There’s no place like home, sure, but there’s also nothing quite like forced bonding.

And after getting a taste of the former with a two-game homestand to open up their 2023-24 slate, the Bruins will now experience the latter, with Thursday set to kick off what will be a four-game road swing with stops in San Jose, Los Angeles, Anaheim, and Chicago in a span of just six days.

Speaking with reporters prior to Boston’s flight out to California, Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery said going out on the road had ‘nothing but positives’ for the Bruins. And speaking with reporters following Wednesday’s practice in San Jose, it was more of the same from the second-year B’s bench boss.

“I think more importantly than a normal routine, it’s more about us getting together on the road,” Montgomery offered. “You spend a lot more time together, having dinner together, playing cards on the plane. Just creating memories.”

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• Beyond the in-the-sky card games and dinners, the Bruins will look to kick this trip off on the right foot with a Thursday night head-to-head with the Sharks. A rebuilder of the highest order, San Jose enters Thursday’s contest with an 0-2-1 record on the year, and have been outscored 12-7 over that three-game sample.

  The Sharks are also allowing a league-high 42 shots per game.

  Montgomery and the Bruins swept last year’s season series with the Sharks with a 2-0-0 record and a scoring edge that favored the Bruins by an 8-2 mark. The Bruins are also entering this contest with five straight wins in San Jose from Feb. 2017 to now, which is tied for the longest undefeated streak the B’s have had in San Jose’s barn, with team having previously gone 3-0-0-2 during a five-game spell from 1991 through 1996.

  Here are four player to watch for in tonight’s contest at the Shark Tank…

• Charlie Coyle

  

  Oct 14, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins center Charlie Coyle (13) controls the puck against Nashville Predators left wing Cole Smith (36) during the third period at the TD Garden. (Brian Fluharty/USA TODAY Sports)

• After two games in a top-six role, the Bruins have decided to move Charlie Coyle back to his familiar spot in the middle of Boston’s third line.

  The move will also come with a reunion with Trent Frederic as Montgomery and the Bruins aim to reunite one of their most effective duos of 2022-23 (the Bruins by all means doubled up the opposition when Coyle-Frederic were out there together at five-on-five) and add a different element with James van Riemsdyk slotted to skate with them at left wing.

  “A guy like van Riemsdyk really helps them connect the dots [for Coyle and Frederic],” Montgomery said following the team’s departure for California. “[van Riemsdyk] likes to own the net front, Charlie likes to possess [the puck], and Frederic does a really good job of getting open as F-3 and shooting it.”

  Coyle, a first-round pick of the Sharks back in 2010, has one assist, two shots, and five hits through two games this season. He was also a bit of a road killer in 2022-23, with 11 goals and 28 points in 41 games away from TD Garden last season.

• Kevin Shattenkirk

  

  Oct 14, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk (12) looks into the crowd during the third period of a game against the Nashville Predators at the TD Garden. (Brian Fluharty/USA TODAY Sports)

• Defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk is a different kind of new face for the Bruins. At least on the backend.

  In addition to his noteworthy status as a veteran of 893 NHL games between six different franchises, and a Stanley Cup winner with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Shattenkirk is also the best, right-shooting offensive threat the Bruins have had behind Charlie McAvoy since he broke into the league. It’s given the Bruins a lot of different options when it comes to his usage and deployment — especially from a situational standpoint — but through two games, it’s the leadership elements that have stuck out to Montgomery.

  “I really like his poise and his intelligence,” Montgomery noted. “He has a real good, calming influence on our defense within the games. Something I felt we needed back there. Just because he’s been through a lot. I think his understanding of the game and momentum within the game helps his lend his knowledge.”

  The Bruins are going to lean on that heavily on this road trip, too, as the Bruins will be forced to give the Forbort-Shattenkirk pairing some harder minutes than they typically would on Boston ice.

  Through two games with the Bruins, Shattenkirk has recorded fours shots on goal and blocked three shots. Shattenkirk had two assists in three head-to-heads with the Sharks last season.

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• Morgan Geekie

  

  BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – OCTOBER 11: Morgan Geekie #39 of the Boston Bruins and Jarred Tinordi #25 of the Chicago Blackhawks battle for a loose puck at TD Garden on October 11, 2023. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

• So much of the focus in this contest will be on the 19-year-old Matt Poitras and his ability to create some chemistry with Bruins captain Brad Marchand following his promotion up the B’s lineup. But the Bruins are also going to ask a lot out of that line’s right winger: Morgan Geekie.

  And for Geekie, his job on this line is going to require some straight-up dirty work.

  “I especially like how [Geekie] wins races to the net front and stays there,” Montgomery said following Wednesday’s practice. “[He] takes a lot of punishment. I think he’s someone that’s really gonna help us with our net-front battles, our net-front presence, five-on-five play and power play.”

  To Poitras’ right through the first two games of his B’s career, Geekie has posted a plus-2 rating and recorded five shots on goal. He’s also proven to be a reliable faceoff option thus far, with wins in eight of his 11 draws.

• Tomas Hertl

  

  SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 18: Tomas Hertl #48 of the San Jose Sharks in action against the Buffalo Sabres at SAP Center on February 18, 2023 in San Jose, California. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

• There’s no denying that Matt Poitras could be a narrative changer when it comes to the Bruins’ long-term need at center. But even if Poitras pops like the Bruins hope, it’s not hard to imagine the Bruins wading into the high-end center market all the same. After all, center was their strength during the Bergeron-Krejci era, and as past Cup winners confirm, it’s never a bad thing to load up on all the center depth you can.

  And this is where I wonder about a player like Tomas Hertl.

  At one point considered the top trade prize, Hertl shocked the world when he decided to instead sign a long-term extension with the rebuilding Sharks. Of course, California weather and $65.1 million over eight years can make you stomach a whole lot of rebuilding, I’m sure, but if the Sharks decide that their teardown must include Hertl’s exit, I do wonder if the Bruins would make a call or two.

  While I fully expect the Bruins to be active in the center market in 2024, the problem is that waiting for high-end centers to hit the free-agent market is always a dangerous game (see: Bo Horvat’s situation last year). It may take a trade, and you have to wonder if Hertl would have any interest in teaming up with fellow Czech stars like David Pastrnak and Pavel Zacha in Boston. This is all merely my own speculation at this point, but it’s hard not to see a potential fit here if the soon-to-be 30-year-old Hertl decides that he wants to compete.

  The 6-foot-3 Hertl is coming off a career-high 41-assist season in 2023-24, and has already recorded three assists through three games this season.

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