Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery makes shocking decision with leading goal scorer in critical game
Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery told reporters tonight that David Pastrnak did not play in the 3rd period for a very vague but damning reason.
Pastrnak is without a doubt the most important skater on the Bruins. He has been the team's leading scorer for several seasons now and is currently at the top of the scoring board again with 11 points this season, including six goals. If they team were to miss him for an extended period of time, it would be a huge blow. Despite this, Montgomery apparently decided to bench him in the 3rd period tonight strictly as a coach's choice.
To clarify, Pastrnak is not dealing with an injury. This was simply a coach holding his players accountable, something that we do not often see with players of Pastrnak's caliber. While Montgomery refused to specify why he made the decision, one fan pointed out a particularly bad turnover Pastrnak made in the second period that could have done serious damage to the team in the game.
This is not the first time Montgomery has made a move like this this season. Last month, the Bruins head coach called out his star players after a loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. As such, it seems as though we can expect Montgomery to continue being hard on his top players until the team turns things around for good this season.
There is a very good reason for this as well. Speculation has begun to percolate that Montgomery could lose his job if the Bruins continue to struggle. After all, this year has been the team's worst start by far since Montgomery took over. With that being said, it appears as though the team is responding well to his moves. Not only did they get the win tonight, but even Pastrnak himself didn't take it personally which is a good sign of a good relationship between him and his coach. Charlie McAvoy revealed after the game that Pastrnak was still being a leader in the 3rd period despite the fact that he wasn't playing, which is not only a sign of a good leader, but also a sign of a healthy team culture.
With the win tonight, the Bruins moved to 6-6-1, currently good for 4th place in the Atlantic Division. That being said, they will need to continue to improve their record if they want to make the playoffs let alone compete for a division title. Can Montgomery continue to pull the right strings to lead his team and save his own job? Only time will tell.
