From now through the start of the NHL season on Oct. 4, TSN.ca presents '30 Teams In 30 Days,' a quick glimpse at each NHL club as the 2008-09 campaign approaches. Get the lowdown on every lineup, storylines to follow and Scott Cullen's fantasy analysis. It continues today with the Boston Bruins.
While the Montreal Canadiens were considered the biggest surprise in the Eastern Conference last season, the Bruins could qualify as a close second.
Not a lot of pundits looked at them favourably last summer, and the outlook wasn't any better when the team had to make do without injured centre Patrice Bergeron, defenceman Andrew Ference, and veteran netminder Manny Fernandez for extended periods of time. Despite all those challenges, head coach Claude Julien was able to do what he did in his tenure with the Canadiens and New Jersey Devils - get the most out of every player in his lineup.
With a solid defensive game in place, the Bruins fought tooth and nail down the stretch to clinch the eighth and final playoff spot and a first round matchup against Montreal - who owned them in each and every regular season game last year.
While just about everyone predicted a quick and easy Montreal victory, Julien's club gave the hated Habs three sleepness nights, taking them to seven games before bowing out. And like the Canadiens, a lot of teams will be taking Boston a lot more seriously this season.
General Manager: Peter Chiarelli (3rd season)
Head Coach: Claude Julien (2nd season)
2007-08 Record: 41-29-12 (8th in Conference)
Points Leader: Marc Savard - 78
Goals Leader: Marco Sturm - 27
Assists Leader: Marc Savard - 63
PIM Leader: Zdeno Chara - 114
+/- Leader: Zdeno Chara - 14
PP Goals Leader: Marco Sturm - 10
SH Goals Leader: Chuck Kobasew - 3
What They Did: General manager Peter Chiarelli has a great mix of youth and experience on his club and opted for just one key roster addition going into training camp. Michael Ryder's services came at a hefty price (he scored just 14 times last season after posting two straight 30-goal campaigns), but the club is confident that he'll return to his old form in Beantown. Proof positive: Julien has been Ryder's coach in the QMJHL, ECHL, AHL and NHL and knows what it takes to get him going on the ice. With Ryder on board, the Bruins parted ways with another Maritimer in veteran winger Glen Murray. The team also signed checking forward Stephane Yelle.
What to watch for: After going 0-8 against the Canadiens in the regular season, the Bruins certainly surprised their long-time rivals in the playoffs. And it was done without Patrice Bergeron in the lineup for most of the season. Having him back in the fold is almost like bringing him in as a new acquisition. But with all players who have suffered major concussions, the team will be keeping a close eye on him.
In the meantime, the Bruins have plenty of promising young talent up front. Speedy winger Phil Kessel will be looking to build on his great playoff series against Montreal (three goals and four points in four games), while David Krejci showed off his potential down the stretch when Marc Savard was on the shelf (nine points in seven games) and shone again in the postseason (five points in seven games). But the real talk of the town is power forward Milan Lucic. The hulking winger has drawn early comparisons to former Bruin and Hall of Famer Cam Neely for his energy and tenacity, and he's the face of the franchise going forward. With veterans Savard, Marco Sturm and Chuck Kobasew in the mix, the team needs to produce more offence than the 212 goals (25th in the league) from last season.
With towering captain Zdeno Chara and emerging rearguard Dennis Wideman leading the way, the Bruins have a tough and hard-hitting blueline corps that includes Ference, Aaron Ward, Shane Hnidy and Mark Stuart. Each of these defenders can work well under Julien's defence-first game, but they could also use another solid puck carrier in the ranks.
In goal, Manny Fernandez and Tim Thomas are both in contract years and both veterans could be gone next summer. Prospect Tuukka Rask is ready to earn more playing time, and his presence with the big club at any point during the season that could make for some interesting decision making in net on a game-to-game basis.
Parting Shot: Sports fans in Boston have been spoiled rotten with the Celtics, Red Sox and New England Patriots all reaching their respective championship finals over the last 12 months. That leaves the Bruins - a long-standing Original Six team with a great legacy of their own - as an outsider by comparison. But Chiarelli and Julien appear to have this club going in the right direction. If they can build on last year's success in the regular season and playoffs, they just might be mentioned in the same breath as their championship-calibre peers.
Scott Cullen's Fantasy Analysis: The Bruins have a couple of blue chip fantasy performers, but most of Boston's fantasy value comes from possible sleepers and breakthrough candidates. More.