21014-15 record: 41-27-14 (96 points)
Missed the playoffs
Captain: Zdeno Chara
The Boston Bruins went from comfortably in the playoffs in 2014 to out of the playoffs in 2015. Despite a good as usual defense, they weren't the same defense of previous years, as key players such as Zdeno Chara and Johnny Boychuk either missed time or were traded away prior to the season. The defensive unit went from solid to suddenly old, and it doesn't figure to get any better, as Dougie Hamilton was traded for three draft picks in the off-season. The good news is that Torey Krug is still around, and will likely be joined by Joe Morrow, who appears to be in line to take Hamilton's spot eventually. System play will still help, provided that Chara can stay healthy and guys like Adam McQuaid and Dennis Seidenberg can prove to still be effective. Up front, they missed David Krejci for a fair amount of time, which partially explains why the Bruins fell to the bottom third of the league on offense. They will now have to make up for losses of Milan Lucic, Reilly Smith, and Carl Soderberg, and some of that could be made up if Matt Beleskey proves that his career high of 22 goals wasn't an aberration and Jimmy Hayes, acquired in the Smith trade, continues to improve. Patrice Bergeron is still one of the best two-way players, and will be counted up to lead the way once again while David Pastrnak will look to expand on his rookie year. Tuukka Rask fell to 2.30 GAA, and given that he played 70 games last season, it will be paramount that the Bruins give him more rest while either Jeremy Smith or Malcolm Subban will be given a chance to replace underused Niklas Svedberg.
Prediction: 5th in the Atlantic Division
The Bruins will be struggling to make the playoffs again this season, and they didn't do enough to fill the holes that were exposed last season. Getting out from salary cap hell was the start for new General Manager Don Sweeney, but now, it may become a rebuilding year that may get complicated if their best players have to miss any time for any reason.
No comments:
Post a Comment