The Boston Bruins have had several instances of one period or one stretch of poor special teams causing issues this season. That frustrating trend continued Wednesday night in a 5-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils.
The home team ran one of the better power-play units in the league — the Devils scored three power-play goals — and set the tone for the game in a 4-0 second period. That surge wiped out a 1-0 Boston lead after a period of play and led to a road loss in regulation.
“You don’t want to give them that many opportunities,” Joe Sacco told NESN’s Andy Brickley during postgame coverage. “You want to do your best to stay out. … We got out-special teamed tonight. That was part of the difference in the game. That wasn’t the whole thing. I thought we had a good start to the game.”
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Boston’s bench boss recognized that the team lost out on execution after a decent opening 20 minutes. Sacco believes the Bruins need better poise clearing the puck from the defensive zone moving forward.
The Bruins cannot afford to float around .500 for much longer in a tightening Eastern Conference. Luckily for Boston, the club gets the chance to make a difference against a nearby contender in the standings when the Ottawa Senators, who came back for a 6-5 shootout win Saturday against the Bruins, visit TD Garden on Thursday night.
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“We’re trying to find an answer in here and what we’re doing’s not good enough,” Morgan Geekie told reporters, per NESN’s postgame coverage. “We know it. It’s embarrassing, frankly, letting these games slip away from us. There’s not many of these left. We know the position we’re in and what it’s going to take to climb out of it. Just try to get back on the horse tomorrow.”
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“We have an opportunity to do it tomorrow night,” Charlie Coyle told reporters, per NESN’s postgame coverage. “Play a better game.”
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One Big Takeaway As Special Teams Power Devils Over Bruins
by Tim Crowley 3 Min Read
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Here are more notes from Wednesday’s Bruins-Devils game:
— Boston entered with the league’s 22nd-ranked penalty kill percentage and allowed three goals with New Jersey on the man-advantage Wednesday night.
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— Sacco relieved Jeremy Swayman to start the third period in favor of Joonas Korpisalo. Swayman allowed all four goals the Devils scored in the second period when Boston consistently could not clear the puck from the defensive zone.
— Geekie’s first-period goal evened him with Coyle for the third-most goals for the Bruins this season with 12.
— Boston lost its first game in regulation since dropping a contest against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Jan. 9. The Bruins had been 3-0-1 since that loss at Amalie Arena.
— The Bruins and Devils each entered the night with 110 penalty kills on the season. Boston’s power-play went 0-for-3 on the night while New Jersey converted on 3-of-7 chances.
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— The Bruins finish a back-to-back and continue a stretch of three games in four days Thursday night against the Ottawa Senators. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. ET from TD Garden. You can catch the game, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.
Investigators identified Tyler Brown of Boston as the man who allegedly opened fire on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, Massachusetts, leaving two victims with life-threatening injuries.
Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan said Brown fired 50 to 60 shots on the busy road shortly after 1 p.m. Monday.
Two male victims were hit in vehicles, Ryan said. They are in critical condition and fighting for their lives.
A Massachusetts State Police trooper and a civilian with a license to carry a firearm went toward the gunman and fired their weapons at him. Officers treated Brown at the scene, and he was brought to a Boston hospital, where he is in intensive care, according to the district attorney.
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This video shared with NBC10 Boston appears to show a man opening fire at cars on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Monday, May 11, 2026.
Authorities have, so far, shared limited information about the suspect.
“Mr. Brown is from Boston, and apparently was in the process of moving here. We understand that Mr. Brown was under the supervision of either the Massachusetts Probation Department or Department of Parole,” Ryan said.
She did not elaborate on why Brown may have been on probation or parole.
“We will address Mr. Brown’s criminal record, if any, at the arraignment,” she said.
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Ryan added that she did not know enough about Brown’s condition to say whether he would be arraigned in court or in a hospital bed. The timing was also not clear.
He will face two counts of armed assault with intent to murder and firearms charges, and “a variety of other charges as we unfold what took place, exactly, and we have a chance to speak to the many, many people who were out there,” Ryan said.
An inbound stretch of Storrow Drive and Soldiers Field Road will be closed each night through August for tunnel repairs, officials announced.
Starting Monday, the closures will begin at 8 p.m. and last until 5 a.m., state officials said.
Road closures begin at North Harvard Street in Allston and stretch along the Charles River Esplanade to Mugar Way in Boston, near the Hatch Memorial Shell, officials said.
Traffic will be detoured into Cambridge over the Anderson Bridge, along Memorial Drive, and then be routed into Boston over the Longfellow Bridge.
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The closures will allow ongoing repairs to the Storrow Drive Tunnel in the Back Bay.The work is the first phase of a two-stage project to extend the lifespan of the tunnel, which carries roughly 50,000 drivers to and from downtown Boston daily.
The outbound portion of the tunnel and accompanying roadways will not be affected.
State transportation officials said changes to the work schedule will be made when necessary to minimize impacts during major local events at TD Garden, Fenway Park, or during the FIFA World Cup and 250th anniversary celebrations scheduled for this summer.
Additional changes may be made without notice due to weather.
Transportation officials have not specified when the closures will end.
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Bryan Hecht can be reached at bryan.hecht@globe.com. Follow him on Instagram @bhechtjournalism.
OXFORD — Ole Miss softball is back in the NCAA Tournament after making the Women’s College World Series a season ago.
The Rebels (34-24) will play Boston (46-13) on May 15 (1 p.m. CT, ESPNU) in the Lubbock Regional. Ole Miss is the No. 2 seed in the regional, and Boston is the No. 3.
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Texas Tech (52-6), the No. 11 overall seed and regional host, will face No. 4 Marist (37-19).
The Rebels went 6-18 in SEC play this season, and have a largely new-look roster from the team that made the WCWS last season.
Ole Miss beat South Carolina and Tennessee in the SEC Tournament to improve its seed.
Freshman Madi George has burst onto the scene in the SEC. The first-year infielder leads Ole Miss with a .385 batting average. She has a team-high 21 home runs and 58 RBIs.
Seniors Emilee Boyer (3.86 ERA), Kyra Aycock (3.97 ERA) and junior Lily Whitten (3.04 ERA) are the primary options in the circle for coach Jamie Trachsel.
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Trachsel is in her sixth season leading the Ole Miss program. She led the Rebels to their first WCWS appearance in program history in 2025.
What to know about Boston, Texas Tech and Marist in Lubbock Regional
Boston entered the Patriot League Tournament as the top seed and the Terriers delivered. Boston beat No. 2 Colgate 12-1, becoming the second team in Patriot League history to four-peat as conference champions. Boston is on a 12-game winning streak. Kylie Doherty leads the team with a .396 batting average and 26 home runs.
Texas Tech made the 2025 WCWS championship series, losing to Texas in three games.
Texas Tech lost just three Big 12 games this season but lost in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament. The Red Raiders are a strong threat to get to the WCWS again. There are four Texas Tech batters hitting over .400. Star pitcher NiJaree Canady leads the Red Raiders with a 1.24 ERA. She has 209 strikeouts.
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Marist plays in the MAAC and won the conference tournament. Marist split a two-game series against South Carolina early in the season. Ava Metzger (12-3, 2.51 ERA) and Peyton Pusey (.404 batting average) lead the team.
Sam Hutchens covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at Shutchens@gannett.com or reach him on X at @Sam_Hutchens_
