Marco Sturm didn't mince any words when he met with the assembled Boston Bruins media for his introductory press conference on Tuesday morning. He knows how poorly the 2024-25 season went, and his experience playing in the city has him prepared for everything the fans will throw at the team in 2025-26.
Boston isn't a pleasant place to live when their sports teams aren't performing well. With the recent struggles of the Red Sox and Patriots, the Bruins and Celtics were the only teams left for the fans to put their support behind. Now, with the Bruins dreadful 2024-25 season and the early playoff exit of the Celtics (coupled with the Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown injury concerns for next season), the fans aren't going to be in a happy mood.
Sturm knows the wrath of the fans thank to the controversial way he started his Bruins career. The fans did not want to see Joe Thornton traded, and Sturm being part of a non-exciting return from the San Jose Sharks made the disdain for the deal even worse.
""I seen a big change here in the city of Boston because they're behind you and that feeling alone still feels like yesterday to me. That's exactly what I want to bring back."Marco Sturm
Sturm took the brunt of the disdain, and it's something he remembers after all those years. He hilariously quipped in the press conference that the trade "was not my fault," which lightened the mood of the press conference as reporters burst into laughter. It might have been a bit of a shot at the reporters, as the media didn't love that trade either, but it was also a way of showing vulnerability to the fans.
It's a feel-good story right now, but Don Sweeney went out on a limb to hire Sturm. He knows that the city could eat him alive as a first-time head coach in the NHL, but it could also turn into an all-time redemption story. Sturm, who left the team the offseason before the Bruins finally broke through in 2011, would like nothing more than to finish his story and win one with the organization.
Sturm plans to get the fans excited about the team again in Boston. He believes that once the snowball starts rolling, the team will feed off the excitement and reach another level. He has seen it before, and he knows it can happen again.
""Forget about winning and losing, we have to win I know that, but even when there were tough stretches, tough games, that feeling stayed. Hopefully the fans and the city of Boston will feel it every time they're going to watch us play. We have to compete, we're going to be structured, I can tell you that, but we also have to compete and make everyone proud.""Marco Sturm
Sturm referenced the Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara era numerous times when talking about the team's culture, and Bergeron even came to watch his old friend's introduction. I have one suggestion for Sturm if looking to bring pride back to the organization: Get Bergeron behind the bench as an assistant coach - it's something all Bruins fans would love to see on opening night.