Some big changes are coming for the Boston Bruins organization this offseason. There has been a front office overhaul surrounding GM Don Sweeney, with his second assistant this season, Evan Gold, leaving on Aug. 1. There also have been some changes with the Providence Bruins in the American Hockey League (AHL).
Providence head coach Ryan Mougenel left after another stellar season from the P-Bruins to join the Vancouver Canucks as an assistant coach. That leaves a massive opening in the AHL for the Black and Gold. However, according to Mark Divver of New England Hockey Journal and NHL.com, the Bruins are close to naming Trent Whitfield their next AHL head coach.
That would be a no-brainer move as he has been an assistant coach of the P-Bruins for years, and sliding him over as the next head coach makes just too much sense for the returning players. There should be some type of announcement over the next couple of weeks, with the 2026-27 NHL and AHL seasons quickly approaching.
The Athletic lists the Bruins' biggest villain
The Athletic listed each NHL team's on-ice villain in franchise history. Bruins beat writer Fluto Shinzawa listed former defenseman Ulf Samuelsson as the Black and Gold's. That's a good selection, if we're being honest.
"In Game 3 of the 1991 conference finals, Samuelsson clipped Cam Neely with a knee-on-knee hit. The collision also injured Neely’s thigh and caused a condition called myositis ossificans, resulting in calcification. Neely was limited to nine games the following season,'' Shinzawa wrote.
It makes you wonder what Neely's career would have looked like the rest of the way if not for that hit. Anyway, the Montreal Canadiens beat writer for The Athletic listed Neely as Montreal's biggest Villain for his playoff series that haunted the Canadiens.
Marco Sturm gets an award in Germany
Marco Sturm will begin his second season as Bruins head coach. It's safe to say that Boston surprised a lot of NHL pundits by making the Stanley Cup Playoffs as the first Eastern Conference wild-card. He was recently awarded The Cross of Merit on Ribbon/Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, according to Jim McBride of the Boston Globe. The award is the nation’s highest civilian honor for outstanding service to the common good.
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