$54,250,000 Bruins center makes thoughts clear about boos from Boston crowd after disappointing loss to Lightning

Boston Bruins center Elias Lindholm shared his thoughts following the 6-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning at TD Garden as Tampa Bay snapped a three-game losing streak. Anthony Cirelli scored twice, while Nick Paul, Victor Hedman and Darren Raddysh each scored a goal and an assist. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 10 saves as Boston struggled to generate offense.

The Bruins have now lost five of their last seven games. Elias Lindholm tied the game at 1-1 in the first period, finishing a pass from Andrew Peeke, but the second period was tough for Boston. Tampa Bay scored three times and didn't allow a single shot on goal. Bruins fans booed the team as they left the ice.

Elias Lindholm, who signed a seven-year, $54.25 million contract, addressed the boos, admitting that fans had a right to be upset (4:06).

"Yeah, I mean, you always want to play hard at home. The fans pay a lot of money to come here and watch us play, and obviously, they have every right to boo when the effort is like that,” Lindholm said.

“We talk about always working hard, and even though we’re down, we try to push back, but tonight it was unacceptable, and we deserved to get booed. That second period was the worst I’ve seen us play this year.”

Boston struggled in key areas, and the Lightning won more battles and controlled the game’s pace. Lindholm noted a drop in intensity compared to their first two games after the trade deadline.

"The other team is winning way more 50/50 pucks, our compete level is not where it’s supposed to be, and obviously, it’s frustrating this time of the year," he said.

"The least we can do is work hard and put in a good effort. We’ve got to figure this out and be ready for Monday."

Marat Khusnutdinov scored early in the third period, cutting the deficit to 4-2, but Tampa Bay scored two empty-net goals to seal the win. Boston now needs to find answers before their next game.

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Boston Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman's performance

Jeremy Swayman was in the net for the entire game before the Boston Bruins pulled out their goalie for the final two minutes. Swayman made 34 saves out of 38 shots faced, with a save percentage of .895.

Previously, on Thursday, coach Joe Sacco had pulled goalie Jeremy Swayman after allowing four goals on 15 shots. Sacco said that the decision wasn't just about Swayman but was meant to lift the entire team.

"That’s not just on Sway, obviously — that’s on everyone," Sacco said to media postgame.

Boston couldn't recover and lost 6-3 to Ottawa, and now they have suffered another disappointing loss to Lightning.