With nine games remaining in the regular season and the playoffs looming, Charlie Coyle remains focused on doing the right things on the ice. While the offensive numbers aren't where Coyle wants them to be at the moment, the third-year Bruin is concentrating on sticking to the things that have made him successful.
"I know what I'm capable of, but I think the main thing is you've just got to bring the other parts of your game," said Coyle. "Just because you aren't scoring, you can't stray away from the other parts and what I do as a player that benefit this team. Sometimes when you're not scoring you tend to do that.
"It's kind of [like] you cheat it in a way - not that you're trying to cheat or [have] a lack of hard work or anything. You just want to score and contribute and help your team so much that you kind of get away from the stuff because you're trying to get the end-result before doing all the work.
"I've learned to just trust my game and go back to the basics - moving my feet, playing physical, getting in on the forecheck, shooting the puck, and getting to the net. Those are the things that I have to keep reminding myself to do and when I do that, it will pay off.
"Can I do those things better? Of course, I can. I take full responsibility for that and that's something I need to be more consistent at. We all strive to do that and that's what I'm working on."
The additions of Hall and Curtis Lazar have added some flexibility to Boston's lineup. The top-six appears to be solidified with the boost Hall has brought to the second line. Lazar's versatility in the bottom six, along with Coyle's ability to play the wing, present Cassidy with the opportunity to shake things up, if need be.
Cassidy did just that during Monday's practice in Pittsburgh, shifting Coyle to the right side on Boston's third line with Nick Ritchie on the left and Sean Kuraly in the middle. Trent Frederic, meanwhile, slotted in as the fourth-line left wing with Lazar as the center and Chris Wagner and Karson Kuhlman rotating as the right wing.
"We're trying to help some players that are struggling a little bit, get going," said Cassidy. "So, you move them around sometimes. Sometimes it's at their request and sometimes it's just coaches' decisions, right? We seem to have identified our top two, specifically our second scoring line. What do we want out of our third and fourth now?
"Charlie hasn't found it offensively here in a while, so, as I alluded to earlier, sometimes there's conversations with players like, 'Yeah, let's do that, maybe it'll get me shooting more.' We've done that with Charlie in the past. We've said how we'd like our lineup to look like, but by the same token, we've acquired a guy in Lazar that can play fourth-line center. Let's see where he's at and maybe he becomes a guy that moves up later if Charlie's good on the wing.
"There's a lot of different options there. I think those players in our bottom six - we're trying to define them as certain types of energy guys. Be physical, chip in offensively. Let's not worry about your goal totals to this point this year. There are always players on every team that are a little bit above, a little bit below. But now it's almost like okay, we've got a good nine games left, let's get an identity and see how it goes."
