The Boston Bruins came oh so close to a second Stanley Cup in three years, falling short in Game 6 against the Chicago Blackhawks after giving up two goals in a span of 17 seconds late in the third. That result was enough for GM Peter Chiarelli to make a handful of changes to the lineup. Gone are Tyler Seguin, Rich Peverley, Jaromir Jagr, Nathan Horton, Andrew Ference, and Anton Khudobin. New to the fold are Jarome Iginla, Loui Eriksson, Reilly Smith, and Chad Johnson. The Bruins currently are over the cap and will need to make a roster move before the season starts, but it looks as though they have reloaded and are aimed at another run to the Cup. This is a veteran group that has the right tools to get there.
Projected Forward Lines:
Brad Marchand - Patrice Bergeron - Loui Eriksson
Milan Lucic - David Krejci - Jarome Iginla
Carl Soderberg - Chris Kelly - Jordan Caron
Daniel Paille - Gregory Campbell - Shawn Thornton
Reilly Smith - Ryan Spooner
This is largely the same forward lineup that took the Bruins to the finals last season. The Bruins finished tied for 13th in the NHL with 2.65 goals per game a year ago, but given their defensive prowess they don't need to improve their scoring by much to be just as good. Probably the best part about the Bruins' style of play is that every forward is capable of playing a two-way game. Patrice Bergeron is going to win a bunch of Selke trophies in his career, Lucic and Marchand are thorns in the side of every opponent league-wide, and Krejci has some of the best hands in the league. The scoring should see a better balance now that the Bruins have fixed their "too many centers" problem and brought in depth on the wings. Even still, the Bruins will remain a team that drives puck possession, and that starts in the faceoff dots. Last year, Boston was easily the NHL's best team on the draw, winning 56.4% of the time (San Jose was second at 53.4%). You can tell that there has been a shakeup at the top of the depth chart, but Chiarelli went out and got the guys he wanted through free agency and trades.
Projected Defensive Pairings:
Zdeno Chara - Johnny Boychuk
Dennis Seidenberg - Dougie Hamilton
Torey Krug - Adam McQuaid
Matt Bartkowski
The youth movement is underway in Boston. Actually, it started during the playoffs, where Krug stole the show with four goals in 15 games. The departure of Andrew Ference opens a spot for him in the rotation, and he could potentially make an impact on the blueline this year. Hamilton enters his second full season with the Bruins after posting 16 points in 42 games last year. Matt Bartkowski should see some action as well. There is a solid core for the young guns to learn under, with Chara, Boychuk, and Seidenberg leading the way. Chara is always a game changer when he's on the ice, and as such teams will consistently try to keep their top line away from him. He's also a force on power plays, as the owner of the league's hardest shot. With all the positives in place here, the third-ranked defense in the NHL should be solid yet again. The only real concern for this unit is the short offseason that comes with playing in the Stanley Cup Finals. If they come out sluggish in the first few games, the B's might get off to a slow start this season.
Goaltending:
Tuukka Rask
Chad Johnson
Anton Khudobin signed with Carolina this offseason, so the Bruins went out and got Chad Johnson, who went 2-0-2 with Phoenix last year, posting a 1.21 GAA and a .954 save percentage. None of that impacts starter Tuukka Rask much, who was given an 8-year, $56 million contract this offseason. Rask was 19-10-5 in the regular season last year, and 14-8 in the playoffs. He has the benefit of playing behind a strong defensive unit as well as forwards who play responsible two-way hockey and centers who win lots of faceoffs. Rask was not without his hiccups though, and what happened in Games 4 and 6 of the Finals was a real shame after how well he played in the playoffs. Boston fans can expect a more driven and hungry Rask this season, as he will seek retribution for how last season ended. Thanks to that and the contract he just received, there should be no questions about Rask's job security at this time.
Special Teams:
Boston was woeful on the power play last season, tying for 25th in the NHL with a 14.8% conversion rate. The problem for them is twofold: they need to convert more of their opportunities, and they need to get more chances, period. The Bruins were dead last in the NHL with just 122 power plays, and were a -41 in total special teams chances (only Colorado was worse at -43). Boston has to reverse that statistic to improve its scoring chances and offense. The top six forwards should make up the two power play units for the Bruins, with Chara, Krug, Seidenberg, and Boychuk making up the defensive pairings. Having Krug for a full season should help boost the percentage a bit, but I'd like to see the Bruins get more chances with the man advantage first. You can't convert power plays if you never get them. As for the PK, the Bruins were 4th in the NHL a year ago at 87.1%, so nothing has to change there. Boston has the luxury of being able to use most of its bottom six forwards on the PK, along with Brad Marchand for added speed and the threat of a shorthanded scoring chance. Bergeron should also factor in on the penalty kill, as his defensive skills are most useful in that aspect of the game. I'd like to see Caron get time here as well. He's big and can win battles along the boards, which should allow a guy like Lucic to rest. The only question I have is which of the young defensemen will be called upon for PK duty, and how will he fare? Only time will tell there.
X-Factor:
The X-Factor for Boston is whether or not the new acquisitions up front can mesh well with the incumbent group, and if they can replace the production of Horton, Seguin, and late in the season, Jagr. I think they'll get it done, with some help from the rest of the lineup of course. Chiarelli is a hard man to question when it comes to roster moves, and he appears to have done well yet again in the offseason. However, if Eriksson and Iginla can't produce with their linemates, it will throw a monkey wrench into the Bruins' plans, at least for a little while.
The Bruins will make the playoffs if...
... they play the same way they played last season while fixing the disparity in special teams chances. These guys know how to win hockey games in any time of year. October, March, June, it doesn't matter to the Bruins, they can get the job done no matter the circumstances. This is a very good team that still appears ready to win another Cup and if they can resemble last year's group, they will be in contention for the division crown and potentially much more. I expect further progression from the younger players and excellent two-way play up and down the lineup. The Bruins can roll four lines against anyone they want, and that is one of the keys to success in this league.
The Bruins will miss the playoffs if...
... at least three of their top players suffer catastrophic injuries and Rask implodes, and I'm not sure that would even be enough to make them miss. There are many teams in the East that have many question marks, and with the bottom of the division being softer than a pillow I think the Bruins would be able to win enough games in the division to make the playoffs either way. Claude Julien has a way of throwing guys in the lineup and getting results out of them, so even with a bunch of AHLers in the lineup (Providence was first in the AHL with 105 points last season), this team could potentially find success. Of course, the ceiling is much higher if they're healthy, and that will need to happen in order for Boston to maintain its hopes of another deep playoff run.
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