Johnny Boychuk gets power play point
Boychuk Bombs will be dropping from the power play to start off this season for the Bruins. The 29 year old, 6’2”, 225lb defenseman Johnny Boychuk will be letting hard right handers go from the point as one of the D-men on the second power play unit. He’ll be paired up with a mix of Dougie Hamilton, Dennis Seidenberg or with Matt Bartkowski when Bart is in the Bruins lineup. Looking for rebounds or tip-ins from the hard shooting Boychuk are Patrice Bergeron, Loui Eriksson, Brad Marchand or Gregory Campbell.
Boychuk has expressed a lot of excitement about getting some time on the PP.
The young season hasn’t seen the second unit put up any power play points but some of that has to do with the success of the first unit and the second not getting a chance with the man advantage. Coach Claude Julien is also excited about having a legitimate second option on the power play.
Julien went on to talk about Boychuk specifically manning the point on that second power play line.
Julien mentioned the end of last season when Boychuk really showed some improvement getting the puck not only to the net, but in it as well. He scored only one goal during the regular season with 75 shots on net in those 44 games. In half that time in the post season, 22 games, he racked up 63 shots and lit the lamp six times. He added an assist to mix giving him seven points in the post season, one more point than he managed during the regular season.
I think a lot of us Bruins fans are excited to finally see some noise about the power play. Their 5-on-5 play has been superb and their penalty kill has been one of the best in the NHL. It is just two games into the season and we don’t yet know if the new look special teams are going to be as good as they are now for the rest of the season but we can hope, and “Johnny Rocket” hopes to be part of it as long as he can.
Boychuk has expressed a lot of excitement about getting some time on the PP.
Any time you get a chance to be out there on special teams, whether it’s the power play or penalty kill, you’re trying to do your very best to stay on there. I hadn’t been on the [PP] for a while, so we’ve been practicing a lot at getting it better.
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| Photo: Brian Babineau/NHLI/Getty Images |
Now we feel like we’ve got two power plays that can really do a good job. A few new faces here and there can change your whole dynamic of your power play, and give you not just one, but two good ones.
Julien went on to talk about Boychuk specifically manning the point on that second power play line.
The way we’ve got it set up this year is to really use his shot. At the end of last year he started shooting the puck better and more, and he was able to score some goals for us. It’s an opportunity for him to get some time on the power play, and the hope is that he can keep shooting the puck like he did last year.
He has a good shot, but he also does a good job of keeping his head up when he’s shooting the puck. He doesn’t get his shot blocked much, and can really find those shooting lanes.
Julien mentioned the end of last season when Boychuk really showed some improvement getting the puck not only to the net, but in it as well. He scored only one goal during the regular season with 75 shots on net in those 44 games. In half that time in the post season, 22 games, he racked up 63 shots and lit the lamp six times. He added an assist to mix giving him seven points in the post season, one more point than he managed during the regular season.
I think a lot of us Bruins fans are excited to finally see some noise about the power play. Their 5-on-5 play has been superb and their penalty kill has been one of the best in the NHL. It is just two games into the season and we don’t yet know if the new look special teams are going to be as good as they are now for the rest of the season but we can hope, and “Johnny Rocket” hopes to be part of it as long as he can.
You try to make the most of it. It’s always a pleasure to be on the power play and you want to stick on it so you try to do the best that you can when you get the opportunity.-
