Brad Marchand has never been one to hold back.
Tuesday was no exception as the Boston Bruins captain was visibly agitated after an 8-1 clobbering by the league-leading Winnipeg Jets snapped their four-game winning streak.
“This was coming, our practices have been sloppy,” said Marchand in the dressing room after the game. “Our execution has been off there, and it bleeds into games.”
Marchand, 36, was responding to a question regarding the team’s improved defensive form over the past few weeks since firing former head coach Jim Montgomery and replacing him with Joe Sacco in the interim.
Since making the change, the Bruins were 7-2 and allowed the second least goals against per game (2.00). They were 28th in the NHL (3.45) in this category in the 19 games they played under Montgomery to start the season.
The Jets outshot the Bruins 34-25 and converted on three of six power-play opportunities.
“They were good, and we were not good. We weren’t executing, we were lost in our coverage, and we didn’t win enough battles,” said Marchand. “Yeah, they were good, they made plays, but we did not have a good game.”
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