Much like in 2013 and 2018, the Boston Bruins have seen a 3-1 series lead evaporated by the Toronto Maple Leafs. In those series, the Bruins managed to secure the Game 7 victory, which was both on home ice. The Bruins have yet to lose a Game 7 against the Maple Leafs, but the last two games haven’t instilled much optimism.
Joseph Woll has been a brick wall against the Bruins, as he has allowed just two goals in two games against them. In addition, he has a 0.86 goals-against average and a .957 save percentage. What looked like a series that was over for the Maple Leafs have seen it flip the other way. Slow starts have doomed the Bruins in the last two games, and the top guys have not performed well. If the Bruins are to avoid making history as the first team to blow a 3-1 series lead two years in a row, they’ll need players to step up to the plate and deliver. So here are three players that need to elevate their level of play entering Game 7.
Charlie Coyle
One player that seized the opportunity in front of him was Charlie Coyle. After seeing two iconic centers, Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci, retire, their role was up for grabs. Safe to say, Coyle not only seized the role but performed strongly.
Coyle went on to have a career year, scoring 25 goals and recording 60 points. This was his best offensive output since his days with the Minnesota Wild back in 2016-17. Center was the biggest question mark entering the 2023-24 season, but it became a non-issue as the year went on. However, the playoffs are a different story.
The area that was a nonissue during the regular season has become one during the first-round series. Production-wise, Coyle has just two assists and nothing coming beyond Game 4. He is getting beat in the faceoff circle by a small margin (47.32% success rate), which helps diminish any possession the team can sustain. When on the ice, the Maple Leafs lead in shot attempts, shots on goal differential, and scoring chances.
Charlie Coyle on playing Game 7 on home ice: "They are smart hockey fans in Boston…they love the game and the big moments and they are going to be on their feet and loud and we can't wait to have them behind us." pic.twitter.com/XiLSEiKKSz
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) May 3, 2024
His impact on the game needs to be much better for the team to move on, as he is the team’s number one center. He is ready for Game 7 and eager to have the fans and the Boston faithful behind him. It could be the great intangible factor that the Bruins need to right the ship. While Coyle needs to improve, so does the other top-two-line center.
Pavel Zacha
A change of scenery can do wonders for a player, and that has been the case for center Pavel Zacha. After falling out of favor with the New Jersey Devils, he has seen his hockey career revive in Boston. Zacha got better with each passing season but was no more than a 30-point player. However, in Boston and under head coach Jim Montgomery, he has seen his game go to new heights.
During the 2022-23 season, Zacha hit a new career high in goals (21) and points (57). In addition, he followed that up by tying that goal output and hitting a career-high in points. With the absence of Bergeron and Krejci, Zacha has filled that void nicely, but that has not carried over into the playoffs.
Zacha has only two points in this series against the Maple Leafs, and both are assists. One area that the team as a whole has struggled with is faceoffs, and Zacha has also gotten crushed in the faceoff circle. During this series, he has won 33 of his draws and lost 52, which is good for a subpar 38.82%. Compared to his regular season and a Bruins-best 54.8%, this is concerning. It’s hard to generate much offense when you don’t start with possession, and if the Bruins are going to move on, they will need more from him.
David Pastrnak
Getting called out by your coach may do the trick but something had to give somewhere. In an elimination game, you want to see your best players be your best players. It is not for a lack of effort on his part, but with the team needing goals, he is the one to call. David Pastrnak is a goal-scoring machine and is, without question, the Bruins’ biggest weapon. With the team starting slow and struggling to score goals (two in the last two games), they’ll need Pastrnak to come to the forefront.
During the 2017-18 playoff run, Pastrnak recorded five goals and 13 points in round one against the Maple Leafs. The following year, in 2018-19, Pastrnak recorded only six points, with two goals coming in the same game. Historically, he has scored 19 goals and 37 points in 28 games in his career. Safe to say, they’ll need him to elevate his play and get to that level.
In this series, Pastrnak has only two goals and two assists. After seeing the Maple Leafs’ best player, William Nylander, elevate his play to secure a victory in Game 6, the Bruins will want to see Pastrnak do the same in Game 7.
Brad Marchand has been great this series, leading with eight points. However, he and Pastrnak have been held off the sheet the last two games, and those two need to be difference-makers in order not to let history repeat itself.
