Facing a Winnipeg Jets squad that had four of their top six defensemen out of the lineup – a team that acquired Jay Harrison from the Carolina Hurricanes in an act of desperation – the opportunity for the Boston Bruins to get back to speed offensively was there for the taking.

Instead, the Bruins scoring woes that are plaguing them during the 2014-15 season are going from bad to worse.

Friday’s 2-1 loss at the MTS Centre was another painful reminder to Bruins fans how frustrating this team is to watch. Offensively, they fell behind the 8-ball with just four first period shots. They did play a better second period and kept the pressure on for most of the third, eventually out shooting the Jets, 31-27.

But the slow start, combined with some passive decisions with the puck in the attacking end ultimately haunted the Black and Gold on this night.

“Too many passes and not enough shots,” Patrice Bergeron told the press at the MTS Centre visiting locker room after the Bruins fell to 16-14-3 on the season. “You know, it’s definitely making their life easy when we do that.”

The statistics behind the Bruins’ offensive struggles are eye-opening. They’ve scored two or fewer goals in nine of their last 12 games and four of their last five. Even when they’re creating chances with their cycles and odd-man rushes, the Black and Gold simply are having trouble putting the puck in the back of the net.

There’s no denying that the Bruins are sorely missing Jarome Iginla and his 30 goals from a season ago. But it’s also evident that the team is in need of a dynamic player like Tyler Seguin, who is shining in Dallas as the leading scorer in the National Hockey League with 39 points (23 goals, 16 assists).

Instead they are left with guys like Loui Eriksson, who seems to be making timid decisions in the offensive end. They’re stuck without a first line right winger to skate along with David Krejci and Milan Lucic. More importantly, they’re stuck without a go-to guy who can put the puck in the back of the net when the team needs it the most.

All of this was evident when the Bruins were looking for the equalizer in the last minute. With Tuukka Rask pulled, Claude Julien sent fourth line grinder Gregory Campbell out as an extra attacker during crunch time.

Simply put, the roster that they have right now just doesn’t cut it. And the offensive woes have put the Bruins one point behind the Florida Panthers for the last wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.

“We just got to get better,” head coach Claude Julien told NESN’s Jack Edwards and Andy Brickley after the loss. “As a team, I’m not happy at all with the team the way we are playing right now, because you can a lot of those players and a lot of those guys can bring a lot more and be a lot better. And until we get that competitiveness and get better decision making from some of those guys, we’re going to continue to struggle.”

At this rate, Peter Chiarelli’s mismanagement of the salary cap – combined with the numerous no-trade clauses he handed out after the Bruins’ Stanley Cup victory in 2011 – have put Boston’s GM in a tough spot. He is actively looking to upgrade the team according to several reports published over the past week, and at this rate players like Taylor Hall, T.J. Oshie, David Perron and Patrik Berglund – all rumored to be on the trade block – would be better options than what they have now.

Until the holiday roster freeze ends on December 27th, the Bruins are stuck with the roster that they have.

What they have is not good enough.