Should the Bruins shakeup the shootout trio?
The Bruins began the second half of the season on a seven game home stand and so far have started out 1-3 after their 3-2 shootout loss to Tampa Bay…
BOSTON, MA – FEBRUARY 13: Jake DeBrusk #74 of the Boston Bruins skates away after being stopped by Andrei Vasilevskiy #88 of the Tampa Bay Lightning during the shootout in Tampa’s 3-2 win at TD Garden on February 13, 2024 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
The Bruins began the second half of the season on a seven game home stand and so far have started out 1-3 after their 3-2 shootout loss to Tampa Bay last night. Linus Ullmark was in net after a 4-0 shutout against Vancouver last week. The B's got down early giving up goal a minute into the game and the second period and dug out of an early 2-0 deficit. The team responded with goals from Charlie McAvoy and James Van Reimsdyk. Lighting goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy was outstanding stopping 36 shots in the game and in overtime. And stopping all 3 shots in the shootout. Speaking of the shootout. Should the Bruins consider changing up the trio of Jake Debrusk, Charlie Coyle and David Pastrnak?
Last year, the Bruins had a record of 4-0-3 in the shootout. This season, the team is 2-0-2 but have used the same trio in all four games. Looking inside the numbers, Jake Debrusk has a shootout percentage of 33%. Charlie Coyle comes in at 40% in shootouts. David Pastrnak gave the Bruins a chance to tie extend the game but was stopped for the lighting win. He has been criticized for has lack of an attempt in a previous shootout and is now has a percentage of 24%.
It's fair to be critical of going with the same lineup in every shootout with the opposing team preparing for that situation. The unknown can always be a wildcard in these situations, but the only other option for the Bruins was James Van Riemsdyk who has a career percentage of 29% in shootouts. I'm not sure which player you would remove but JVR did have a goal earlier in the game. Brayden Point, who scored the game-winner is shooting 45% for his career in the shootout.
There are plenty of other reasons why the Bruins lost the game. Going 0-6 on the power play and giving up a goal on one of the three power plays didn't help and was the difference.
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