Bruins’ D corps letting pucks fly out of the gate this season

"When Charlie is shooting the puck like he did [Thursday], it's another threat."

The Bruins already boast one of the most imposing defense corps in the NHL.

It’s a blue-line personnel seemingly built for playoff hockey, with Boston’s projected six-man starting group boasting an average profile of 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds.

Size and snarl are coveted come the spring, especially among D-men tasked with eating up pucks down low and clearing skaters out of Grade-A ice.

But if the Bruins hope to play deep into May and early June next year, they’re going to need their defensemen to be both punishers … and playmakers.

With Boston losing several scoring options on the wing this summer, Jim Montgomery and his staff have harped on the importance of generating more offense from the blue line.

Be it joining the rush, activating off the blue line to keep pucks alive, or generating Grade-A chances by getting pucks on net, the Bruins are going to need their D corps to get more involved in the offensive zone to supplement some of the expected growing pains felt upfront.

It’s a small sample size, but Montgomery and the Bruins have been pleased with what they’ve seen so far after two games.

Five Bruins defensemen have already recorded at least a point this season, with Charlie McAvoy lighting the lamp in back-to-back games against Florida and Montreal.

“Obviously, that’s another threat,” Elias Lindholm said of McAvoy’s scoring surge out of the gate. “[David Pastrnak] is one of the best players in the league, and has a heavy shot, so he’s a big threat up there. Obviously, when Charlie is shooting the puck like he did [Thursday], it’s another threat.”

Boston could have had another blueliner find twine in Thursday’s 6-4 win over Montreal. Hampus Lindholm beat Habs netminder Cayden Primeau with a slap shot on the power play just two minutes into regulation, but it was called back for goaltender interference after Justin Brazeau brushed up against the goalie in the crease.

The Bruins’ man advantage was later rewarded off of McAvoy’s goal at 11:04 in the first. Following a faceoff win from Elias Lindholm, McAvoy gathered the puck and snapped a shot from the high slot. With Elias Lindholm and Pavel Zacha converging at the net, Primeau had no shot — with McAvoy’s volley sailing past him just five seconds into the power play.

Spurring McAvoy to put more pucks on net has been a familiar sentiment shared by Bruins coaches over the last few years.

But through two games, McAvoy is tied for second on the Bruins in shot attempts (11) — sharing that spot with a fellow defenseman in Hampus Lindholm.

“Yeah, that was awesome,” Montgomery said of Boston’s blueliners firing pucks in on Thursday. “I mean, to see Charlie take as many shots as he did tonight, that gets you excited. And Lindholm, unfortunately, his goal didn’t count. But that started us off in that shooting mentality.”

“Yeah, that was awesome,” Montgomery said of Boston’s blueliners firing pucks in on Thursday. “I mean, to see Charlie take as many shots as he did tonight, that gets you excited. And Lindholm, unfortunately, his goal didn’t count. But that started us off in that shooting mentality.”

As encouraging as it is to see a defenseman like McAvoy bury chances off the rush as he did Tuesday against the Panthers, Nikita Zadorov might have set the best example of how a shot-first mindset can yield immediate returns on Thursday.

Zadorov recorded a pair of helpers in Boston’s win over the Habs, generating Elias Lindholm’s first goal in a Bruins sweater off of a simple wrist shot just inside the blue line. The tumbling puck deflected off Lindholm and careened past Primeau — giving Boston a 3-2 lead at the time.

The sequence was far from flashy. But that willingness to put pucks on net can give a reworked offense an easy avenue toward quality looks — especially if those shots lead to tips, rebounds, and deflections.

“It’s always nice to get on the board to help your team to score a goal,” Zadorov said. “Obviously, it’s not my mentality to go out there and put up some points, but it’s great to contribute offensively.”

The Bruins may not boast an offensive-zone cheat code like Cale Makar or Roman Josi on their roster.

But an increased emphasis on firing off pucks from the point and jumping into the play is already paying dividends for a D corps that needs to land punches down both ends of the ice this season.

Poitras a possibility for Saturday

After missing the last two games due to an undisclosed injury, Bruins forward Matt Poitras could return to the lineup Saturday afternoon against the Kings.

“He’s very close. He’s progressing the right way,” Montgomery said of Poitras. “I’m gonna say he’s a possibility tomorrow. We just gotta see how he responds later today.”

The 20-year-old playmaker centered a third line featuring a pair of big bodies on the wing in Trent Frederic and Justin Brazeau during Friday’s practice.

“We’ve got a lot of big boys in this team,” Poitras said. “So especially if I’m playing with Freddy and Braz — those guys can get in the corners, and they’re big guys who hold onto pucks. So for me, it’s just finding open ice.”

Poitras had been sidelined since getting crushed by Rasmus Ristolainen in Boston’s fourth preseason game against the Flyers on Sept. 28. Despite that preseason setback, Poitras feels as though he’s made strides in his game over the last few months — especially after getting cleared following shoulder surgery in February.

“I just felt better and better as the preseason was going on,” Poitras said. “Obviously being a little bit older and having those first 30 games under my belt, just [your] confidence grows and grows and you feel more comfortable holding onto pucks and trying to make plays.”

Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.