Blue Jackets outwork Bruins in 5-1 victory

BOSTON — Whatever is ailing the Bruins, it certainly feels like we are past the point where “hard work” and grinding through” is going to get them past it.

Facing another eminently eatable team in the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday at TD Garden, the B’s spotted their guests three first period goals and could never recover, taking a 5-1 loss, giving up a pair short-handed goals in the latest debacle.

The B’s sure look like a team that’s hearing the outside noise. The usual speculation on coach Jim Montgomery’s job security is hard to ignore. And as far as possible player movement, the ninth floor at the Garden was ringed with pro scouts from around the league, a sure sign the B’s are open for business on that front.

What kind of change is on the way, the current product is ugly and not what anyone expected when GM Don Sweeney spent big in the offseason for Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov, neither of whom have yet to pay any sizable dividends. Meanwhile, their franchise goalie signed to a big eight-year deal worth $8.25 million a season, has allowed a dozen goals in his last two outings. The B’s went 1 for 6 on the power play and have not scored a third-period goal at home since the first Garden game against Montreal, when hopes were still high for this season.

On Monday, the B’s tried another tactic to inject some life into the roster that ultimately failed in it’s desired.

Jeffrey Viel, with eight 100-plus PIM seasons throughout his amateur and pro career, was brought up from Providence to bring his brand of spark. And sure enough, on his first shift, Viel tapped Columbus tough guy Mathieu Olivier to go. Olivier showed no recalcitrance. They dropped the gloves, but neither combatant landed a damaging blow before Olivier muscled Viel to one knee and the linesmen broke it up.

The fight was no magic bullet for the B’s. The B’s went down by three goals before the first intermission.

First, at 5:17, Dimitri Voronkov got behind Brandon Carlo and Mason Lohrei for a partial breakaway. Carlo whacked him from behind and was getting a penalty but Voronkov was barley able to slide the puck on net. Jeremy Swayman could not control it and, when a sliding Carlo crashed into him, it went in the net.

It would get worse. The B’s got a power play but the unit displayed the same futility it has for weeks now. And in the final seconds of it, Olivier had the puck in the corner in the B‘s zone and it appeared Charlie Coyle had him covered. But he let Olivier walk right to the front of the net and he then beat Swayman on a soft backhander at 10:39 in front of Lohrei.

The Jackets, mired in last place in the Metropolitan Division, weren’t done. In the final minute of the period, defenseman Zach Werenski easily slipped a fly-by check by David Pastrnak at the left point and fired a puck into the slot, where it hit old friend James van Riemsdyk and bounced past Swayman.

The B’s did have some good scoring chances in the first, but Elvis Merzlikins was a lot more airtight than his counterpart at the other end. And when the horn sounded, the B’s predictably heard a cascade of boos.

In the second period, the B’s spent much of their time in the Columbus zone but were mostly kept to the perimeter. But, at 14:30, they finally scored their first power-play goal since Nov. 3, and it was from the same source that scored their last one over two weeks ago. Justin Brazeau gathered the puck behind the net and found an open Coyle in the slot and he beat Merzlikins to make it 3-1.

Though the B’s scored on the PP, it was by no means smooth. And when Viel drew a high-sticking penalty on Voronkov late in the period, they got outworked in their own end by Zach Aston-Reese and Charlie McAvoy took a penalty on Sean Monahan to nullify the advantage.

In the third period, the B’s got another power-play chance but it blew up n their face. Morgan Geekie’s pass to Lohrei was off and the defenseman could not handle it. Cole Sillinger took off on a 2-on-1 and fed Justin Danforth for the nail-in-the-coffin goal.

Yegor Chinakhov added another late one for the Jackets but the game was over with the second shorty.