"You don't want to get into bad habits," said general manager Peter Chiarelli. "That's the thing that maybe you worry about."
For most of the first two periods of Saturday's game against the Belfast Giants select squad, those fears appeared well-founded. The Bruins struggled through a sluggish opening period that ended in a scoreless draw, then were shocked to see the Giants strike first late in the second period.
But that goal served as a much-needed wakeup call for the Bruins, who responded with three goals in less than a minute before the second period ended, and cruised from there to a 5-1 win.
There are still reasons for concern. The Bruins won't be able to simply flip the switch on their offense against NHL opponents, and Saturday's slow start came after the Bruins proclaimed they wouldn't repeat Wednesday's lackluster performance against Washington.
The Capitals rested Alex Ovechkin and most of their other top stars for that one and still beat a Bruins lineup consisting of most of Boston's regulars 4-1. The Bruins had almost everyone dressed in Belfast again, but still came out flat once more.
Among the five scratches for this one, only Johnny Boychuk and Daniel Paille are likely to be in the lineup when the regular season begins next weekend. Brian McGrattan, still without a contract and trying to earn a spot as a spare forward, rookie defenseman Matt Bartkowski and third goalie Nolan Schaefer were the other scratches against the Giants.
With Paille and McGrattan out, Brad Marchand got a chance to play on the fourth line with Greg Campbell and Shawn Thornton. Marchand took advantage, scoring Boston's third goal to cap their second-period outburst.
Marchand started camp somewhat slow, putting himself squarely on the bubble to make the final cut, but he has come on strong of late and looks determined to avoid any more bus trips down to Providence. He showed his agitating abilities against Florida in Rochester, then flashed some skill with a goal and several other scoring chances against the Capitals in a 3-2 loss in Washington on Tuesday. With another goal in Belfast, Marchand continues to build his case to stick around for the regular season.
Tyler Seguin wasn't in jeopardy of being returned to his junior club, but the Bruins certainly have to be pleased with the show he put on in Belfast. He opened the scoring with a power-play goal and added the final tally on a penalty shot.
The most important aspect of that performance may be that it came at center. His first preseason goal came last Saturday at the Garden against the Panthers, but that was with him playing on the wing alongside veterans Patrice Bergeron and Mark Recchi.
The original plan for Seguin was to ease him into NHL life in that spot. But with Marc Savard out indefinitely, the Bruins need Seguin to return to his natural center position. Seeing him produce there, even against a weaker opponent like Belfast, has to be a positive sign for the Bruins.
Boston also got goals from Zdeno Chara and Milan Lucic, while Thornton collected a pair of assists. It would be hard to find anyone in Odyssey Arena that wasn't happy to see Thornton enjoy a rare multi-point night. The Bruins' tough guy had his own cheering section in place, scooping up 20 tickets from teammates for his extended family in Belfast, where his mother was born. One of those tickets was for Thornton's mother, whom he flew out for the game in his first trip back to Belfast in 47 years.
It was certainly worth the trip from Oshawa, Ontario for Thornton's mother to see her son play in her native city.
If the Bruins can carry the offensive confidence they gained in the late-going of this game into the regular season, then it will have been a worthwhile excursion for the rest of the club as well.
