Jim Montgomery Expects To Stay Mad Until Bruins’ Game 6 Vs Leafs
After failing to close out their opening round of the Stanley Cup playoffs against the Maple Leafs in Game 5 on Tuesday night, the Bruins met as a team at Warrior Ice Arena before heading to Toronto for Game 6.
Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery said the team’s performance still lingered for the second-year bench boss.
“I’m still pissed off from last night, just being honest,” Montgomery told reporters, as seen on CBS News. “I don’t understand and don’t accept our play last night. So I’m gonna be pissed off until the puck drops (Thursday) night.”
Before the team’s optional skate, Boston held a team meeting to go over what went wrong in Game 5.
“We wanted to, like we always do, review the game from (Tuesday) night and where we went wrong,” Montgomery said per team-provided video. “And then we start talking about where we need to get better. Some of that’s physical. Some of that’s mental. Some of it is staying in the moment that we talk about. I don’t think we did a good enough job staying in the moment last night. That’s what we’re looking for to get better for the next game.”
Even though the Bruins didn’t close out the series at TD Garden, Boston has had success in Toronto’s rink — having won Games 3 and 4.
“It gives you a lot of confidence,” Montgomery said. “We played two really good games there, and there’s a little bit of the mentality of we have to bring our own juice and we have to rely on each other. It’s kind of like a band of brothers mentality which is something I think our team thrives on.
“When you’re on the road in the playoffs, you spend all of your time together. It’s so much easier to eliminate outside noise when you’re on the road. These guys are watching other playoff games together. They’re going for meals together, we have team meals together. It’s a little easier to stay dialed in.”
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After winning back-to-back games in Toronto, Montgomery shuffled the lineup, with Justin Brazeau replacing John Beecher on the fourth line and Matt Grzelcyk returning in place of Kevin Shattenkirk. Montgomery explained the reason for the change after the loss on Tuesday night and doubled down on his decisions on Wednesday.
“There’s a lot of discussions that go on, and in the end, I end up making decisions that I was really confident that was best for the Boston Bruins,” he said. “When it doesn’t work out, I understand it comes with the territory; I’m going to be second-guessed and third and fourth-guessed, rightfully so. It comes with the territory.
“Just like when you make changes and things work out, it’s the same thing. But I know I’m comfortable with the decisions I’ve made, why I’ve made them and moving forward the criticism that comes with it.”
The Bruins have been in this situation before. Last season, Boston had the opportunity to close out the Panthers in Game 5 but lost in overtime and Florida went on to win the series 4-3.
“I have no problem talking about last year,” Montgomery said. “Failing or having failures in life and not learning from them is when you can repeat stuff. For me, it’s picking yourself back up and talking and being honest with each other about where we’re at and how we can get better.”
Montgomery and the Bruins will have the opportunity to finish the series on Thursday night. Puck drop from Scotiabank Arena is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET, and you can watch the game, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.