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Charlie Coyle's Game Faces a Significant Challenge

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Austin Sabourin
October 6, 2023 (10:39 PM)

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In an unexpected turn of events, Charlie Coyle, typically known for his disciplined play on the ice, drew attention during the Bruins' preseason finale by accumulating four penalties for a total of eight minutes.

Coyle, a valuable penalty killer for the team, isn't usually the one responsible for Boston's shorthanded situations. However, he had a valid reason for this unusual behavior.

"I think I might have had more penalties tonight than I had all last year," Coyle admitted after the game. "We wanted to give our penalty kill a workout, and (head coach Jim Montgomery) wanted to focus on it before the game, so I decided to step up."

While Coyle's eight minutes in the penalty box were far from the 30 penalties he received over 82 games last season, it was a noticeable departure from his typical style of play.

During the preseason, special teams posed a challenge for the Bruins. They allowed four goals on 24 penalty kill attempts while going 4-for-20 on the power play.

"Our penalty kill probably needs more work, to be honest," acknowledged Montgomery. "But we have five days of practice ahead, and we're going to focus on fine-tuning our special teams and refining the details of our game."

Despite the challenges on special teams, the Bruins made a positive impression with their 3-1 victory over the New York Rangers. According to Montgomery, it was the best team performance they displayed during the preseason.

"That was the best team game we played," Montgomery stated. "You could see in the first period that we were starting to embrace our identity, playing faster, possessing pucks, and spending less time in our own end. Many individuals had their best game, and there's a lot to like from this performance."

The Bruins will launch their regular season with a matchup against the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. ET on TNT, followed by their next game against the Nashville Predators at 7 p.m. ET next Saturday on NESN.

Source: Nesn

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6 OCTOBRE \| 104 ANSWERS Charlie Coyle's Game Faces a Significant Challenge Do you think Coyle needs to work on not taking too many penalties before the regular season?
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