Ryan: After catching plenty of flak, Bruins’ physical response Thursday ‘was a good first step to getting back to who we are’

The stakes were far from that of a Stanley Cup Playoff bout, but the Bruins’ matchup against the Penguins on Thursday had the weight of much more than just another regular-season meeting in the dog days of winter.

Boston might have been two days removed from getting bullied and bruised by the Blue Jackets, but off the ice, Bruce Cassidy’s club was still taking a beating from the media and fans alike.

A listless response on Tuesday after Tuukka Rask was clocked in the side of the head drew the ire of many, and for good reason. 

As such, there was plenty of anticipation for how Boston was going to respond in its next tune-up. Would Cassidy’s crew go full Hanson Brothers and wreak havoc on home ice, or would it be more of the same?

Given all that transpired over the previous 48 hours, Cassidy and his staff felt it was the right time to deviate from the usual routine. 

“We did have a different day today, we had a different meeting on some things we needed to do better as a group,” Cassidy said. “It wasn’t necessarily a challenge, it was a reset on supporting one another all over the ice. ….We addressed the group about a little bit of our mentality. We feel we’re winners in that locker room, but you have to prepare to win, you have to compete to win and go through the process of winning.”

Torey Krug clearly got the memo. 



On a night in which the Bruins matched every post-whistle shove, face wash or heavy check with a retort of their own, Krug’s response carried the most weight — and dealt the most damage. 

Krug is no stranger to Penguins winger Patric Hornqvist, a hard-nosed winger with a knack for getting under the opposition's skin. 

“I've been hit by him many many times over the years,” Krug said of the Pittsburgh forward. 

But in the closing minutes of the second period, Krug wasn’t steamed about Hornqvist’s treatment of him — but that of his teammates. After tossing a few shoves toward Sean Kuraly, Hornqvist then set his sights on Matt Grzelcyk, catching him with a cross-check as the Bruins’ blueliner skated back to Boston’s bench. 

At that point, Krug had enough, with both skaters sent to the sin bin off of matching roughing calls. 

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Two minutes to stew in the box didn’t do much to alleviate the tension. 

Just six seconds after getting released from their respective penalties, Krug and Hornqvist dropped the gloves, with Krug landing a clean shot and eventually dropping the winger to the ice — much to the delight of the Garden crowd and Boston’s bench.

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“That had me laughing,” Chris Wagner said of Krug’s scrap. “I love when he gets fired up like that. He's a smaller guy, but he's got a lot of fight in him."

Krug’s bout might have given his teammates a much-needed spark in the moment, but the message sent by the defenseman’s willingness to drop the gloves in defense of his teammates goes far beyond whatever was at stake during a regular-season game in January. 

“It started with what he felt was a crosscheck to Grizz right in front of our bench; it’s one of the reasons (David) Krejci is out of the lineup is some of those things get carried over, so he responded …. Torey answered the bell," Cassidy said. "They could’ve settled it in the box, but clearly, they wanted to finish it. That, to me, is good old-fashioned hockey, and Torey being the smaller man, held his own and I thought he won the bout personally. But I think it’s good for the group, real good for the group to show that we’re going to push back.”

Krug’s scuffle was the highlight in what was a convincing 4-1 victory for Boston on Thursday, but it was just one of many instances in which a revitalized (and likely ticked-off) B’s roster refused to roll over when challenged by the Pens. 

Wagner, who was somehow credited with just one hit on the night, was involved in just about every post-whistle melee against Pittsburgh. Along with dropping Brandon Tanev with a thunderous check in front of Boston’s bench, the Walpole native earned a matching roughing penalty with Kris Letang after getting tied up with the defenseman. 

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And when Wagner was boarded by John Marino in the first period, it didn’t take Sean Kuraly and the rest of Boston’s skaters very long to come to the aid of their teammate. 

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It might not have been the “Big Bad Bruins” of yesteryear, but Thursday’s victory was Boston returning to the physical brand of hockey that it’s going to need to draw from when the calendar turns to the postseason.  

“It wasn't about going out there and trying to run them out of the rink, by any means,” Krug said. “Look at our roster, we don't have that group anymore. But we talked about sticking together, competing harder and just sacrificing a little bit more. That doesn't mean putting a guy through the glass, but it means going into a corner and having the willingness to get hit or hit someone else and come out with the puck. I think that desperation was lost there for a few games. Hopefully this is a step in the right direction and we can kind of grasp that concept again and that's been part of our DNA for years.”

The crowd got its money’s worth as it spilled onto Causeway Street Thursday night: A fight, plenty of post-whistle antics, some highlight-reel work from the Bergeron line — and of course, two points secured in the standings. 

But Thursday’s victory stood as much more than just a good ol’ brouhaha at TD Garden. 

For Cassidy and Co., it wasn’t the fights, shoves and scraps that stood as the most encouraging takeaway on the night. It was the reasoning behind them. 

“We have to remind ourselves what we are to be grateful to be around this group, to be privileged to wear the sweater, some of these things that you get away from a little bit and all of sudden realize, ‘Hey let’s get back to it,'" Cassidy said. "We’ve got a good group in here; we’ve got a chance again. ‘We’re a good team. Let’s play like it. Let’s get back at it.’ .... Listen, when we play together and we’re on the same page, we’ve got a good chance to win. 

“We’re not going to win every one, but we have a good chance, and do it for 60 minutes. Play through the bumps. And that’s on us to reinforce a lot of that message, so we did more of that today, and we’ll see where it leads us. … I thought today was a good first step to getting back to who we are."