The Boston Bruins have found it hard to get themselves a mid-season trade deal this year. The salary cap has put the B’s plans in a stranglehold that the organization has found it hard to get out of. The biggest thing that has been holding the Bruins back is the large number of long-term, high pay, no-trade clause contracts. A lot of fans have found those contracts to be an unnecessary burden, and they’ve taken their frustrations out on the players via social media.
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Chris Kelly has been the number one target of those attacks. Chris Kelly’s numbers have never been awe-inspiring. He’s only had a single twenty goal season in his NHL career (2011-2012). He’s currently ranked eighth on the team in scoring with twenty-three points(six goals). While he has had five thirty plus point seasons, he’s been an under-the-radar player for most of his career. There was some grumbling among the fan base when he was tapped for alternate captain along with Andrew Ference after Marc Recchi retired at the end of the 2010-11 season.
(You know, when this happened.)
“I think all the players and coaching staff kind of agree that those guys have the personality that gives them that respect in the room,” said Bruins head coach Claude Julien on Kelly’s (and Ference’s) promotion back in 2011. “Also, they have that personality that shows leadership in the right way on and off the ice and they’re highly respected in our dressing room. So our guys really felt strongly here. There didn’t seem to be any questions on whether they were the right choices. It really was pretty unanimous overall. So it just became the obvious choices.”
SenShot
A lot of fans still balk at Kelly’s three million dollar contract, but some of them don’t appreciate what he’s brought to Boston since coming over back in February 2011. Kelly’s quiet leadership (when not on the ice) has been one of the reasons for the Bruins’ success. He’s been a strong motivator for his fellow Bruins, and a good supplementary coach to the young Bruins coming up from Providence or other teams.
Kelly is the kind of player who is willing to do whatever he can to help his team. The Bruins seemed to have lost their way in the first half of the season. The Black and Gold were black and blue, and other players were struggling to find their identity. Chris Kelly was one of those players who kept the demoralized Bruins focused. He even dropped the gloves on several occasions to keep up the intensity of his team.
Chris Kelly has been a leader, a warrior, and has become(without ever trying to)a face of the organization. It’s the big reason he was rewarded with such a good contract. Kelly’s fearlessness has been one of his strongest virtues on the ice, and he’s earned the ‘A’ on his sweater. Not many people are willing to step in front of a ‘Johnny Rocket’, but Chris Kelly did in order to preserve the Bruins narrow 2-1 lead late in the game tonight. (My compliments to @PeteBlackburn for tracking this one down.)
Chris Kelly helped save the game tonight. He wasn’t awarded a Star of the Game for his actions, but he’s not the kind of player that expects that. He did his job and he helped the Bruins get two very important points. While this may not be a popular opinion, it may be time for some Bruins fans to re-evaluate their opinion of Kelly. He looks like he’s earning that contract in Boston.