The Bruins offseason additions play a big role in the first win of the season

The Bruins’ offseason additions play a big role in the first win of the season originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

BOSTON – Bruins general manager Don Sweeney was busy on Day 1 of NHL free agency in July. He signed eight players and spent more than $80 million (in total contract value) to improve his roster for the 2024-2025 NHL season. He also acquired two players in the Linus Ullmark trade in June.

Many of those new players played leading roles as the Bruins earned their first two points of the new campaign, a 6-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night in the home opener at TD Garden. In fact, four of Boston’s six goals came from players acquired in the offseason.

The Bruins’ most significant addition this summer was top-six center Elias Lindholm, who signed a seven-year contract worth $54.25 million. Lindholm is an excellent two-way player who drives 5-on-5 on offense and also contributes to both special teams units.

He did that and much more in two games with his new team. After picking up an assist in Tuesday’s season opener against the Panthers, Lindholm scored three points (one goal, two assists) in the win over Montreal.

The Bruins got on the board at 11:04 of the first period when Charlie McAvoy scored on the power play. Lindholm got an assist on the goal. Later in the period, he scored a goal himself, thanks to a little help from another newcomer: defender Nikita Zadorov.

Zadorov passed to Lindholm, who tipped the puck past Canadiens goalie Caydin Primeau to give Boston a 3-2 lead with 1:37 left in the period.

Lindholm was also very good defensively. He has played 7:51 after the penalty in two games, and the Bruins haven’t allowed a goal in those minutes.

“I think the underrated part of his game is the little things, like winning battles, the things he does to give his teammates time and space,” Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery said of Lindholm. “You can see from the bumper that he has great balance and spatial awareness in the power play.”

Zadorov had two assists in the first period. The Bruins signed him to a six-year contract worth $30 million in free agency. The expectation is that Zadorov will bring some more strength and size (he’s 6-foot-4, 240 pounds) to the blue line, as well as some offensive prowess. He has lived up to those expectations so far with two assists and eight goals in two games.

One of the players the Bruins acquired in the Ullmark trade was bottom-six tight end Mark Kastelic. He scored Boston’s second goal of the first period and the game’s final goal in the third period. His second goal was important as the Canadiens had cut the Bruins’ lead to 5–4 just 16 seconds earlier.

Kastelic isn’t likely to light up the stats offensively, but he hits, blocks shots and gets into plenty of scrums. He will be a fan favorite for the foreseeable future.

One of the benefits of adding Lindholm and Kastelic in the middle of the offseason was their faceoff ability. Both won more than 54 percent of their confrontations last season. They combined to win 11 of their 19 ties against the Canadiens. The Bruins ranked 21st in the league in winning percentage last season. They should score much higher in 2024-2025, with Lindholm and Kastelic picking up a lot of draws.

Cole Koepke also scored on Thursday. He found the back of the net late in the second period for his first goal since Nov. 13, 2022. Koepke, who signed as a free agent in July after two seasons with the Tampa Bay Lightning, scored three points (one goal, two assists) on Thursday , which matches his scoring total from the past two seasons combined.

Koepke plays with speed and tenacity. He goes hard to the net and fights to win battles in the tough parts of the ice. He was rewarded for that commitment to his goal.

Here’s a recap of the Bruins newcomers’ performance against the Canadiens:

• Elias Lindholm: One goal, two assists, one shot, one hit, 6-for-13 on faceoffs

• Mark Kastelic: Two goals, three shots, two hits, 5-for-6 on faceoffs

• Cole Koepke: One goal, two assists, two shots, one hit

• Nikita Zadorov: Two assists, one goal

It will take some time for these newly acquired players to fully learn the Bruins system and establish good chemistry with their teammates. The line-up has not been determined yet.

But the early returns have been pretty good, at least offensively. The Bruins have scored 10 goals in two games, and the power play — which was terrible over the final 30 games of last season and in the second round of the playoffs — has scored a goal in each of the first two games this year. .

This Bruins roster has a lot of potential. Now it’s up to Montgomery to analyze what he’s seen so far and make corrections to improve the team’s defense.

“We want to win a lot more battles. I thought we won more battles in all three zones,” Montgomery said Thursday of his team’s performance. “And play faster, with that heaviness.

“I think we can see what kind of team we can be. We have to become a better controlling team and understand game management a little better. I didn’t think our game management was exemplary in the third period. But it is difficult to win. ” In this competition we achieved our first victory, now we continue to build.”