The Boston Bruins travel to D.C. to take on the Washington Capitals to kick off the 2022-23 NHL season for both teams. The Bruins are coming off a 107-point season and a first round playoff exit in the Eastern Conference while the Capitals earned 100 points last season and were also bounced in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Both teams come into the season with some key injuries so it may be a while before each team hits its' stride. The puck drops at 7:05pm EST.
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The Bruins will enter their opener with more news about who they don't have playing than news about who is playing. The Bruins will start the 2022-23 season with several key players not yet ready to go thanks to offseason surgeries. Winger Brad Marchand along with defensemen Charlie McAvoy and Matt Grzelcyk will all miss at least the first month of the season as they continue to rehab. The Bruins did add some depth at the center position this offseason with the arrival of old-friend David Krejci, who came back out of retirement, and 25 year-old Matt Grzelcyk from the New Jersey Devils. They will both play behind captain Patrice Bergeron, who re-signed for an additional year after briefly flirting with retirement. The Bruins will be trying to return to the postseason behind new head coach, Jim Montgomery. Montgomery, formerly the head man of the Stars, is a defense-first coach which should be appreciated by Bruins' netminders Je remy Swayman and and Linus Ullmark. The Bruins offense will be led by David Pastrnak, who led the team in goals last season and was second in scoring. It is a contract year for Pastrnak, so expect his best season ever.
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Montgomery's defensive minded approach should serve the Bruins well. Last season, the Bruins led the league in fewest even strength shots against. They should thrive in this approach to start the season as they play without their leading scorer in Marchand and their most effective offensive defensemen in McAvoy.
Comeback Season: Veteran winger Taylor Hall had 22 goals last season, his most since netting 39 goals back in 2016-17 with New Jersey. He will begin the season on the #1 line and should benefit from playing alongside Pastrnak, who will garner a ton of attention.
Between the Pipes: The Bruins haven't announced a starter yet but Swayman and Ullmark are both more than capable in the starting role and had very similar stats last season. Each goalie played in 41 games and each had similar save percentages. Swayman had a .914 save percentage and Ullmark had a .917 save percentage in 2021-22.