Things went from bad to worse for Jim Montgomery and the Bruins on Saturday, as the team surrendered a season-high seven goals in a blowout loss to the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.

The loss, which is ‘good’ for Boston’s first losing streak of the season and their first since a two-game skid in March last season, came on the heels of a similarly ugly-looking 5-2 defeat to the Red Wings at TD Garden on Black Friday.

• Linus Ullmark, who was tagged for all seven goals in the losing effort, made 33 saves, but became the first Boston goaltender to allow seven goals in a game since Daniel Vladar allowed seven against the Capitals on Apr. 11, 2021. Overall, it was just the eighth time since 2005 that a B’s netminder had allowed at least seven goals in a game, as it happened to Tim Thomas on four separate occasions, while Ullmark joined a one-time group featuring Vladar, Tuukka Rask, and Jaro Halak.

  And while the goaltending could’ve come through with another stop here or there, this was a game that was defined by the B’s horrendous play in their own zone, as the Rangers took advantage of the Black and Gold’s unwillingness to play team defense and their porous gap control throughout the afternoon.

  “There’s a lot of things that, unfortunately, our habits and details have kind of eroded on us defensively here,” Montgomery said after the defeat.

• But even in what was their worst outing of the campaign, the Bruins showed some serious spirit with the team in an early 0-2 hole.

  Down a pair behind strikes from Nick Bonino and Chris Kreider, and still without a shot on goal, Montgomery opted to call a timeout and did what he could to get his team settled.

  During a timeout, Jim Montgomery lays into his team after a brutal first 10 minutes: pic.twitter.com/nHQxl1xCWv

  — Evan Marinofsky (@EvanMarinofsky) November 25, 2023

  The Bruins responded with two goals in 24 seconds, the first from Charlie Coyle and second from Morgan Geekie, and it was right back even.

  But Boston found themselves in a 3-2 hole through 20 minutes thanks to a late-period shorthanded marker from Kreider.

  And while the teams continued to trade goals in the middle frame, it was another late-period breakdown that torched the Bruins, this time by way of a K’Andre Miller one-time bomb at the 19:36 mark of the second.

• 

  Nov 25, 2023; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers left wing Jimmy Vesey (26) celebrates his goal against the Boston Bruins with left wing Artemi Panarin (10), center Vincent Trocheck (16) and defenseman Braden Schneider (4) during the second period at Madison Square Garden. (Danny Wild/USA TODAY Sports)

• The Rangers would add another three goals in the third period, while Coyle’s second of the game was the only response mustered up by the Bruins, but this was one by all means over and done before that Coyle goal once the Rangers made it 6-3 with 18:34 left in the third period.

  The numbers backed up the eye test in regards to how nightmarish Boston’s defensive-zone structure was, too, as NaturalStatTrick.com had the Bruins ‘credited’ with allowing a season-high 23 high-danger chances.

  The Bruins will get back to work Monday night in Columbus against the Blue Jackets.

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