Struggling Red Wings visit rested Bruins

The Detroit Red Wings will look to rebound as they continue their four-game trip Thursday night against the rested Boston Bruins.

The Detroit Red Wings will look to rebound as they continue their four-game trip Thursday night against the rested Boston Bruins.

Detroit won four of its first seven games but enters Thursday's matchup riding a three-game losing streak, including a 3-0 defeat at Montreal on Tuesday.

Alex Nedeljkovic surrendered a pair of first-period goals against the Canadiens before Montreal sealed the win with an empty-netter late in the third. Nedeljkovic recorded 38 saves but fell to 1-2-2 through five starts this season for Detroit.

"They were better than us from the first shift all the way to the last shift," Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill told the Detroit Free Press. "They played like it was a playoff game; we played like it was an exhibition game."

It was Detroit's second lopsided loss at the hands of the Canadiens this season after a 6-1 setback in Montreal on Oct. 23. That defeat was the second in a stretch of five losses in seven games for the Red Wings heading into Thursday.

Added Blashill, "That isn't even close to what we need to do to be successful. That wasn't even in the hemisphere of what we need to do."

Nedeljkovic, 25, has split time this season with veteran Thomas Greiss, who has gone 3-2-0 in his five starts. Both goalies have goals-against averages over 3.00 and enter with a combined save percentage of .910.

Boston is coming off its most impressive victory of the young season after spoiling the Florida Panthers' unbeaten 8-0-0 start with a 3-2 shootout victory on Saturday.

Charlie Coyle opened the scoring in the first period against Florida and added the only shootout goal to help the Bruins snap a two-game skid after they had won three of their first four games.

"Sometimes you have something planned, and sometimes you don't. I'm just glad it went in," Coyle said of his winning shootout goal.

Coyle is off to a fast start with three goals and two assists through seven games. His goal output is second on the Bruins, behind only star Brad Marchand, who has four goals and four assists for a team-best eight points.

With an aging core, the Bruins are taking advantage of the five-day layoff between games. Boston captain Patrice Bergeron was off the ice Tuesday for a maintenance day, but he returned Wednesday and will be good to go against Detroit.

"You're gonna value this time at some point," Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said. "At the end of the day, the season's here, it's starting, you want to get playing and get playing on a regular basis. The challenge for us is keeping everybody ready."

Boston rookie goalie Jeremy Swayman will start Thursday after veteran acquisition Linus Ullmark started four of the team's past five games. Swayman is 1-2-0 with a 2.71 goals-against average and a .893 save percentage for the season.

The Bruins and Red Wings did not meet last season as a result of the pandemic-related division realignments.

--Field Level Media