The Boston Bruins have now played four of their six preseason games after Monday night's 3-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers at Wells Fargo Center.
The B's are 1-3 in the preseason so far, but that's not what really matters at this time of the year. The preseason is about getting young players reps and gauging their progress against tougher and faster competition, and also seeing which veterans (especially those on PTO deals) can play a specific role.
Boston will be back on the ice Tuesday night against the Washington Capitals at TD Garden. But before we move on to that matchup, here are two main takeaways from the Bruins' fourth preseason contest.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Boston sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Matthew Poitras continues to make strong case for roster spot
Poitras continues to be the most impressive prospect for the Bruins during the preseason, and he's making it harder and harder for the front office to keep him off the Opening Night Roster.
The 2022 second-round draft pick earned an assist on Morgan Geekie's goal Monday night and won eight of his 11 faceoffs in 16:39 of ice time. The majority of his 5-on-5 ice time was spent with Marc McLaughlin and Jesper Boqvist.
"I thought he did an excellent job tonight," Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery told reporters when asked about Poitras. "He showed us a lot of poise with the puck. He makes plays. He makes intelligent support plays. Someone who built our team game tonight out there and made a lot of smart plays."
Poitras' impressive playmaking ability has been on full display during his three preseason appearances. He's a gifted passer and has a high hockey IQ in the attacking zone. He has tallied one goal with two assists in those three games. Poitras does need to be a little more aggressive in looking for his own offense, though. He has only one shot on net -- a goal against the Rangers last week. He was held without a single shot in each of his last two preseason appearances.
For someone who doesn't have tremendous size, and zero experience playing against bigger, tougher NHL competition, Poitras has handled himself quite well by battling hard for puck possession all over the ice.
Poitras isn't eligible to play in the AHL this season. The choice for the B's is to either keep him in the NHL or send him back to the OHL. After dominating offensively in the OHL with 95 points (16 goals, 79 assists) in 63 games last season, it's fair to wonder how much more Poitras can really gain playing against that kind of competition for a third straight year.
Poitras is able to play nine games with the Bruins to start the season before the team has to make the choice whether to burn the first year of his entry-level contract. Based on how well he's played in camp and the preseason, it would make sense to give him those nine games against NHL competition, see how he fares, and then decide if he should stay or go back to the OHL.
Right now, it's not even out of the question to think Poitras could start the regular season as the No. 2 center, which would allow Charlie Coyle to remain in the No. 3 center spot, where the veteran has been most effective during his B's career.
Fabian Lysell struggles to make an impact
Lysell entered training camp as the Bruins' top forward prospect with a real chance to make the team with a strong showing. Unfortunately for the 2021 first-round pick, he hasn't done enough -- at least so far -- to earn a roster spot.
The Swedish winger has been held scoreless with just five shots and two penalties in 32:25 of 5-on-5 ice time through two preseason games. It's important not to put too much stock in preseason results, but Lysell isn't playing against great competition in these matchups and still has failed to make much of an impact offensively.
On Friday night, Lysell tallied two shots, took a penalty shortly after the Bruins had just killed off a penalty, and turned the puck over at the blue line that led to a Flyers scoring chance. He looked a little frustrated at times.
More Bruins coverage
The Flyers controlled play for most of the night, so it's not like Lysell or his line were the only group struggling. However, the Flyers had a 15-8 edge in shot attempts, a 6-4 lead in shots on net and outscored the Bruins 1-0 during Lysell's 13:48 of 5-on-5 ice time.
Lysell is at his best when he's flying through the neutral zone with the puck and taking on opposing defensemen. He has the ability to dominate games when he's aggressive offensively, but we haven't seen enough of that kind of play from him over the last couple weeks. It's there in spurts, but nowhere near consistent enough.
There's no reason at all to panic over Lysell. He's just not ready for the NHL yet, and that's fine. He's 20 years old with just one year of AHL experience. There's a lot to like about his offensive skill set, he just needs more time in Providence to round out his game.
The second half of last year was tough for Lysell with his World Junior struggles, a tough last couple months of the regular season with Providence and then the concussion he suffered during the first round of the Calder Cup Playoffs. Beginning the year in the AHL and building some consistency into his game would do wonders for Lysell and get him ready for his NHL debut, which could still happen this season.