by Bob Morello
Bruins need to make decisions
It’s getting harder and harder to not think of the lyrics contained in Paul Anka’s song “My Way.” The monster hit from Frank Sinatra begins with “And now, the end is near”…While it’s not official that the playoff chances for Boston are over, things do not look well for the 2024-25 Boston Bruins’ hopes. Having done themselves in by losing a handful of games by a single goal lately, it sends the signals out that, perhaps the end is near, and it is time to think of unloading some of what little roster talent remains, to load up on draft picks for the future, and pick up the pieces.
It all comes down to the fact that the Bruins are not very strong as a team. Something that has been evident the entire season, yes, they have David Pastrnak with 32 goals and 75 points, but it all goes right down the well after that, with Brad Marchand’s 47 points, Pavel Zacha’s 37., Morgan Geekie’s 32 and the top five ends with Elias Lindholm’s 31. Not very impressive, eh? Despite Pastrnak’s recent 17-game point streak, opposing teams are often double-teaming him, knowing that the offensive threat from the remaining lineup is sparse. In the last seven games played, the Bruins have lost six games by a single goal. Like the other 31 clubs, teams are going to face a hot goalie every now and then, as they experienced in the 1-0 loss to the Minnesota’s Filip Gustavson, and that’s understandable, but their inability to hold a lead going into the third period, is not, and it has cost them dearly. One stat that speaks volumes is the Bruins’ last seven games have had a one-goal differential, the locals were on the short end for six of those losses.
The current Bruins record is 28-26-8, with Jeremy Swayman playing the bulk of the games, and his stats include: 18-20-0-6 – 2.95 goals-against, and a .898 save percentage. He did play a solid game in the loss to the Wild, stopping 21 of their 22 shots. Coach Joe Sacco labeled the team’s play as: “It almost felt like a playoff game out there,” a style that they will have to continue to play, as a mere three points separate five of the teams shooting for the second Wild Card. The injury bug has not been kind to Boston, especially on the blue line, as the lengthy loss of Hampus Lindholm (kneecap), and now the loss of Charlie McAvoy (shoulder) has proved costly. Newcomer Nikita Zadorov has been doing a decent job alongside Brandon Carlo, but it’s a very big hole they are trying to fill. An update on Marchand’s condition was expected, but he continues to be listed as ‘day to day,’ much like the playoff status situation is for this team.
With the Friday, March 7 trade deadline coming quickly, a final decision will have to be made by Bruins’ top management team of general manager Don Sweeney and team president Cam Neely…and from the way the chips are falling lately, it’s starting to feel a lot like it may be time to look into issuing some ‘relocation’ papers. Many think it may be just a bit too early to run the white flag up the pole, but it may come down to the shock of some major trades for draft picks, and/or player swaps. If it is the latter, prepare to batten down the hatches and wave goodbye. In the meanwhile, the beat and the schedule go on with a visit from the lowly Nashville Predators tonight (Tuesday, 7:00pm) on TD Garden ice, followed by a brief two-game road trip with stops in Carolina on Thursday 7:00pm to battle the Hurricanes, and a Saturday 3:00pm visit to Tampa to face the blazing Lightning who just had their eight-game win streak snapped last night by Florida. The Bs will return to TD Garden ice on next Tuesday 7:00pm to try and inflict some pain on the Florida Panthers, who are riding a four-game win streak, despite having lost the services of their captain Matthew Tkachuk to a groin injury that will cause him to miss most of the remaining regular season.