BRIGHTON, Massachusetts – David Pastrnak took the blame Monday when asked about the period he watched from the end of the bench the day before against the Seattle Kraken.
The Boston Bruins star forward committed a turnover late in the second period, in what proved to be his last shift of the game. Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery said after the game that it was “a coaching decision,” without elaborating.
“Honestly, I just have to be better,” Pastrnak said after Monday's practice. I take responsibility for being better, but at the same time, I move on. Today I am focusing on tomorrow's match. Yesterday was yesterday. I don't look back. »
Pastrnak leads the Bruins with 11 points (six goals, five assists) in 13 games since the start of the campaign. He reached the plateau of 110 points during the last two seasons.
“It was a bad turnaround,” he admitted regarding his last sequence where he accidentally sent the puck in the neutral zone towards Yanni Gourde, who then fired three shots on goal.
“Accountability is probably a better word than responsibility in this context,” he continued. But like I said before, I want to look forward. I don't want to become a distraction to the team.
“The guys know what I think of them. I made a bad play and I'm accountable for my actions, but I'm moving on. »
Pastrnak remained talkative on the Bruins bench in the third period, even if he was not on the ice. The Bruins ultimately won 2-0 and thus obtained their second shutout victory of the weekend, after a 3-0 victory against the Philadelphia Flyers the day before.
This isn't the first time this season that a Bruins star has been “reprimanded” by Montgomery. On October 19, in a 2-1 overtime loss against the Utah Hockey Club, Brad Marchand committed a turnover and suffered the wrath of his coach upon his return to the bench.
“It’s a shame that coaches are scrutinized like that when this kind of scene occurs,” Marchand commented five days later. People can no longer tolerate these tense moments. When you make a mistake, you deserve to be told. »
On Monday, Montgomery had kind words for Pastrnak and his reaction under the circumstances.
“I've said it before and I'll say it again: I'm lucky to work with such a group of leaders,” said the instructor. Elsewhere, it's a problem for some coaches, but in my case, I'm lucky that accountability is ingrained in the culture of this team. This ensures that I can keep everyone accountable. »
The Bruins (6-6-1) will look for their third straight victory Tuesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs (7 p.m. ET; TSN4, NESN).
“It was a good weekend for our team, but we still have work to do,” concluded Pastrnak. We know we can be even better and our goal is to elevate our game from one game to the next. »
