Boston.com Staff Picks: Bruins 2014 Season Predictions
Evan Sporer, BDC ContributorRecord: 49-25-8 Standings: 1st in Conference / 1st in Division Playoffs: Lose in Eastern Conference Finals to Tampa Bay The Skinny: This Bruins team isn’t as good as last year’s, but in a wide open Eastern Conference there isn’t too much cause for concern. Still the odds on favorite to win the East and the Atlantic, a division that perhaps houses the three best teams in the conference in Boston, Montreal, and Tampa Bay, the Bruins are still in a very good position. Will the Bruins be able to find a viable replacement on the top line for Jarome Iginla, can they find a consistent second pairing defensively that can play tough minutes and against better competition, and, can the team resurrect its fourth line? How effectively they respond to each of those questions will dictate how far the team goes. 7th Player Award: Dougie Hamilton
Jeff Pini, BDC StaffRecord: 102 Points Standings: 2nd Place Atlantic Division Playoffs: Lose Stanley Cup Final to Blackhawks The Skinny: The Bruins have a ton of questions to answer going into the 2014-15 season. The losses of Jarome Iginla on offense and Johnny Boychuk on defense are huge, and they will quickly need to figure out how to get production from the spots they previously occupied. That being said, I believe that the B’s defense will still be solid, and while they won’t total the 117 points that got them the Presidents’ Trophy last season, their aggressiveness in the beginning of games will allow them succeed early on, something that plagued them in the playoffs last year when it seemed the opponent always scored first. They’ll make it to the Final for a 2013 rematch with the Blackhawks, but once again, they won’t be able to be the final team standing as the ‘Hawks take the series. 7th Player Award: Dougie Hamilton. The defenseman’s third year growth will prove invaluable to the future of the Bruins defense corps and he will be a breakout star of the 2014-15 season.
Chris Rattey, BDC StaffRecord: 46-27-9 Standings: 2nd in Division / 3rd in conference Playoffs: Lose in Eastern Conference Semis The Skinny: The Bruins will keep it interesting all season long and provide a winter of entertainment, but unfortunately they won’t have the depth required to make a legitimate run at a Stanley Cup. Sure they need to fill the scoring shoes of Jarome Iginla and the hole left by Johnny Boychuk’s untimely – and kind of ridiculous – exit. But it’s on the third and fourth line where they will trip up and struggle all year long. Brace yourselves … it will become annoying. WHY DON’T THEY PLAY RYAN SPOONER? I DON’T GET IT! Spooner will be the center of a season-long debate on why the team can’t roll out a proper fourth line to compete with the upper echelon of the division. And that’s where you win it. Damn you, Montreal. 7th Player Award: Loui Eriksson
Tony Massarotti, BDC ContributorRecord: 48-30-4 (100 pts) Standings: 2nd in the Division Playoffs: Lose in the conference semifinals The Skinny: The Bruins have had quite a run over the last three or four years, but Zdeno Chara feels to be aging more rapidly and their youngest players aren’t quite there. That’s called a gap, folks. Factor in some salary cap restrictions and the Bruins appear poised for a disappointing season – at least by their new standards – and, perhaps, a more radical change to their nucleus going forward. Are they good? Of course. Could they win the Cup? Sure. But something about the offseason didn’t feel right. 7th Player Award: Matt Fraser.
Steve Silva, BDC StaffRecord: 48-27-7 Standings: The Tampa Bay Lightning take over the top spot in the Atlantic Division this year, Bruins come in second and finish fourth in the Eastern Conference. Playoffs: Like last year, the Bruins get sent home after the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals The Skinny: The losses of winger Jarome Iginla and defenseman Johnny Boychuck aren’t going to help the Bruins chances of hoisting the Presidents’ Trophy for the second year in a row. Seeing a bit of a regression this season as the team struggles to score goals. On defense, Tuukka Rask will have a career year in net, but 38-year-old defenseman Zdeno Chara will show his age. And no one is envious of the precarious salary cap situation the Bruins find themselves in heading into this season. Bottom line, it’s a step back for the Black and Gold. 7th Player Award: Dougie Hamilton, the Jimmy Garoppolo of the Bruins with Zdeno Chara playing the part of Tom Brady.
Eric Wilbur, BDC StaffRecord: 46-25-11 Standings: Third, behind Montreal and Detroit Playoffs: Yes, Eastern Conference semifinals. The Skinny: It feels like a Cup contender, but questions swirl after last spring’s playoff loss to the Canadiens. Can Tuukka Rask repeat a Vezina-type season? Can the Bruins handle the loss of Johnny Boychuk? Can the offense amass enough goals to offset Jarome Iginla’s departure? Will Brad Marchand return to his former self? Which Milan Lucic do we see this season? The Bruins just feel like they’re in the twilight of their contending window. 7th Player Award: Ryan Spooner. Make Claude hand him the award.
Adam Kaufman, BDC ContributorRecord: 47-27-8 (102 PTS) Standings: 3rd Atlantic/4th Eastern Conference Playoffs: The B’s will reach the conference semifinals before another untimely exit and sports talk radio rumblings of Peter Chiarelli’s demise. The Skinny: With Tuukka Rask, Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, and Zdeno Chara all mostly healthy, the Bruins are guaranteed 40 wins; that’s the good news. The bad news is the club has a lot of uncertainty in regard to how it will fill the scoring void left by Jarome Iginla, who will step up on defense to replace the unnecessarily traded Johnny Boychuk, and whether coach Claude Julien is truly open to a philosophical change on the fourth line. Add to that the improvement from teams around them in the division and this could be another disappointing playoff finish for the B’s. If they are in fact Cup contenders, it will be a pleasant surprise – and it would probably mean someone like Loui Eriksson, Carl Soderberg, Matt Fraser, or one of the young blueliners far exceeded expectations. 7th Player Award: Ryan Spooner? Nah, Claude won’t keep him around long enough. Let’s go with Fraser, with Bobby Robins as the guy I’ll say I picked at the end of the year after he wins it.
Gary Dzen, BDC StaffRecord: 107 Points Standings: 1st place Atlantic Division Playoffs: Yes. Lose to Rangers in Eastern Conference Finals. The Skinny: The Bruins have the talent and stability to finish first or second in the Atlantic Division, and the guess here is that they hold off Montreal in that realm. Once the playoffs, start, it’s a whole different game. The loss of Johnny Boychuk leave’s the B’s thin in their greatest area of strength, and there’s no reason to think the team will suddenly become a free-wheeling offensive force, at least not without major personnel changes. 7th Player Award: Reilly Smith should have a huge year playing on the second line with Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron, provided he can put together a full season of consistent production.
Obnoxious Boston Fan, BDC Contributor Record: 46-28-8, 100 points Standings: 2nd place Atlantic Division Playoffs: Lose in Eastern Conference Finals The Skinny: The Bruins will slip through the first two rounds of the postseason, only to fall to Montreal in the Eastern Conference final. Once again, the lack of a big-time goal scorer and multiple pings off the post and crossbar will doom Boston. In order to help combat and potentially prevent that problem, we offer the Bruins this “Accurate Aim: Hockey Trainer’’ made by Majik. [It cost us $15 on clearance at Wal-Mart.] This nifty set up allows you to aim at all five targets. It is the ultimate “kids hockey training tool,’’ can be used by up to 4 players, and comes complete with electronic scoring and sound effects. A few minutes a day with this, and the Duck Boats will be rolling come June.
Claude, just say the word and we’ll overnight it to 100 Legends Way. 7th Player Award: This award goes to the Bruins player who most “exceeds expectations.’’ Keeping that in mind, it will go to Loui Eriksson given that his expectations heading into this season are pretty low right now. If he scores 20 goals, he’ll have this in the bag.
Jeremy GottliebRecord: 51-19-9, 111 points Standings: 1st place Atlantic Division, Second Place Eastern Conference Playoffs: Will lose to Montreal in Conference Semifinals The Skinny: The Bruins were unceremoniously knocked out of the playoffs by their Achilles heel opponent, the Montreal Candiens. The Bruins tooks a step back after trading Johnny Boychuck while making zero significant additions to their roster, so it’s tough to imagine them advancing any further than they did last spring. Zdeno Chara is a year older and now has less dependable help than he did last year. The offensively challenged first line doesn’t have a dependable right wing. And the team’s best And most exciting offensive prospect has already been buried by the head coach due to his defensive shortcomings. Chara, Patrice Bergeron and Tuukka Rask are all still good enough to lead the Bruins to an Atlantic Division banner. But after that, this team fizzles out. 7th Player: Dougie Hamilton
Jessica Camerato, BDC ContributorRecord: 49-25-8 Standings: First in division and conference Playoffs: Lose in the Stanley Cup finals The Skinny: The Boston Bruins are back to right their wrongs from last postseason. They took hits losing Jarome Iginla and Shawn Thornton and trading Johnny Boychuk, but they are still returning plenty of their core to make another run at the Stanley Cup. Dennis Seidenberg is back healthy, Milan Lucic’s wrist has healed, Dougie Hamilton is poised for a breakout year and Brad Marchand is looking to improve from last season. Health will be an issue to watch throughout the season — 37-year-old Zdeno Chara, in particular, is one to play through injuries. This group has been battle-tested before and knows what it takes to win it all. If the Bruins can keep all their weapons on the ice, they will be a force to be reckoned with once again this season. 7th Player Award: Dougie Hamilton
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