The Boston Bruins are off to a decent start this season. Their 8-7-0 in the first month or so of the 2025-26 season has defied some analysts’ expectations. While the season has been somewhat of a stop-and-go, the club has mostly made headway.
Heading into Thursday night’s action, the Bruins are in a playoff spot. They hold the first wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference with 16 points. Of course, that’s a tenuous grasp as the Eastern Conference is jammed packed. The last-place team in the East, the Florida Panthers (yes, that’s right), are three points away from the Bruins with two games in hand.
That situation means that the East has yet to see some significant separation between the contenders and the pretenders. Even though the Bruins are holding their heads above water, the oddsmakers at MoneyPuck don’t seem convinced about the club’s playoff chances.
According to MoneyPuck’s playoff probability, the Bruins have a 17.7% chance of making the postseason this season. It seems the fine folks there don’t believe the Bruins have the staying power to remain in a postseason slot.
That’s partially due to numerous issues. Perhaps the most glaring is consistency. The Bruins have played some fantastic games at times, while others have been atrocious. It won’t be until the Bruins show who they truly are that oddsmakers won’t be convinced about Boston’s chances to play in the spring.
November will be a make-or-break month for Bruins' playoff hopes
As implausible as it may sound, the Bruins’ season will come down to November. The unofficial Thanksgiving signpost typically determines who’s in playoff contention and who’s not. That gives the Bruins roughly four weeks to separate themselves from the pack.
A good month could put the Bruins in a decent position to claim a playoff berth. It could also embolden GM Don Sweeney to make more moves to support the club.
On the contrary, a terrible month could convince management that this core needs a major reset. That situation could mean the selloff of some valuable pieces, depending on how the market shapes up.
Perhaps the worst thing that could happen to the Bruins is having a mediocre month. Such a situation would fail to determine if Boston is a playoff team or not. While management will default to going for a playoff spot, a lack of clarity may only hurt the team’s chances.
Ultimately, Bruins’ fans will need to keep a close watch on how the club fares in its next five games. Thursday night’s tilt with the Ottawa Senators is one of two games, with a home-and-home set with the Toronto Maple Leafs sandwiched in between. Then, the Bruins head to Montreal on November 15. Winning at least three of those games would go a long way towards setting up the Bruins in the Atlantic Division.