man rush. Carson Soucy added to New York’s lead at 12:02, blasting a slap shot at point-blank range from the top of the face-off circle past Joonas Korpisalo (30 saves on 35 shots) to make it 2-0.
Boston had a push to start the second period, challenging New York netminder Igor Shesterkin to with a handful of solid scoring chances to no avail.
When Hampus Lindholm was given a double minor penalty for high-sticking, the Rangers took full advantage, scoring not once but twice, with a pair of goals from Mika Zibanejad.
“That was a bad penalty by me,” Lindholm said. “I got to keep my stick on the ice. That kind of turned the game around. We were going a little bit before that. We’ve got to learn as a group to take less penalties, me included.”
In a 4-0 hole entering the intermission, the Bruins skated off the ice and headed toward to a chorus of boos from the hometown crowd.
“I’ve been here, not long, but long enough to understand that everybody’s a passionate fan,” Geekie said. “The effort we came out with today was just unacceptable. We’re aware of that, and we deserved it.”
The Bruins started to make a game of it in the final frame.
Back in the lineup for the first time in nine games, Casey Mittelstadt got Boston on the board by whacking in his fifth goal of the year at 4:07 of the third period. Geekie then potted his 18th of the year at 5:49, deflecting in a shot from Henri Jokiharju.
That, though, was as close as the Bruins got.
Alexis Lafreniere hit an empty net for New York at 16:36 to make it 5-2, before Vladislav Gavrikov beat Korpisalo one last time for good measure with less than three minutes left to play.
Following the loss, Bruins head coach Marco Sturm said he had “no idea” when Pastrnak or Zacha would be available for the Bruins again.
“To survive those kinds of games and stretches with a lot of injuries, a lot of guys have to step up,” said Sturm. “A lot of guys didn’t.”
The Bruins will host the Detroit Red Wings Saturday night at TD Garden.
FOLLOW ANDREW FANTUCCHIO ON 𝕏: @A_FANTUCCHIO
FOLLOW BOSTON HOCKEY NOW ON 𝕏 AND FACEBOOK