Nick Schmaltz scored the winning goal moments after Jeremy Swayman replaced injured starting goalie Linus Ullmark.
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TEMPE, Ariz. — Some losses sting more than others.
The Bruins are feeling especially sore after losing in overtime, 4-3, to the Coyotes Tuesday night at Mullett Arena, while also facing the prospect of losing Linus Ullmark, their Vezina Trophy-winning goalie for a stretch.
While Monday night’s shootout loss to the Avalanche produced a point and some good feelings, this point felt quite the opposite.
The Bruins squandered a pair of one-goal leads and needed to battle back in the third to salvage a point on a night where two points seemed gettable.
Ullmark was hurt during the extra session, falling to the ice immediately after deflecting a Logan Colley shot. He was helped off the ice and to the dressing room with what coach Jim Montgomery labeled a “lower-body injury.”
“I don’t know the extent of it,” the coach said. “I’ll know more the next time we’re all together.”
Jeremy Swayman was forced to come in cold and gave up the game winner to Nick Schmaltz moments later.
The Bruins (24-8-8) had a couple of golden opportunities to end it in the extra session, but David Pastrnak was unable to convert on a pair of breakaways.
“Definitely feeling a little guilty. Had two breakaways to end the game there for our team,” said Pastrnak. “So yeah, definitely they will haunt me tonight, I won’t sleep.”
On the winner, Schmaltz got a pick block from Clayton Keller, who took Pastrnak out of the play, and then wristed it past a semi-screened Swayman, off the post, and in.
“Obviously it’s hard for a goaltender to sit on the bench for three hours and then come in with an unfortunate injury,” Pastrnak said.
The Bruins also lost Matt Poitras to an upper-body injury in the second period. Montgomery had no details on the extent of the rookie’s ailment.
It’s likely the Bruins will summon Brandon Bussi to serve as Swayman’s understudy for at least the rest of this trip, which continues Thursday against the Stanley Cup champion Golden Knights and ends Saturday against the Blues.