BOSTON — Interim head coach Joe Sacco had a clear vision for the Boston Bruins as he took over behind the bench for Jim Montgomery.
And the Bruins effectively implemented it in Sacco’s first game in his new role Thursday against the Utah Hockey Club.
The Bruins were once again a tough hockey team to play against — which is what Sacco and Bruins general manager Don Sweeney wanted — and looked reenergized with Sacco at the helm to take a 1-0 win over Utah at TD Garden.
It did take about half of the opening period for the Bruins to get going under Sacco, though. They looked like much of what they did under Montgomery when they didn’t register a shot on net for the first six minutes of play. But the Bruins shook that off to routinely test Utah goalie Karel Vejmelka, who finished with 30 saves.
Boston peppered Vejmelka with shots — the Bruins outshot Utah, 15-5, in the first period — which was an approach that escaped it through the first 20 games of the season. Even though Boston had nothing to show for it through a period-and-a-half, the building blocks were there and it felt like a goal was only a matter of time.
It finally came on Boston’s fifth power play of the night — Boston’s man-advantage looked much more organized and produced more chances — when Elias Lindholm got the monkey off his back and put home a rebound for a 1-0 lead. It was Lindholm’s first goal since Oct. 12.
The Bruins need more of that from Lindholm going forward as his goal was enough thanks to a standout showing in net from Joonas Korpisalo, who made 21 saves for the shutout, and Boston using a gritty effort to close things out in the third period.
It was a good step in the right direction for the Bruins under Sacco. And now it’s on Sacco to make sure the Bruins continue playing this way going forward.
