Marchand, McAvoy absence felt, 3rd period mess, and more: 3 reasons why Boston Bruins lost 6-3 to Nashville Predators

The Boston Bruins struggled on Tuesday night as they dropped a 6-3 decision against the Nashville Predators at the TD Garden. With the loss, the Bruins fall to 1-5-2 in their last eight games, sinking them further in the Atlantic Division standings and dashing their playoff hopes.

Charlie Coyle, Jordan Oesterle, and Morgan Geekie scored for the Boston Bruins. Meanwhile, Ryan O’Reilly scored twice for the Predators, with Tommy Novak, Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Mark Jankowski (EN) getting the other tallies for the Bruins.

So, here’s a look at the three key reasons why the Boston Bruins lost to the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night.

3 reasons why Boston Bruins lost to Nashville Predators

#3 The Bruins were outplayed

The Boston Bruins struggled out of the gate on Tuesday night against the Preds. They were outshot 14-5 in the first period, falling behind 2-1 at the first intermission. While the Bruins came back to tie the game early in the second, the Preds reclaimed the lead on Steven Stamkos’ 18th of the season.

The Bruins tied the game early in the third but ran out of gas, allowing three goals in the third period. The Bruins seemed lacking direction, unable to find an answer to the Preds’ forechecking.

#2 Three-goal third period

Speaking of the third period, the Bruins gave up three unanswered goals after Geekie tied the game with this 20th marker of the season.

Jonathan Marchessault got his 19th of the season at the 8:28 mark to give the Preds the lead. Then, Ryan O’Reilly scored his second of the night to give the Preds a crucial insurance goal.

Jankowski’s fourth of the year capped off a three-goal third-period mess for the Bruins. The Bruins could not hold the Predators back, despite outshooting them 8-7 in the final frame.

#1 Marchand, McAvoy's absence felt

Bruins captain Brad Marchand and top defenseman Charlie McAvoy both continued to be absent from the lineup. As such, their absence was clearly felt as the Bruins lacked offense and a stable defensive anchor on the blue line.

There is no clear timeline for the possible return of either player to the Bruins lineup. While there is hope they can return before the end of the season, it remains unclear what their current injury status is.

The Bruins will look to turn things around on Thursday night as they take on the Carolina Hurricanes at the PNC Arena.