PHILADELPHIA — Michael DiPietro is poised to serve as Jeremy Swayman’s backup in the Boston net this season, but he’s already proven in the early going that he’s a master thief.
Despite taking a 2-0 loss to the Flyers on Thursday night, DiPietro stole the show at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in the Bruins’ first setback after three preseason games.
It was DiPietro’s second solid game of the preseason as he solidified his roster spot.
DiPietro made 26 saves — including a handful of 10 bellers — playing behind a lineup made up mostly of bubble players still battling for roster spots.
“A great, solid effort from him,” said Bruins coach Marco Sturm. “He was really, really good. Kept us in there in the game all night.”
Of the 20 players who suited up for Marco Sturm, only Charlie McAvoy, Sean Kuraly, and James Hagens are NHL roster locks. The Flyers, meanwhile, played a lot of their projected regulars, including their top six forwards and top defensive pairs.
Get Sports Alerts
The latest sports news and Globe’s most interesting reporting and commentary right to your inbox.
“I think obviously they were pretty top heavy up front, and I think when those go guys come in the lineup, you can never take it for face value,” said DiPietro. “I think they can always make that extra play, extra pass. So, just making sure I set myself up for success and just making good reads and staying on my feet as much as possible was definitely a key tonight.
“And yeah, it was a lot of fun to battle out there and it was a good learning experience.”
As hot as DiPietro was, the offense was ice cold. The Bruins landed 28 shots on Joseph Woll, but the Flyers goalie didn’t face the same number of high-danger shots as DiPietro.
“It was hard I think for every line out there today,” said Sturm. “The [Flyers] didn’t give you much. They skated very well. But yeah, [our guys] tried their best.”
Jim McBride can be reached at james.mcbride@globe.com. Follow him @globejimmcbride.