The Boston Bruins‘ special teams got off to an awful start. But that trend reversed course in Boston’s win over the Utah Mammoth.
On Thursday, the Bruins finished 3-for-4 on the power play after starting the season 0-for-10. David Pastrnak and Morgan Geekie led the charge. Pastrnak finished with two goals and three points on the man advantage. Meanwhile, Geekie recorded one goal and three points.
Via Joe McDonald of NHL.com, Pastrnak said, “It (the power play) gave a huge boost to our game — big time. Everything was clicking today, and it was a big game for special teams.”
The power play wasn’t the only unit that clicked for Boston. Heading into Thursday night’s showdown with Utah, Boston’s penalty-kill percentage sat at 72.7, one of the lower marks in the league. Then they killed off all seven of Utah’s chances.
Boston Bruins Special Teams Excel On Thursday Night
Here’s more irony: The Mammoth entered Thursday night’s matchup 8-for-13 on the power play, good for a 61.5 power-play percentage. They also allowed just one power-play goal in 14 opportunities. That gave them a 92.8 penalty-kill percentage.
For a team like Boston that has struggled in the power play and penalty kill, Utah was a lock to beat them in the special teams battle. Even more interesting — Utah’s power-play opportunities nearly doubled Boston’s. That put Boston further behind the eight ball, but they won 10 of 11 battles on special teams.
Boston’s big win on Thursday night is a prime example of how volatile early-season statistics can be. There is nothing set in stone, however. Both of the Bruins’ special teams units can keep struggling, and Utah’s can find their groove in the foreseeable future. Or both units will deviate closer to the median. The latter is often the case in professional sports.
Bruins Have A Reason To Believe The Power Play Will Turn Into A Strength
In 2025-26, the Bruins’ power-play percentage sat at 23.4, good for ninth in the NHL. Even more interesting is that they didn’t do a great job drawing penalties. Boston had 235 power-play opportunities, tying them for 18th in the league.
Through five games in 2026-27, they are on pace to hit that same number. But if the Bruins enjoy a few more games where they’re converting regularly on the power play, it will turn into a strength like it was last season. That said, they still need to learn how to draw more penalties.
Despite finishing 7-for-7 on Thursday night, there is still a reason to exercise cautious optimism for the penalty kill. Boston finished 2025-26 ranked 24th with a 76.98 penalty-kill percentage. They also led the league with 278 power-play opportunities against.
This season, Boston has already been on the penalty kill 18 times, putting them on pace for over 300 in an 84-game span. While that number should also gravitate toward the median, it still indicates the Bruins could threaten to lead the league again in opportunities against.
Should the penalty kill keep playing as it did against Utah, this won’t be as much of a problem. But if it allows nearly one goal every four times it takes the ice, that can cost Boston games. Regardless, its stellar outing vs. Utah could be a game-changer. That may even be more of a case for the power play, considering its recent history.
Bruins’ Special Teams Reverse a Stunning Early-Season Trend