Home is where the heart is for the Boston Bruins this year

The final home game for the Boston Bruins last year was one of the worst in team history. With a chance to win the Cup on home ice, the Bruins fell short.

This year, the Bruins clearly intend for things to be different. They want to make sure no team has it easy in Boston.

The Bruins currently do not have a regulation loss at home this season. In their first 14 home games, the Bruins have a 10-0-4 record.

Boston is the only team that took points in every home game. In fact, with the exception of Philadelphia and Minnesota, every team has at least two regulation losses at home.

Boston owes its home record to fast starts. The Bruins scored the first goal in 10 of their first 14 home games. Teams that score first win way more than they lose, so these quick starts give Boston a big advantage.

However, Boston is almost as good when trailing as they are when winning. So, even when things look dire (as they did on Friday against the Rangers), the Bruins always battle back to protect home ice.

In the four home games in which the Bruins gave up the first goal, they won three of them in regulation. That’s an incredible mark for Boston. It means that even when away teams score first, they are still more likely to leave with zero points.

Another reason why Boston is so good at home is the strong play from its goaltenders. Tuukka Rask is 7-0-2 in front of the home fans this season. His home SV% is .935 and his GAA is 1.96, both significantly better than his away numbers.

Jaroslav Halak is impressive on home ice as well. His home record is 3-0-2. In those five starts, Halak has a .932 SV% and a 2.32 GAA. These numbers are slightly better at home than they are on the road.

Even the forwards step up their games at home. The Bruins only played two more home games than road games, but David Pastrnak has six more goals at home. He scored 15 in Boston and nine in other cities.

The Bruins continue to dominate home ice, and this bodes well for the future. They need to make sure if they get a chance like they did last year, they won’t fail.