The Boston Bruins fanbase is a passionate fanbase; there's no doubt about that. However, they are also a smart fanbase that knows when they are being sold some goods that may not be good ones. You can make the case that the last two offseasons have been that case. The goods are not as good as the returns.
Dom Luszczyszyn of The Athletic conducted a survey for all 32 NHL fanbases and how they felt about their front office. As it should not come as a surprise, Bruins fans are not happy with the direction things are going under President Cam Neely and general manager Don Sweeney. I'm shocked by this. Ok, that was satire; however, the results are what you expect them to be.
Boston Bruins fans not happy with the front office
Boston Bruins not happy with the front office is an understatement. I mean, a major understatement. Luszczyszyn's results yielded the Bruins front office a ranking of No. 30, which is a major tumble from last year's ranking of No. 14. That's right, a major slide that is not surprising.
For decades, the Bruins have been a model in the NHL with their culture and success. They have been to the playoffs and made several runs that led to Stanley Cup Final appearances, which include the 2011 Stanley Cup Championship. However, things are heading in the other direction right now, following a season where they missed the postseason and finished tied for last place in the Eastern Conference.
They traded away some of their key players and a big part of their core, with Brad Marchand going to the Florida Panthers, defenseman Brandon Carlo going to the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Charlie Coyle to the Colorado Avalanche. They were trades that needed to happen, and turning over the leadership to Charlie McAvoy, David Pastrnak, and Jermey Swayman.
However, the decisions made in free agency by the front office are what stick with the fanbase. The big additions of Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov backfired for the most part last year, and the big fish landed this summer was Tanner Jeannot, who was heavily overpaid. The best move was acquiring Viktor Arvidsson from the Edmonton Oilers in a trade on July 1.
The front office will tell you that they are not rebuilding, but retooling. Not everyone is going to believe that, as the moves this offseason don't say that. However, the fanbase is not going to be fooled, and the Boston Bruins fans know better. Now the question is, does the fanbase trust the decision makers in place now to be the right ones to lead the rebuild, I mean, retool? I think we all know the answer to that.