Pre-Scout: The dominance of Morgan Geekie and the Boston Bruins resurgence

Seeing the Boston Bruins logo near the top of the Atlantic Division is a familiar sight – we just didn’t think we’d see it there this season.

After finishing 5th worst overall a season ago, trading icon Brad Marchand, there was no signal of a rebuild in Beantown. Instead, the classic method of retool was chosen, and it’s worked wonders for the Bruins in the short term.

With a win over the Edmonton Oilers tonight, the Bruins would be first place in the division again.

New head coach Marco Sturm has a bought-in group that is willing to grind down their opponents. Heading into tonight’s game, Boston has won five of their last six games, including a 4-1 victory over the Utah Mammoth on Tuesday.

“I think as a team, I think we’ve really found an identity,” Casey Mittelstadt, who noticed a third period goal, said post-game. “Marco’s come in firm and strong on that. I think the way he wants to play fits the personnel we have as well.”

The Bruins don’t have to do any travelling before Christmas. Tonight is their second of a five-game homestand, where they look to capitalize as one of the league’s best home teams with a 12-5 record at TD Garden.

“We try to wear them down. The system we’re playing, when everybody is on the same page, it’s not easy to play against,” David Pastrňák said. “We just try to be patient, wait for our opportunities and sometimes it works out in the third. That’s a perfect example today.”​

Geeking out

Although the strangling Sturm system is what’s preached, that doesn’t mean the Bruins aren’t scoring goals – quite the contrary. They’ve scored the fifth most goals across the league with 113 (before Wednesday games).

Morgan Geekie has been the revelation of the season across the NHL, sitting second in goals with 24 on the year, only bested by Nathan MacKinnon.

The 27-year-old was a buy-low option for the Bruins in the summer of 2023. He couldn’t get his footing in Seattle after being claimed in the expansion draft, and Boston took a gamble believing there was a player there.

There sure was, and following career highs........

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