Bruins Wrap: Boston Looks Sleepy In Matinee Loss To Red Wings

BOSTON — The Bruins dropped another game to the Red Wings at TD Garden on Friday afternoon, falling by a score of 5-2. Detroit won the previous matchup at the beginning of November.

The B’s fell to 14-2-3 on the season, while the Red Wings improved to 10-6-3.

Check out the full box score here.

ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
It’s no surprise that Saturday marked the Bruins’ first matinee game of the season, as they came out of the gates looking a bit sleepy.

The Red Wings scored two goals in the first period, taking advantage of mistakes made by Bruins rookies Mason Lohrei and Matt Poitras. Lohrei struggled to clear the defensive zone on multiple occasions, while Detroit’s Alex DeBrincat picked Poitras’ pocket before scoring on a breakaway to push the Boston deficit to two.

In the second period, the Bruins began to mount a comeback, with Jake DeBrusk scoring his first power-play goal of the season. Lohrei would then take a penalty that eventually allowed the Red Wings to push their lead back to a pair, halting Boston’s mounting momentum in the process.

It was the same story in the third, as the Bruins made it a one-goal game before being called for another penalty that allowed the Red Wings to extend their lead. It was a “one step forward, two steps back” kind of day for Boston.

STARS OF THE GAME
— DeBrusk’s scoring touch appears to be back, as the skilled winger scored in his second consecutive game after going nearly three weeks without a goal.

— DeBrincat had two points in Detroit’s win, scoring a goal in the first period and adding an assist to finish as a plus-two on the afternoon.

— J.T. Compher opened the scoring before later adding an assist, giving him two points on the afternoon.

WAGER WATCH
Did you see Compher being the guy to open up the scoring Saturday? If you did, a $100 bet would have netted you a $2,000 payout as DraftKings Sportsbook gave him +1900 odds to score the first goal of the game.

UP NEXT ON NESN
The Bruins didn’t have very long to enjoy TD Garden, as they’ll head back on the road to face the New York Rangers on Saturday. It’ll be Boston’s second consecutive matinee matchup, as they’ll drop the puck from Madison Square Garden at 1 p.m. ET, following an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.