According to Jim Montgomery, this player is likely to be sent down soon
Boston Bruins newcomer Matthew Poitras encountered a demanding sequence of two games, encountering a situation where he didn't play in Thursday's defeat against the Buffalo Sabres and witnessed a decrease in his ice time during Saturday's 5-3 triumph over the Arizona Coyotes at TD Garden.
During the victory against the Coyotes, Bruins' head coach Jim Montgomery strategically chose not to field Poitras in the third period, highlighting the significance of managing the game. Even though Poitras provided an assist in the second period, Montgomery favored other players whom he believed would better contribute to securing the victory.
"Valuing game management is something that we've talked to him about," Montgomery said. "It's still lacking in his game right now. We are paid to win hockey games, and I'm going to go with the guys that I think are going to win us hockey games."
Despite recognizing Poitras's dedication and his involvement in a significant goal, Montgomery chose to depend on Charlie Coyle and Trent Frederic in the pivotal last period at the center positions. Coyle recorded the second-longest playing time among Bruins forwards, clocking in at 20:17, while Frederic's time on the ice totaled 15:13.
Montgomery added,
"I liked the effort (from Poitras). I used Frederic a lot in the center position, too, in the pivot position. It's a demanding position for us, especially down low. We figured we were going to spend a lot of time down low in the third period just with the way they were pressing. That's the way it worked out"
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