With his team on the verge of collapsing and losing a first-round series it once led 3-1 for the second consecutive season, Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery called out superstar forward David Pastrnak on Thursday, May 2.
Montgomery compared Bruins captain Brad Marchand‘s efforts to those of Pastrnak, praising the former while warning the latter about him having to “step up” for the crucial Game 7 against the Toronto Maple Leafs scheduled for May 4.
Media members asked Montgomery about Pastrnak’s reaction to his comments and how he had taken such criticism coming straight out of him on Friday, with the Bruins back in Boston ahead of Game 7
“I talked to him right after the game about it. I talked to him about it during the game,” Montgomery told reporters on May 3, via Boston Globe’s Conor Ryan. “Pasta and I have a real healthy, communicative relationship, and he’s ready to go.”
Although Montgomery’s clarification should remove all potential drama ahead of Game 7, the truth is Boston will need to stave elimination off on Saturday if they want to really move on from any further damaging aftermath.
David Pastrnak Struggling In Toronto Maple Leafs Matchup
Montgomery called out Pastrnak after the Game 6 2-1 loss in Toronto to the Leafs, the third-second consecutive defeat suffered by the Boston Bruins and one that brought a tie to the first-round series between both teams before they play a win-and-in Game 7.
“Your best players need to be your best players this time of year,” Montgomery told reporters in his postgame press conference on May 2. “They need to come through with some big-time plays in big-time moments.
“[Brad] Marchand has done this throughout the series. [David Pastrnak] needs to step up.”
Following the Game 6 defeat, Pastrnak has 4 points while Marchand has scored 8 points, doubling the production of his fellow Bruins wingman. Through the regular season, however, Pastrnak scored 110 points to Marchand’s 67 with both appearing in all 82 games.
Boston’s 3-1 win against the Leafs in Game 4 was the last time Pastrnak scored a goal this postseason, although it didn’t count for much as it only added one more score to a game already decided… by a game-winning goal scored by Marchand on a power-play opportunity earlier in that contest.
“[Pastrnak] needs to be a dominant player like he used to. He’s doing it in flurries, but not as consistently,” Montgomery said.
Bruins Fighting to Avoid Back-to-Back Historic Collapses
The Bruins are walking a tightrope that could have serious consequences impacting the franchise from top to bottom.
After taking a 3-1 series lead in the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs matchup against the Florida Panthers, the Bruins collapsed and were eliminated in seven games. This year, having taken another 3-1 lead against the Leafs, Boston is in a similarly precarious situation entering Game 7.
Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman discussed the situation and the potential impact of a Game 7 loss on May 3 in a segment of his latest 32 Thoughts podcast episode.
“Boston is a very demanding organization. They expect greatness out of their Bruins and last year was a big upset,” Friedman said. “I think if we have this two years in a row, Boston, to me, the organization of the Jacobs family and Cam Neely in particular, I don’t see them taking this easily and ‘Nothing to see here’ and I just don’t believe that.”
On the other side of the affair, the Toronto Maple Leafs are also facing a pivotal game for the future of the franchise considering there have been rumors about the organization potentially firing head coach Sheldon Keefe.
Game 7 is scheduled for Saturday, May 3, taking place in Boston as the Bruins will host the Leafs for a final first-round contest between both franchises. The winner of Game 7 will face the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
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