Swayman off night, PK woes, and more: 3 reasons why Boston Bruins lost 5-2 against Dallas Stars

The Boston Bruins lost a tough contest 5-2 against the visiting Dallas Stars at TD Garden on Thursday. The Stars rode a three-goal second period to hand the Bruins the loss at home.

Matt Duchene, Jason Robertson, Logan Stankoven, Tyler Seguin and Roope Hintz tallied for the Stars. Meanwhile, David Pastrnak and Justin Brazeau responded for the Boston Bruins.

Here's a closer look at three reasons by Boston lost 5-2 at home against Dallas on Thursday.

3 reasons why Boston Bruins lost 5-2 against Dallas Stars

#3. The Boston Bruins ran into penalty trouble in the second period

The second period was the Bruins’ undoing on Thursday. This started with three penalties taken within eight minutes of the period’s start.

First, Pastrnak took a hooking penalty 11 seconds into the period. Then, Parker Wotherspoon got the game for an interference call about four minutes later. Finally, Pastrnak was penalized again for tripping.

All three penalties were crucial as each one led to a goal by the Stars. From there on, the Bruins avoided the penalty box but for one call against captain Brad Marchand. As such, the Bruins’ loss hinged on their lack of discipline in a short time span.

#2. The power play was ineffective

The consequence of those three penalties was three power play goals by the Stars. Robertson, Stankoven and Seguin all tallied a goal with the man advantage, leaving the Bruins in a 4-1 hole with a little under nine minutes into the second period.

While the Bruins got a power play tally of their own a few moments later, the lead was too much for the B’s to overcome. The Stars played their usual tight-checking game down the stretch, leaving little room for the Boston Bruins to get anything going offensively.

#1. Jeremy Swayman wasn’t at his best

It’s hard to pin the blame on Jeremy Swayman. Not every goal was Swayman’s fault. But he did give up four, three of which were on the power play.

In particular, the Seguin goal stands out as one Swayman should have had. After the Stars regrouped in their own zone, they entered the B’s end with speed. The B’s managed to keep the puck to the outside, but a cross-ice pass came back to Seguin who ended up one-on-one with Seguin.

Seguin buried a rocket to the top corner even though Swayman was at the top of his crease. While the shot was a laser beam, Swayman had enough time to get into position and have a better chance to make the save. He didn’t and the Stars went up 4-1.

The Bruins will face division rivals Toronto Maple Leafs next on Saturday. Both clubs will look to get back in the win column after losing their respective matchups on Thursday.