Boston Bruins: In Ninth Place With Nine Games To Go.
The Boston Bruins still have a chance to make the playoffs. If Ottawa even slightly slips up, the Bruins could easily find themselves back in the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. The B’s are more than capable of having nine strong games to finish the regular season. We know the Bruins capabilities. Now can they get the job done?
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- The Lasting Legacy of David Krejci
Tomorrow night’s game against the Anaheim Ducks is pivotal. If the Bruins can beat one of the best teams in the Western Conference, then this will be the start of the great comeback for the Black and Gold. If the Bruins fail to beat the Ducks, then this could be the swan song for the season, and quite possibly members of the Bruins’ front office.
The pressure is certainly start to build in Boston. While the Bruins were all smiles and casual for the fans who attended Cuts For A Cause, they were all business at today’s practice at Ristuccia Arena. They understand that everything depends on their actions in the next few weeks. There was an incident today involving Milan Lucic losing his cool and breaking a stick at practice. (In the past, an angry Milan Lucic was a motivated and well-playing Milan Lucic. Let’s hope he can keep that fire going.)
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These were the line pairings for the forwards at today’s practice:
Brad Marchand–Patrice Bergeron–David Krejci/Daniel Paille
Milan Lucic-Ryan Spooner–David Pastrnak
Reilly Smith–Carl Soderberg–Loui Eriksson
Brian Ferlin-Chris Kelly/Gregory Campbell– Max Talbot
Having Krejci back on the Bruins top line will not just be a solid production boost, but a morale lifter for the team. The Bruins alternate captain has had his worst professional season when it comes to injuries. Krejci has only played in thirty-eight games this season. While the Bruins have had an acceptable record without the twenty-eight year old Czech forward, they’ve certainly missed him and his solid tw0-way play.
In case Krejci won’t be ready to play tomorrow night, Daniel Paille will take his position on the right wing. If Krejci plays, than Paille will get shifted down to the fourth line. That would mean that Brian Ferlin would be watching the game from the ninth level.
If the Boston Bruins want to enter the postseason as the eighth seed, they have to win tomorrow night. They don’t have a choice now. They’ll have to play their best hockey of the season. If the Bruins can commit themselves to playing two-way, three-zone hockey, then they’ll be fine. Otherwise, they’ll need to update their tee-times on the golf course.