A return to California for Bruins head coach Marco Sturm presented the first-year head coach with a mixed bag kind of feeling.
With a 2-1 overtime win on Friday night, Bruins undoubtedly bounced back and got back to their desired identity after a frustrating loss in Anaheim two nights prior. But with a 3-1 loss to the Sharks at the Shark Tank on Sunday night, Sturm couldn’t help but feel as if his team left points on the table once again.
“The guys that played, they tried everything possibly, we just found ourselves down a couple goals against a hot goalie,” Sturm said after the loss in San Jose. “It was just unfortunate to leave points here.”
Here’s a look at the 985TheSportsHub.com 3 Stars of the game…
3rd Star: Morgan Geekie
TORONTO, CANADA – NOVEMBER 08: Morgan Geekie #39 of the Boston Bruins skates against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena on November 08, 2025. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
Already neck-and-neck with the Avalanche’s Nathan MacKinnon for the most goals in the NHL (imagine saying this in 2023), Geekie continued what’s been a hot run throughout California, with his fifth goal of the B’s road trip.
It felt like the Bruins’ best chances came with Geekie on the ice, and the numbers certainly confirmed that, too, as the Bruins out-attempted S.J. by a 14-5 mark, and outshot them 9-3, in Geekie’s 11:42 of five-on-five time on ice.
2nd Star: Macklin Celebrini
Nov 23, 2025; San Jose, California, USA; Sharks center Macklin Celebrini (71) pursues the puck against the Bruins in the third period at SAP Center in San Jose. (David Gonzales-Imagn Images)
The Year 2 leap is here for Sharks center Macklin Celebrini, and man, is it downright ridiculous. Deployed for 19:32 against the Bruins in the win, Celebrini’s second-period power-play goal ultimately held as the game-winning goal in this contest. But Celebrini stuffed the box score beyond just that, as he also had an assist, a plus-2 rating, and five shots on goal in the victory.
1st Star: Yaroslav Askarov
Nov 23, 2025; San Jose, California, USA; Sharks goaltender Yaroslav Askarov (30) passes the puck during a game against the Bruins at SAP Center in San Jose. (David Gonzales-Imagn Images)
Peppered with 35 shots from the Bruins’ shooters, including 15 in the second period, Askarov stopped all but one en route to the victory on San Jose ice.
Now, whether or not the Bruins made it as hard as they could’ve on Askarov is up for debate. Sturm, for what it’s worth, thought the Bruins should have gotten more bodies in his way to make his night more difficult. But even when they did their part to make it harder on Askarov, he was ready for the challenge, with saves on all six high-danger shots faced in the win.