Joe Sacco is 1-for-1 as the head coach of the Boston Bruins. The longtime assistant was on the right side of a tight 1-0 triumph over the Utah Hockey Club at TD Garden on Thursday night.
With that, the B’s are back in the win column after a three-game losing streak, improving to 9-9-3 on the 2024-25 campaign. Sacco also became just the second coach in Bruins history to guide his club to a shutout victory in his debut, according to NHL.com’s Joe Pohoryles.
“[It felt] pretty good, I’m not going to lie to you, obviously,” the new bench boss said afterwards, per Pohoryles. “To get our guys to get a win, too, was even more important. We feel better about ourselves, and I think how we went about the game tonight was like a business-like approach.
“I thought that we had a couple of individuals that really brought the energy to our group tonight to lift the bench at certain moments during the game, and just a good effort all around from our guys.”
Jim Montgomery was fired on Tuesday; the former Jack Adams Award winner posted a 120-41-23 record in three seasons as Boston’s head coach. But it was clear that something needed to change in Beantown after one of the worst starts in recent memory.
Elias Lindholm scored the only goal the Bruins needed in the cross-conference clash, while Joonas Korpisalo came through with a convincing 21-save shutout. It was the Finnish netminder’s second shutout of the season and the sixth of his career.
Bruins’ Joonas Korpisalo shut the door on Utah Hockey Club
Jeremy Swayman continues to struggle between the pipes after signing a long-term contract, and Korpisalo has been getting a longer leash as of late — and taking advantage.
“The guys played so well in front of me,” the 30-year-old said, per Pohoryles. “Every [penalty kill], I saw every shot throughout the whole game. A couple bad rebounds, but they took care of it, pucks out, everything. No odd-man rushes, so it’s really, really fun to play behind the guys today.”
Korpisalo has simply looked better than Swayman as of late, and there have been rumors that the two could begin to form a tandem, as Swayman and Linus Ullmark did for the last two seasons.
Lindholm snapped a 17-game goal drought with his powerplay goal in the second period; he’s one of various high-profile Bruins who are struggling right now.
“It’s been a tough couple games, or a stretch here, for me,” Lindholm said, per Pohoryles. “Obviously, I haven’t played good enough, and yeah, hopefully that can help a little bit and get some confidence.”
“I think it’s a good confidence thing,” echoed captain Brad Marchand, who has 14 points in 21 games. “Knowing that, you know, we can play the right way and it is in here, and we can respond. You still hate the situation that had to arise for us to respond that way. It was a good game tonight, but it’s one game.”
One victory won’t solve Boston’s problems, but it’s a good start, especially with a new leader behind the bench. The Bruins will look to keep the momentum going against the Red Wings in Detroit on Saturday night.
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