The Boston Bruins have been taking a beating both on the ice and in the media for the past couple of weeks with their poor play and a recent six-game losing streak. Boston’s playoff aspirations were in peril with the pesky Florida Panthers lurking close behind and with three games in hand.
Head coach Claude Julien and general manager Peter Chiarelli were being written off as dead men walking that would both be fired. But on Sunday, in front of a national NBC TV audience, the Bruins made the best possible statement about their intentions to right the ship with a resounding 6-2 win at Chicago against the powerful Blackhawks. It was just one game but also a reminder that the Bruins have the ability to beat the best teams in the league. They could well prove to be a similar story to the Los Angeles Kings, who are riding a seven game winning streak after being written off as finished.
In Defense of Chiarelli and Julien
Yes the Bruins have looked long in the tooth and their lack of scoring has been a point of frustration this year. But hindsight is 20/20. Nobody was telling Chiarelli to blow up the team until now, and he was well regarded for building a team that made hockey matter again in Boston.
Chiarelli now has to deal with the complications of the salary cap not yet being set because of the falling Canadian dollar. While he has not been a top rate GM as far as drafting goes, he has proven to be among the best traders in the game. Do not be surprised if he finds some additional scoring before the March 2 trade deadline.
As for Julien, he was the man that coached the Bruins to a 2011 Stanley Cup and 2013 Final. The Bruins have had a win percentage of no less than .573 each season since Julien arrived. The only criticism I have of the team is their frequent inability to control their inner jerk, as was the case last spring when the Bruins lack of self-control led to their playoff demise at the hands of the Montreal Canadiens.
Milan Lucic has often been the main culprit for that lack of discipline and his drop in production has been a drag of the Bruins’ offense. Lucic has just 12 goals on the season after scoring 24 goals last year. He reached the 30 goal mark in 2011. Boston needs more goals and a lot less stupidity from the 26 year old left wing.
Tuukka Rask has also been less than stellar in goal with a save percentage of .907 this month. Rask stopped 26 out of 28 Blackhawk shots to perhaps regain his form for the playoff push ahead.
Beleaguered 37-year-old defenseman Zdeno Chara had an impressive game against the Hawks with a plus two as he looked reenergized with three hits and three blocks. It was a reminder about what the six foot, nine inch Chara can deliver and the value that he still has to the Bruins.
Boston has four out of their next five games at home including highly winnable matchups with the Arizona Coyotes and Philadelphia Flyers.
Wild Times
While the defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings are getting all of the love for their seven-game winning streak, the Minnesota Wild have been on a rampage with goaltender Devan Dubnyk, who was acquired in a trade with Arizona. Since his arrival, Dubnyk has a 13-2-1 record with Minnesota and a save percentage of .936 with five shutouts. Dubnyk has saved the Wild’s season after they were written off as dead. Minnesota now occupies the seventh playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Miserable Mike Babcock Rant illustrates the Problem
After a highly entertaining and controversial 7-6 win over the Dallas Stars, Detroit head coach Mike Babcock ranted about the game being a retro “80’s party” that reminded him of watching the Oilers and Jets “race to seven.” Babcock sneered about the game being “ugly.”
If that game is ugly then the NHL needs a lot more of it. I’ll take an ugly 7-6 game with lead changes and excitement over the drone like structure and systems that coaches like Babcock utilize to suffocate the game.
There is nothing more beautiful than a NHL coach whining about an ugly game. That usually means the game was an entertainment masterpiece.
