When the 2025-26 season began, there were a lot of questions surrounding the Boston Bruins. First-year coach Marco Sturm was bringing a new system with him, and let's be honest, it was an underwhelming offseason in terms of roster additions for general manager Don Sweeney.
After enduring a six-game losing streak, the Bruins went on a seven-game winning streak and now close out a four-game road trip on Wednesday night against the New York Islanders, holding the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. It certainly has been an up-and-down season to date for the Black and Gold.
ESPN handed out grades for the first quarter of the season and they nailed the Bruins.
ESPN drops perfect grade for Bruins first quarter of the 2025-26 season
According to ESPN, the Bruins' projected point total before the season was 80.5, and now, it's at 88.8. Would that be enough to grab a wild-card spot in the postseason in the East? It will be close. However, for everything that has gone right and gone wrong for Sturm's team, ESPN gives Boston a B+ through 24 games.
This is a rather perfect grade if we're being honest. As the article mentioned, things that have gone right, Nikita Zadorov has been strong on the backend, and he will need to be going forward without Charlie McAvoy. Jeremy Swayman's bounce-back season to date has helped, and so has the success that both special teams units have had. Unfortunately for the penalty-killing units, they have been put in too many situations, especially at 5-on-3.
As for the things that have gone wrong, injuries have been a major setback, but another area of concern is the inability to close out games in regulation and secure points. They have allowed multiple late third-period goals in games they have lost in regulation, where they deserved to be at a point in the standings.
Loser points are going to be key at the end of the season for positioning in the standings for the playoffs and say what you will about an 82-game season, all points matter, no matter if it's October or April.
Overall, a B+ is a perfect grade for the Bruins to this point, but if they are going to hang around in the Eastern Conference this year, the grade will have to improve, or it could be another long offseason in Boston.