His coach and his teammates have been impressed with the way Lohrei is handling himself in the postseason.
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SUNRISE, Fla. —
Mason Lohrei saw nothing but sad faces.
As the Bruins rookie glided into celly mode following his first career playoff goal in
Monday’s 5-1 win over the Panthers, he looked through the glass with a wide smile but saw only frowns looking back at Amerant Bank Arena.
“I was pumped when I scored, and then we’re on the road, so no one else is pumped,” Lohrei said with a light laugh.
He wasn’t alone for long, however, as he was mobbed by his teammates for what turned out to be the winning goal.
“Spoons made a great play. Poised the blue line. Got it down to me,” said Lohrei. “I had some space, got my head up. Pasta was on the back door, and I think that kind of made the goalie go down a little. So I just took that space up top.”
It was the latest highlight in a season of big moments for Lohrei, who improved during every callup from Providence and is playing with more and more confidence with every shift.
“I just think that the way he’s handled the Stanley Cup playoffs, the emotion of it, the intensity of it, I think it has propelled him,” coach
Jim Montgomery said Tuesday morning. “He’s an extremely competitive player. It may not show in the physicality way he plays, but it shows with his poise with the puck.
“There’s different ways to be intense. He wants the puck, and that’s an intensity that you have to have: players that want the puck in big moments, and you’ve got to have players that want to check in big moments.”
Lohrei was inserted into the lineup in Game 3 against the Maple Leafs and has become a more responsible defender while keeping his offensive flair.
we go here, I feel like I’m getting more confident, more comfortable,” he said. “Marchy’s been great with me, kind of just letting me know my value and keeping me in the right frame of mind. So it’s been fun and I just want to keep it going.”
Charlie McAvoy, who alternates playing with Lohrei and
Hampus Lindholm depending on matchups, has enjoyed watching Lohrei come into his own.
“It looks like he’s sort of finding his stride as we go,” McAvoy said. “I know that he’s a confident kid, but he showed a lot of maturity playing in the playoffs and some of the situations that he’s been in, and he’s really thrived.
“He’s flourished, and I think now you’re seeing, he’s starting to feel a little more comfortable and he can make special plays like he did a couple times last night, so just want to keep encouraging him and supporting him in whatever way we can and look forward to him growing.”
Lohrei’s flair with the puck is obvious. He has a bevy of moves and will catch defenders off-guard with his quick change-of-direction skills, his ability to shield with his reach, or with some Houdini-like trickery such as sliding the puck between his legs and racing around a defender.
takes a special level of confidence to even attempt those moves and an enormous amount of talent to pull them off.
Sometimes coaches will have their hearts in their throats when a player — especially a rookie — tries a unique move. That’s not the case when Montgomery is watching his guys, including his 6-foot-5-inch defenseman.
“No,” said the coach. “I get excited when Pasta does it and Marchy does some of those moves, too, and I’m just like, ‘I never would’ve thought of doing something like that.’
“And it’s like you have to have the poise and the creativity and the confidence to try something.”