Michael DiPietro Makes Most of Preseason Opportunity in Bruins Win

September 21, 2026 · Yahoo Sports

Jack Studley / Boston Hockey Now

It does not count for the standings, but the Boston Bruins picked up their first win on TD Garden ice since April 14.

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The Bruins beat the Washington Capitals 3-2 in a shootout on Sunday night to open the 2026-27 preseason. Jake Schmaltz scored the Bruins’ first goal, Charlie McAvoy tied the game with 103 seconds left in regulation, but James Hagens scored the goal that lifted the Bruins over the Alex Ovechkin-less Capitals.

Also Read:Bruins Tie Preseason Opener Late, James Hagens Wins it in Shootout

“Overall, I was happy with my guys,” Marco Sturm said postgame. “Listen, I worked them pretty good the last few days, so I knew they would be tired today. But they didn’t stop. They tried everything that’s possible. So that’s what I liked about today’s game. For me, that’s us, that’s Bruins hockey.”

Michael DiPietro has a clear path to win the Bruins’ backup job. On Sunday, he posted 30 saves in the win, including eight saves in a five-minute overtime. Sturm gave DiPietro the entire game in between the pipes, and the 27-year-old added three more saves in the shootout.

“Felt good. Thought I was a lot more comfortable. Obviously, the nerves are there, but just trying to manage it and be confident out there, just kind of dealing with that,” DiPietro said. “All in all, I liked my game, and obviously a few things to clean up, but a good first showing.”

Sturm thought DiPietro was “really good,” and added he was “very happy about his effort and his game.”

DiPietro does not have much NHL experience on his resume. He has four games under his belt, three between 2019-22, with the most recent being a six-minute stint last season.

Jeremy Swayman returned from the Winter Olympics and did not dress against the Columbus Blue Jackets on February 26. Joonas Korpisalo went down with an apparent injury, and DiPietro, who backed up for the night, made his way onto the TD Garden ice. He made two saves in 6:03, but drew on that experience to help him Sunday.

“Believe it or not, I kind of went back to the Columbus game last year, just kinda going in cold,” DiPietro said. “Trying to deal with nerves and the anxiousness of the game and trying to put a good first impression on the coaching staff. You know, earn your teammates’ trust when they come to you as a goaltender coming in that’s new. Those are all things kind of going through my head, but just trying to keep it simple and making sure my thoughts were clear and concise. Just making saves.”

DiPietro is not the only one using the four preseason games to make his case for a job in Boston.

Frederic Brunet, who has spent the last three years in Providence, skated on the top pair alongside Charlie McAvoy through the first three days of camp. That did not change Sunday; neither did any of the lines from the Brighton sessions. Brunet has been bouncing questions off McAvoy as he settles in, and their communication did not stop during the game.

Also Read:Charlie McAvoy Taking Frederic Brunet Under His Wing During Bruins Training Camp

“It was great. I mean, I didn’t play a perfect game, and he was there to help me all the way. It’s just a couple tweaks in the system that I’m not used to, but he was right there with me and trying to help me as much as he can,” Brunet said postgame. “So just playing with him just made it so much easier for me, and the stress level was just way lower because he has your back behind there.”

Matt Poitras, Lukas Reichel, and Attilio Biasca made up the third line. According to Natural Stat Trick, the line finished with an 11-2 Corsi differential, a 7-1 shots differential, 0.51 expected goals for and 0.01 expected goals against. They led the Bruins in all four categories.

Poitras had the secondary assist on Charlie McAvoy’s goal that tied the game with 1:43 in regulation. He won the faceoff back to Fraser Minten, who put it on a silver platter for McAvoy.

“What was funny, though, right before that, there was a neutral zone faceoff, and he lost that one and I knew he was pissed,” Sturm said. “That was one of the reasons I left him out there, because I know he’s pissed and I know he’s probably going to get something out of it. And he did.”

Poitras also ran on the second power-play unit, but the Bruins went 1-for-6 on the man advantage. Jake Schmaltz’s goal came with a second remaining on the power play and the fourth line on the ice.

On the other end of special teams, the penalty kill went a perfect 7-for-7.

“We had our PK meeting for the first time this morning without even practicing. Overall, that, again, guys did a decent job. They took a few too many [penalties], probably,” Sturm said. “Yeah, we definitely have to work on penalties again. But PK-wise, the stand was better. I think overall, it was a good start.”

The Bruins are no stranger to taking too many penalties. Led by Nikita Zadorov and Mark Kastelic, they were shorthanded 278 times last season, the most in the league. Even without Zadorov in the lineup Sunday, the Bruins were shorthanded seven times, or for 11:16.

The game needed more than 60 minutes, and that’s where the Bruins narrowly avoided trouble. A Jonathan Aspirot minor penalty carried over from the third period into overtime, then Matt Poitras went to the box 56 seconds after Aspirot’s minor expired. The Capitals peppered DiPietro, but he forced a shootout.

That’s when Marco Sturm called on James Hagens, who scored the shootout-winning goal in the first round.

“I don’t know if you guys watched that scrimmage yesterday,” Marco Sturm said. “He did the same move. He tried it again, so good for him.”

Slim Jim for the win ✌️ pic.twitter.com/TXsjroFFnJ
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) September 20, 2026

The Bruins are off on Monday, but cuts are expected. Providence Bruins training camp opens Monday, and the Boston Bruins will host the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday.

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