A veteran asked Montgomery if he would reveal his answer before Saturday morning, the day the first game is scheduled to be played at the Garden.
“Probably not!” » he said with a wide smile and a chuckle before adding, “We have two good options. »
Ullmark handled season-closing duties against the Senators. If Montgomery stuck to the pass, that would mean Swayman, extremely sharp Monday night in Washington, would get the nod for Game 1. But this is of course just speculation.
The day started with GM Don Sweeney reaching out to AHL Providence for Companion Center Jayson Megnawho signed last July as an unrestricted free agent and spent the entire season with the WannaB’s.
To make room for Megna, 34, the Bruins placed a rookie Johnny Beecher on loan to Providence, in what was probably just a paper transaction. Beecher, while not prolific (7-3-10) in his third- and fourth-line center/wing assignments, has become a trusted contributor for Montgomery.
“He had a really good year,” the coach said, referring to Megna’s production in the AHL. “And over the last couple of months he’s caught fire and has been consistently very good out there.”
Megna, son-in-law of the American Olympic hero (and former Bruins goalie) Jim Craig, played 203 games in the NHL, most recently with Anaheim, before coming here as a UFA. He turned professional out of college with Pittsburgh and played for the Penguins, Rangers, Canucks, Avs and Ducks.
Before her call-up, Megna was tied for second with Antoine Richard in production (51 points) at Providence with 18 goals and 33 assists. His two-way contract earned him $400,000 this season in Providence, which is a high salary at the AHL level.
“We’ve looked at a lot of players throughout the year,” Montgomery said, “and this is an opportunity to look at him.”
Megna started the evening at left wing on a line with other ex-WannaBs Jesper Boqvist And Jakub Lauko. He spent 11:45 hours on the ice.
The fight for 50
With 12 goals in his first 17 games this season, David Pastrnak was on pace for a second straight 60-goal season, something that hasn’t been done in the NHL since Pavel Bure went 60-60 with the Canucks from 1992-94.
Pastrnak finished with a line of 47-63-110, with the 60-goal hope long gone and no chance of being the first Bruin since Cam Neely (1989-’91) to post consecutive 50-goal seasons.
Just under a month ago, on March 19, Pastrnak scored a hat trick against the Senators, his final multi-goal game of the season. He finished with just three goals (3-7-10) in his final 12 games, reflecting, in part, his difficulty scoring on the power play in the second half. , He has only scored one power play goal (March 7) in the club’s last 34 games.
Last season, Pastrnak set career highs in goals (61) and points (113). This year, he finished with 110 points, including a career-high 63 assists.
Marron takes his breath
Tap “Large derrick” Bordeaux received a night off for maintenance, after playing his first two games as a Bruin Saturday at Pittsburgh and Monday at Washington, D.C. Montgomery said he expects Maroon and Brandon Carlo, also against the Senators, to be ready for the start of the playoffs. . . Frederic Trent received the NESN Seventh Player Award before the puck drop. . Asked before the game if Beecher’s designation “on loan” to Providence was just a paper transaction, Montgomery replied: “That’s beyond my reach.” He then said he “absolutely” appreciated what Beecher added to the varsity roster. . . Montgomery said he was “delighted” that Derek Forbort, who would be out for the remainder of the season due to injury, reported to Providence for conditioning. It’s possible the veteran could see playing time in the postseason. “The trend is in the right direction,” Montgomery said, “but there is no timetable.”
Kevin Paul Dupont can be contacted at [email protected].
