With the All Star break in the rearview mirror, the Boston Bruins prepare to embark on the second half of their season and more importantly the rush for the playoffs. Boston sits comfortably in eighth place with a seven point advantage over the next closest team in the Florida Panthers although they have three games in hand.
After what was a topsy-turvy first half, the Bruins were able to achieve some consistency by securing points in 11 of their last 12 games before the All Star break and have stabilized their position in the playoffs for now, however the opportunity to ascend to the top of the standings is still there for the taking.
Boston sits only eight points behind the Detroit Red Wings at the top of the Atlantic Division and for a share of the top of the Eastern Conference with the New York Islanders; the latter of which the Bruins will be on playing on the road tonight.
There are 35 games left to be played for the Bruins this season and a little more than one third of those games are against teams ahead of them in the standings; and some teams the Bruins will have a pair of chances to secure points(Detroit, Tampa Bay, NY Islanders).
“It’s definitely going to be tough matchups and big games,” said Patrice Bergeron. “We know that with the position that we’re in, we have to keep going forward and keep moving forward as a team and improving.
The ingredients for success were on display for two weeks in January and should give outsiders a glimpse as to how the Bruins may be closer to righting the ship than they have been this entire season. Over the course of the two week stretch we saw improved play from Tuukka Rask as he is on his way to having his best month of the season.
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There’s also signs that Loui Eriksson might finally be back to full health after his concussion plagued season of a year ago as he hovers near the top of the scoring list for the Bruins; even though it is a dubious honor for a team ranked 22nd in total offense.
Although the return of Zdeno Chara has been rocky, his presence allows for further stability on defense and from a coaching position enables Claude Julien to put out the pairings best designed to help the team be successful. In Chara’s absence, there has also been the growth and development we have seen from Dougie Hamilton who I believe is one season away from being an All Star caliber player.
Look, it has been a tumultuous ride since game seven against the Canadiens last season; but the Bruins are stabilized in the playoffs and stand poised to make a run over the second half of the season. Barring any injuries or additional unexpected obstacles, a fully healthy and focused Bruins team should be able to make some noise as we approach the Spring.