Boston Bruins Searching For Their Identity
The Boston Bruins don’t know what they are and its maddening to say the least.
First of all let me just say this, the Boston Bruins have been a force to be reckoned with for much of this decade. The team always gave us exciting seasons and fun games to watch. The B’s even gave the fans 2 Stanley Cup Final appearances and 1 Cup to show for it. Although there were 5 heartbreaking Game 7 losses during that stretch of time, the Bruins were in the playoffs for 7 out of the 10 years. All 7 playoff berths under Head Coach Claude Julien.
However the fans are starting to get restless. Two years of missing the playoffs and collapsing in the final week of the season is unacceptable. In addition to that, this year isn’t going in the right direction either.
With 3 crushing losses in a row all coming in different fashion, The Bruins find themselves sitting in 3rd place in the Atlantic division with 52 points entering Saturday. You may think this is a good position to be in but you’ll be sadly mistaken.
The Bruins have played 6 more games than the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators and played 3 more games than the Philadelphia Flyers. While this may be difficult to come back from it’s not impossible.
Lets take the coach out of the equation and just look at the roster. Tuukka Rask has been great aside from a couple of games this year but he’s a non issue. Offensively the team has been surprisingly coming in at 21st overall in goals scored with 122. The defense has improved a bit this year but mediocre at best. This is the recipe of a below average hockey club that needs a direction.
What is that direction? Who knows.
General Manager Don Sweeney has stressed that he wants to rebuild the organizations farm system. That process will take time and patience. I’m more than okay with stockpiling prospects and being patient while these young guns develop. Don Sweeney has drafted the likes of Brandon Carlo, Jakub Zboril, Jake DeBrusk, Zach Senyshen, Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, Jeremy Lauzon, Jesse Gabrielle, Charlie McAvoy, Trent Frederic and Ryan Lindgren.
Now that’s quite the list of prospects drafted in just 2 years. There all probably not going to play for the B’s but perhaps using them as trade chips.
However transactions have not been so kind to Don Sweeney over the past 2 years. Lets go over a few. Jimmy Hayes for Reilly Smith and the contract of Marc Savard? Awful. Re-signing Kevan Miller to a 4 year contract? Gross. Zac Rinaldo for a 2017 3rd round pick? Now that’s just a straight up sin.
There have been reports that Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog is on the market and the Boston Bruins are interested. This is where things get tricky. Don Sweeney’s trade history isn’t the sharpest. If I’m him, I’m not giving up Carlo or McAvoy. These players are going to lead your blue line in a few seasons and to trade 1 or both of them would not be smart business. Every other prospect should be on the table for discussion even then I would be reluctant.
Landeskog comes with some caution. The 2nd overall pick in 2011 has just 9 Goals and 7 Assists on a bad Colorado team this year. He could fit in nicely on Boston’s top 6 but I would not spend an insane amount on a player that’s just too inconsistent.
Even if Boston acquired Landeskog, I still don’t think this team will make the playoffs. Jobs however are on the line, pressure is mounting the club is dropping games left and right and at what point is desperation going to take over? If the Bruins miss a 3rd year in a row, ownership may step in and clean house of the front office at year’s end. Sweeney and President Cam Neely have a tough decision to make regarding the direction of the Bruins.
Risk your job by going in full rebuild mode or risk your job by trying to get over the hump and make the playoffs.
Next: Claude Julien Needs To Remain Head Coach
That decision has to be made this year and it will make or break Sweeney and Neely and most of all, change the landscape of the Boston Bruins.