The Boston Bruins are out to make sure that their most recent performance stays in the past.
After falling into a four-goal hole in their 4-1 loss Monday to the Ottawa Senators, the Bruins look for a correction when they continue a three-game homestand against the Utah Mammoth on Thursday night.
“It’s on us to … make sure that never happens again,” Bruins defenseman Nikita Zadorov said. “We’ve just got to get back to our identity. Our identity is to play really good, structured, defensive hockey.”
James Hagens scored his second career NHL goal to get Boston on the board in the third period, but the 19-year-old was hard on himself for errors that helped Ottawa add to the score.
Bruins youngsters — including center Matt Poitras and defenseman Frederic Brunet, who both made their season debuts Monday — cannot do it alone.
“I think overall, as a group, we have to help those kids out,” coach Marco Sturm said. “They’re kids. They need to learn the hard way sometimes, but they need help. And that’s all of us.”
Boston has been limited to two goals in back-to-back losses while going 0-for-10 on the power play this season.
David Pastrnak and Morgan Geekie are both without a goal through four games after combining for 68 in 2025-26. JJ Peterka, who arrived in Boston off a 25-goal campaign with Utah, has two goals, along with Hagens.
With the Bruins needing an offensive spark, Sturm reunited Zacha and Pastrnak with Geekie on the top line during Wednesday morning’s practice. Brunet also took a turn quarterbacking the top power play.
“We’re on the outside too much,” Sturm said. “We’ve got to be more direct and hungrier taking it closer to the net.”
The Mammoth continue a five-game road swing. They bounced back from their first loss of the new campaign in a 5-3 win over the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday when Nick Schmaltz (two goals, one assist) and Mikhail Sergachev (three assists) both had three-point nights.
Through Tuesday’s play, Schmaltz led the NHL with five goals, including one on the power play against New Jersey. He has scored in each of Utah’s first four games.
“Hotter than toast,” Mammoth associate captain Lawson Crouse said of Schmaltz. “Doesn’t surprise me one bit. He’s such a composed player. Intelligent hockey player with a lot of hockey IQ and obviously tremendous skill.”
Utah has scored at least four goals in all three of its victories, including a season-high six in a season-opening shutout of the Chicago Blackhawks last Thursday.
A league-best 8-for-13 showing with the man advantage has helped fuel the Mammoth’s start. Clayton Keller also scored a goal on that unit against the Devils.
“When we attack the way that we attack, shot on net right off the faceoff, now we bring the game at a pace where you need to think really quickly,” Utah coach Andre Tourigny said of the power play. “Our guys can do that. It will be a battle for us all year long to keep that mindset. For now, we’ll take it.”
Sergachev left Tuesday’s game early with an upper-body injury from being hit in the head by a puck on an attempted clear. There was no update on his status.
The home team has won all four games in the all-time series between Boston and Utah, splitting home-and-home sets in each of the past two seasons.
