Lifeless Bruins Fall Flat In Minnesota

The last time the Boston Bruins saw the Minnesota Wild was when Jeremey Swayman made 36 saves in a shutout effort a month ago at TD Garden.

On Sunday, Filip Gustavsson returned the favor for the Wild, stopping every single one of the 28 Boston shots he faced as the Bruins fell flat in a lifeless 1-0 loss at Xcel Energy Center.

Following a sleepy opening 25 minutes, Minnesota broke the stalemate at the 5:01 mark of the second period as Frederick Gaudreau deflected a shot from Marcus Johansson to put the Wild on the board with the first, last, and only goal of the game.

Swayman was once again in net for the Bruins, making his 44th start of the year, which tied his career-high. Although he had a strong performance, making 21 saves on 22 shots, it wasn’t enough to inspire anything from his teammates in front of him.

Mark Kastelic did his best to inject energy into the game early by fighting Marcus Foligno in a first-period heavyweight bout. But he was one of the only few who answered the bell.

Playing in the second half of a back-t0-back set and without players like Brad Marchand, Trent Frederic, and Charlie McAvoy in the lineup — all of whom are relied upon to be catalysts and all of whom are currently injured– the Bruins’ batteries were completely dead.

So, too, was Boston’s offense. Without a goal or an assist, David Pastrnak’s recent point streak came to an end at 17 games.

The Bruins have now lost five of their last six games as their record drops to 28-26-8. With only 20 games remaining on their schedule, they sit two points back of the final wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference.

Boston will host the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night at TD Garden.