BOSTON — Bruins Coach Jim Montgomery looked angry on the bench after Boston allowed the go-ahead goal with less than three minutes left in Wednesday’s 3-2 loss to Carolina.
He was still upset by the time he’d reached his postgame press conference.
“The game management at the end of the game was not good,” he said after his team’s loss snapped a five-game winning streak.
Montgomery was frustrated that in a tie game, defensemen Brandon Carlo and Hampus Lindholm were playing too far up on offense, which allowed Jordan Martinook to get behind them for the breakaway that he converted for the game-winning goal.
“The defensemen should not be pinching there. It’s 2-2. There’s a shot on net. We have to make sure we keep people in front of us,” Montgomery said. “The game management bothers me. You have to know you’ve done a great job to tie it up 2-2. We don’t need to force anything. Points are valuable. It’s a good lesson moving into the playoffs. Yeah, the momentum is on our side. The crowd’s into it and the Garden is buzzing. But we can’t lose our position and give up a breakaway.”
Brad Marchand, who scored both Boston goals to turn a two-goal deficit into a 2-2 tie, said the Bruins better learn from it.
“That was a playoff-type game,” he said. “Those are great for us to go through at this time of year and learn what we need to do to compete against teams like that. That team is better than their record. … It’s a great experience for us. Definitely some things we’ve got to learn and take away. Hopefully be better tomorrow.”
TRADE: The Minnesota Wild acquired defenseman Will Butcher, winner of the the 2017 Hobey Baker Award, from Pittsburgh in exchange for forward Maxim Cajkovic.
Butcher will report to Iowa in the American Hockey League. In 14 games with the Penguins’ AHL affiliate this season, Butcher had three goals and four assists after signing a one-year, two-way contract last summer.
Cajkovic, 23, was acquired by the Wild in the Pat Maroon trade with Tampa Bay last offseason and played mostly in the ECHL this season, posting 12 goals in 20 games.
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