The Bruins officially have a lead-protecting problem.
And sure, there’s something to be said for the Bruins’ ability to salvage a point with a late-game, game-tying power-play goal from Brad Marchand, the Bruin’s third-period struggles are what put them in that position in the first place. Holding a one-goal lead through 40 minutes of play, the Bruins allowed the Wild to open things up on them entirely too much in the final frame, and put a strain on Linus Ullmark that simply wasn’t fair to their goaltender.
The end result: Boston’s sixth loss when leading after 40 minutes this season.
47-1-2 last year. Best in the league. This year their .684 win percentage is 29th in the league. Only Columbus, Calgary, and San Jose have been worse at protecting leads through 40 minutes. https://t.co/q6pSRZTDpr
— Ty Anderson (@_TyAnderson) December 20, 2023
It’s as bad as it sounds, too. With the loss, Boston’s win percentage when leading after two periods dropped down to .684, which is 29th in the league. Only the Columbus Blue Jackets (second-worst team in the Eastern Conference), the under .500 Calgary Flames, and league-worst San Jose Sharks have been worse on that front.
That is absolutely not the company you want to find yourself in at any point in 2023-24, to be honest. Unless you’re talking trade partners and stripping away some of the pieces from that team to make your team better.