Now, I consider myself an optimistic Bruins fan. As stated before, I knew a good thing when I saw it last spring, and even though the Bruins ended up falling to the Canadiens in the end, I could see a team identity and a team chemistry coming together, based largely on three things. The SUPERB defense-minded coaching of Claude Julien, the youth of the team at large that allowed all of them to buy into this scheme, and quality goaltending by Tim Thomas. I fully expected (and of course still fully expect) the Bruins to make the playoffs. But as I was cautiously optimistic, I expected them to improve by a seed or two, and go in as the 6th seed, 5th seed if they were lucky.
And that could still be the way things end up. But as we stand right now, a quarter of the way through the NHL regular season, the Bruins are 14-3-4, they have 32 points, and they are the #1 team in the Eastern Conference. They have more points as of this writing than both Stanley Cup teams last year, and are a full 7 points ahead of the Hated Canadiens, after a 3-2 shootout win up in Montreal on Patrick Roy night. I have been to 5 Bruins games, and have had the pleasure of seeing their most convincing win (6-1 over the aforementioned Montrealers), and their only horrible effort, a 4-2 setback at the hands of the Maple Leafs. Julien is keeping the team on an even keel, and the team is demonstrating that they can skate with and beat just about anyone in the National Hockey League. Moreover, something wonderful is beginning to happen.
Boston is remembering that it has a hockey team. I don't mean to take away from the continued Eastern Conference dominance of the Celtics, or the gusty, never-say-die Patriots squad that is somehow 7-4 after playing the entire season without Tom Brady. But after every other sports team has won a championship in Boston, I began to wonder how much success it would take to have the media and the casual fans remember about the days of Bobby Orr, Phil Espisito, and Cam Neely. Thanks to the rough-and-tumble play of this current B's squad, people are remembering. The newspapers are remembering. Hell, Boston Dirtdogs LED with a Bruins story twice within the last week. The Garden is filling up, and there's a Buzz on Causeway Street again. The city is remembering.
This is of course not to say that work doesn't still need to be done. I remember talking with my older brother during the Bruins-Canadiens series in 2004, when the Bruins were the second seed and the Canadiens were seventh. My brother said, as the Bruins were up 3 games to 1, that the city was *this* close to becoming a hockey town again; that it was *this* close to remembering the Big, Bad Bruins and embracing the Black and Gold once more. Then, the Bruins faded and lost the series, based on some outstanding goaltending by Jose Theodore, and some lackluster finishing. Then, the NHL tried to commit suicide (and nearly succeeded) with the Lockout, and the Bruins management misjudged what kind of league it would be after the Lockout ended. The Bruins were stripped of their talent, and after being the #1 seed in 2002 and the #2 seed in 2004 they fell to the league cellar, whilst Joe Thornton won the MVP. It took two years just to get back to respectability, and it would appear that the team is on the cusp of making a leap beyond. But...
Tim Thomas can't possibly keep this up all year. At least, I can't believe that he can, but then again he's continually proved me wrong. The lack of scoring from Michael Ryder and Patrice Bergeron will catch up with them. they have a banged-up blue line and can't afford anyone else to get injured at the moment. But, still, as it stands, the Bruins are on pace for their best season ever. Just bears mentioning. This is not to say that they will, as they *have* to cool down at some point, but with each win they keep racking up points that will sure come in handy down the road.
Basically, I'm looking at this coming Saturday's match against the Red Wings as the biggest test that the Bruins will have probably all year. If they can compete with, and maybe even beat, the team that has been head and shoulders above the rest of the league for the last several years, I'm officially going to be sold. After all, I thought that their game against the Rangers was going to be huge, and they ended up coughing up a 2-goal third period lead and losing in a Shootout. So, work needs to be done, and consistent pressure is something the Bruins have yet to develop in the third period. It's not quite like they give up, per se, but it seems like as soon as a team starts playing with desperation, the Bruins give up the lead.
But anyway, this is not to be negative. The Bruins and Celtics are the best teams in their respective conferences, and the Patriots are 7-4, with a few bounces and a coin toss away from being 9-2. All in all, I'll take it. And I can't wait to head back to the Garden. There's something good going on here, and I got in on the ground floor.
-M
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