"Bruins coach Claude Julien said he "disagreed" with the officiating in Wednesday's Game 6 loss to the Lightning. The Bruins had five power plays to the Lightning's four, but players and the coach took issue with some of the calls.
"What was more disappointing is probably the fact that I don't know if I agree with those calls," Julien said when asked about special teams. "Hopefully what was said today didn't have any impact on that, because if it did, I'd be really disappointed. You look back at those, and you get an opportunity to look back at them, and it's really, really tough to swallow (WEEI)."
The Bruins have had more power plays all serious, and I have had zero problem with the way this series has been called. I hate this kind of stuff, because it's just one big excuse to why they lost. The Bruins lost because they have the worst power play in the league, and Tim Thomas didn't bail out the rest of the team. It's really that simple.
Back in the Montreal series I would agree that the officiating was at times terrible, but how do you complain about the officiating when you have had more power plays? It's just fucking stupid. Instead of crying about some bullshit, why don't you take this time and kill Kaberle, or at the very least take him off the power play?
You wonder why I'm so negative about this team. Games like this one stick in my memory more than 3-2 wins over Atlanta. Games like this one not only hurt, they scare me.
The Bruins took a 3-0 lead, taking advantage of a worn out Rangers team. Then McQuaid makes a mistake, and it's 3-1. Then more defensive lapses, and it's 3-2. But the penalty killing unit seems to sap New York's momentum, and the Bruins get back to sensible hockey.
Then comes the 3rd period. The exhausted Rangers summon their final ounces of energy, and pressure the Bruins. As we've seen again and again, the Bruins failed to put away a desperate team.
McQuaid and Kaberle made the two most glaring defensive mistakes. Both of them assumed their teammates would win a battle, and moved to positions to receive a pass. Instead, their teammates lost their battles, and dangerous amounts of space was opened up. McQuaid surrendered the middle of the ice on Vaclav Prospal's first goal. And Kaberle left the crease open, giving Brandon Dubinsky all the time and space he needed to deke out Thomas.
In the defensive zone, you can't assume your teammates are going to win the puck. You have to react and play DEFENSIVELY. Weird concept, eh?
There were also numerous defensive shortcomings by Andrew Ference. I'd rather see Hnidy out there. I'm tired of watching Ference lose battles. Kaberle isn't much of a defensive defenseman either, but at least he can pass and score.
And the game-winning goal came when the Bruins collapsed into the slot. But none of them took a body. They tried fishing for the puck. Which is exactly what the Rangers did to allow Horton's goal in the 1st. In that type of frantic situation, you have to tie up your opponents' stick. The puck will randomly bounce around, but at least if it finds your opponents' stick, they won't be able to do anything with it.
Statistically, the Bruins are one of the best defensive teams in the NHL. 4th fewest goals allowed. But in tough situations in big games, they make so many inexcusable defensive errors. Claude Julien might have implemented a masterful defensive plan in Boston, but it relies too much on the opponent playing predictable, traditional, station-to-station hockey. In other words, not the brand of hockey you see in the playoffs.
The Bruins finish the season against some non-contending teams. It's a good chance to give Thomas a break, and to play guys like Seguin and Kampfer. B's host the Islanders Wednesday night.
This is why during the Bruins' 6 game road winning streak, I was maybe the least excited B's fan in Boston. Not just because I'm a burnt out, soulless pessimist. But because this team has a history of moodiness. I wouldn't say their streaky. Streaky implies an ability to be somewhat consistent for prolonged stretches. The Bruins, however, fluctuate period by period, shift by shift. They have mood swings.
Scoring 2 goals often isn't enough to win. Unless you have a soon-to-be 2 time Vezina winner in net, an imposing defense, and are playing one of the worst teams in the League. You have to be able to go to places like Nassau, and win 2-0 or 2-1. So even though the Bruins need to score more goals, I'm more upset about the goals they allowed in this one.
The penalty kill has been steadily deteriorating. It was a late in the period power play goal that revived the Islanders. The PK has been confused by opponents who move bodies around, not just passing the puck to each other from fixed points (like the Bruins do on their power play). And in the past few weeks, they've been overly eager to trigger shorthanded breakaways, instead of simply smacking the puck down the ice for a clear. That's what happened Friday. Bergeron hesitated, failed to clear, and eventually the puck found the back of the net.
The PK unit has fallen to 18th in the NHL, killing 81.5% of penalties. That absolutely must turn around for the postseason, where special teams can decide a series.
The Islanders simply outworked the Bruins in the 3rd period. While the Islanders hustled to get to loose pucks, the Bruins looked lost, like they'd never played hockey before. A puck would find their stick, and they'd gently bat it 8 feet away in some random direction, allowing an Islander to scoop it up again.
Even when the Bruins were up 2-0, they were hardly the superior team. After the game, Fraud Julien claimed that with a bit of luck the Bruins might have scored more goals. What he failed to mention was that if not for Thomas, the Islanders would have scored more goals. Timmy had one of his best games of the season.
The Bruins might start another hot streak. Maybe Bergeron and/or Marchand will catch fire again. Horton's been producing lately. But tha won't last. The B's might sail their way out of this storm, but what does that matter when the commander of the ship is a fool?
Right now, this team's chances of winning a Cup are 0%. At least while Julien's behind the bench.
This had "trap game" written all over it. A game against a bad team sandwiched between big wins over the weekend and big games yet to come. Still, I'd like to think that since this was an obvious potential trap game, the Bruins would show up and play well. Or maybe have a shaky 1st period then settle down. Instead, they played about as well as Ottawa and escaped with a slim 1-0 win.
I must have forgotten who the head coach is. One of the things that's plagued this Bruins team under Julien is a false sense of achievement. Every hot streak seems to end with efforts like this one. Bland, uninspired, directionless.
I know, I know. A win is a win is a win. And six game road trips don't usually end with 12 points in the bank. Why am I being Robbie Downer? Because I've seen this pattern before.
A 6 game road winning streak is impressive. Until you remember that 4 of those games were against the bottom 3 teams in the NHL (Islanders, Senators twice, and the Oilers). The Vancouver win was impressive. The others were standard.
Then we get to last night. For the most part, the Bruins and Senators looked evenly matched. That's not supposed to happen against a last place team that's just traded away most of its roster. The Bruins weren't sharp, they weren't quick. They were indecisive, and they didn't skate. There were a few exceptions, like Horton, but it only takes one or two saboteurs on the ice at a time to slow things down.
We've seen it before, so many times. This team rips off a few wins, then they crap the bed. In the 2009 playoffs, they sweep Montreal, then beat Carolina in Game 1. They ease up on the throttle, allow Carolina to stick around, and suddenly they're on the losing end of a Game 7. And we all remember the Flyers series last spring. The Bruins' MO is to do well, get cocky and complacent, then let a near-death opponent cling to life. That works against Ottawa. It won't work in the playoffs against Philadelphia or Pittsburgh.
So the B's are 6 points ahead of Montreal, with a game in hand. They're tied for the 2nd seed in the East and have an unreal road record of 22-7-4. But I'm not convinced that they're much different from the chokers I've seen in the recent past. Not until they can go to places like Ottawa, give 100%, and outplay bad teams.
Being able to win at home would also help to make me optimistic. The Bruins have the best road record in the NHL, and the 21st best home record.
The next week is a good test for the Bruins. They host Tampa Bay on Thursday, then Pittsburgh on Saturday. They're in Montreal next Tuesday, and host Buffalo two days later. Some home games, some good teams, and then they'll probably lose a 3-2 game in OT to the Islanders after that.
What happened to the defensively minded Bruins? You know, that team that struggled to score goals, but were at the top of the NHL in goals allowed and penalty killing? I miss those guys.
The B's have allowed 22 goals in their last 4 games. And in the last 5 games, they've allowed 9 power play goals, in 22 attempts (a 59.1% kill rate). They're PK unit has plummeted to 14th in the NHL and 10th in the East.
And that's just the first problem this team's been having. They don't care for the puck. Last night, they tried so many low-percentage passes, trying to sneak it past Toronto's players, as if they didn't realize they were playing against another team.
The defensemen haven't been playing their best. We saw Grabovski score the game-winner when he was by himself against both Seidenberg and Ference. How does that happen? Chara helped Toronto score earlier when he tripped Tim Thomas. Missed assignments, lack of communication, lack of physicality, these problems have plagued the blue-liners for about a week now.
Either Fraud Julien isn't the defensive genius we once thought he was, or his soldiers have stopped listening.
And the power play unit, which scored another breakaway goal, needs to adjust its philosophy once they've entered the offensive zone. As it is, Chara and Recchi camp out on the blue-line, Krejci by the halfwall, Lucic and someone else in the slot. Then they hover in their little territories. There's no movement, no bodies cycling around, causing disruption and confusion, or at least getting open for a pass. On a power play, Zdeno Chara should not be moving around more than the forwards.
Then there's guys like Blake Wheeler. What does he contribute?
Then there's guys like Daniel Paille. He does his job as a role-player, but the ratio of role-player to playmaker on this team is way off balance.
David Krejci simply isn't a top line center. You have to be able to score in order to be on of those. And to score, you have to be able to shoot. He's on pace to finish the season with 12 goals and 56 points. That's simply not good enough.
Maybe Lucic-Bergeron-Marchand for a top line? Recchi-Krejci-Ryder for the 2nd? Wheeler-Seguin-Horton on the slump line. Thinking about this, should the Bruins get a puck moving defensemen with forwards like these? To me, if they can't get a decent enough forward to supplement this group, then they should keep Toronto's pick and hope to build for 2011-12. Because one more defenseman won't turn David Krejci into a 30 goal scorer, nor will it give Blake Wheeler a purpose.
After the Bruins' hard-fought (literally) win over Dallas, you couldn't help but feel optimistic. But as they've done with frequency for the past 3 years, the B's followed a strong performance with a flat one.
They absolutely dominated the Stars, and if not for Rask and the refs, the score would have been closer to 8-1 as opposed to 6-3. Then they give us 60 minutes of mediocrity against San Jose. They managed 26 shots on Niemi, very few of which came from good scoring positions. The thing about Niemi is that he'll give up some juicy rebounds. The Bruins didn't collect any of them. Give credit to the Sharks, who usually had 4 bodies positioned around Niemi at all times, and clearing those rebounds. They outmanned and outmuscled the Bruins down low.
They outmuscled the Bruins everywhere, and that's been a repetitive theme of Sharks/Bruins games. The Sharks are bigger, they skate with power, they win battles.
The Bruins had 4 power plays, and failed to get a shot on goal for 3 of them. That's simply sad.
Krejci played like an utter turd. I don't know how he received the 3rd Star. Maybe it was a typo. Maybe it was a joke. I wouldn't be surprised if I heard he played the game drunk, he was that careless with the puck. It was the worst game I've seen him play. He was by far the worst player on the ice. His shorthanded foolishness cost the Bruins a goal, and who knows how many scoring chances he cost Lucic and Horton with his giveaways.
It's the same old story with this team. Ups and downs. Fighting for 60 minutes, then a few days later relaxing for 60. Playing with intensity and focus, then making stupid mistakes. And simple adjustments fail to be made during the game. Niemi gives up rebounds, so why not try some bad angle shots? Bad angle shot=good angle rebound, as this kindergarten level diagram illustrates:
I just don't expect much from this team. Not with these same repeating lapses in focus and intensity. Not with this coach. This cast of characters. This GM. Guys like Thomas, Lucic, and now Bergeron and Marchand have carried this team. Along with the defense. But they've been undermined by the likes of Michael Ryder, Blake Wheeler, Nathan Horton, and Claude Julien.
We have a good team in Boston, but they're too good at self-sabotaging themselves.
A few days off, then a short but tough stretch of games. The Bruins are 2 points ahead of Montreal and host them Wednesday night. Then it's a home and home with Detroit, the #2 team in the West. Time for the B's to bring their A-Game.
It wasn't as easy as it could have been. The Bruins allowed things to get a bit too interesting last night against the Panthers, but thanks to Tim Thomas, and some excellent scrambling in the last minute, they'll go into the break on a positive note.
Lucic scored his 20th goal of the season, his first ever 20 goal campaign and we're only at the All-Star Break. It was probably his prettiest of the 20, as he snapped a shot over Vokoun's blocker side. It was so much different from Lucic as a rookie. Back then, he'd blast shots in the general direction of the goal. This was a snipe, with purpose and intent. And it turned out to be the game-winner.
Tim Thomas was superb. Florida had a few rushes, and every time but once, Timmy came up with the stops. He's turning into something like Pedro Martinez in 2000. You expect a shutout every start, and it's shocking when he gives anything up.
Several Bruins showed dogged determination and ferocious character in the last minute of this game. Bergeron, Campbell, and Ference in particular. They carried the win home and it was truly enjoyable to watch them scrape and claw for the victory.
But not all was positive. Michael Ryder's 13:31 of ice time was horrendous. If this guy doesn't get a perfect tape-to-tape pass, he bungles the puck. He spends half his shifts drifting around, not doing anything. I'm fed up with him. I see guys like Horton struggling, but still making basic plays. Ryder just screws everything up. He's Dennis Wideman as a forward.
It's kind of a moot point with Savard out, but if Julien doesn't trust Seguin to play in the last 8 minutes of a 2-1 game, then maybe Seguin should be playing in Providence. He'd at least be getting the experience in those hectic situations, and then one day he could be a full-time NHL player.
Again, with Savard out, Seguin must remain in Boston. But even without Savard, he played less than 10 minutes last night. He's played about 605 minutes this year. He could easily have 800+ minutes already if he were in Providence. Tough minutes, Power Play minutes, shorthanded minutes, game deciding minutes. Instead, he's learning more about cheering his teammates than playing hockey.
Bruins don't play until Tuesday down in Carolina. With 50 games in the books, they're 4 points up on Montreal in the Division and 3rd in the East. That ain't bad. The All-Star Game is Sunday, but the more interesting Skills Competition is Saturday. Those are also in Carolina.
Ryan Miller reminded us that he's still the holder of the Vezina Trophy. He stopped the Bruins a season high 38 times. Some of the saves were spectacular. One of them was very very timely. His point blank stop of Mark Recchi's shorthanded bid was the turning point of this game.
So give a tip of the cap to Ryan Miller. However, the Bruins hardly looked comfortable in this high-paced, occasionally frantic game. They gave pucks away because they weren't fully aware of their surroundings. Vanek's breakaway came when Krejci and Kampfer got a bit too aggressive in a breakaway.
The Bruins aren't built or coached to be a North-South, high octane, up and down the ice team. They're built to be methodical, orderly and deliberate. When they get involved in these kinds of games, they lose pucks too easily, they fail to generate enough scoring chances, and they frequently lose.
I think Julien should let this team get more experience, and therefore more comfort playing a more fluid and faster paced game. I can just imagine in practices, that all the drills are orderly, all the matchups are organized, all the playing standardized and regular. Julien seems like the kind of guy who's eaten the same breakfast everyday for 23 years.
In the playoffs, the Bruins will meet teams that have good goaltenders, and can play this faster game. If they can't learn how to play it themselves (it'd be especially nice for the Power Play to get move quicker), the B's need to at least learn how to stop it, and how to slow the game's pace down. Playing more physically is a good place to start doing that.
Bruins at Colorado on Saturday afternoon. The Aves have scored the 4th most goals in the NHL, but allowed the 4th most. So with the Bruins' tremendous defense/goaltending, and inconsistent offense, it'll be strength vs. strength and weakness vs. weakness.
For the first time in team history, 4 defensemen scored goals. It was part of a 6 goal night for the B's, and they still failed to leave Buffalo with two points.
Most of the blame can be focused on Tuukka Rask, who made some poor decisions trying to play the puck a few times, and also allowed some soft goals. Now, it was his first start in 16 days, so a little rust is excusable. But he flat out didn't have it Saturday night. I'll give Julien some credit for pulling him after the 1st.
Even though they led 3-1 at one point, it wasn't as if the Bruins were dominating the Sabres. They were taking shots from the point that were finding holes through Ryan Miller. Then the well dried up, and Buffalo scored their share of the fortunate goals. Everything was going in.
The Bruins took a 6-5 lead in the 3rd, and how they blew that really pissed me off. For 3 minutes, they were pinned in the defensive zone, icing the puck three times, desperately trying to survive. Then Buffalo pulled their goalie, and playing 5 on 6, both Savard and Recchi attacked the puck carrier at the point. This left 3 Bruins to defend against 5 Sabres.
When games get frantic, and other teams get desperate, the Bruins' positional discipline and situational awareness simply breaks down. Claude Julien receives a great deal of praise for the well organized defense the Bruins play. But maybe there's too much focus on careful and logical play. Maybe the players need to play with more instinct, and less contemplation. At least in those furious moments at the end of a close game.
As this road trip moves north, it's starting to turn south. Buffalo isn't a good team. And neither is Toronto, whom the Bruins play tonight. Anything short of 2 points tonight is inexcusable.
The Bruins played Atlanta Thursday night, and they thoroughly dismantled them. The Thrashers came into the game with a powerful and aggressive offense, and the Bruins came in with no offense at all, an inept power play, a mistake-ridden defense, and a head coach in jeopardy.
And for a few days, the B's made their fans forget all about their struggles. Bergeron started the scoring with what must be his first breakaway goal since he was a rookie. Shawn Thornton scored a pair, thanks in no small part to Daniel Paille, who had his best game in a Bruin uniform. And Michael Ryder scored his 10th on a power play.
The exclamation point was a 3rd period brawl...
While I had no problem with Meyer's hit, it was good to see Ference stick up for his teammate, to see Horton drop the gloves, and to see Savard throwing down. Lucic was fined $2,500 for punching Meyer while he was being held by referees, and another $1,000 for an "obscene gesture" toward the Atlanta bench. There were no suspensions.
Speaking of Savard and Horton, putting them on a line together should prove fruitful. Horton could have scored 3 goals easily, if only he'd anticipated what Savard was doing with the puck. Once these two get some time together, and learn each other's mentalities, they could be very dangerous.
As great as this game was to watch, I've seen this all before. The Bruins struggle for 6 or 7 games, they hit rock bottom, then they have an effort like this and everything seems fine. But why did they hit rock bottom in the first place? More importantly, why does this up and down cycle constantly reoccur? Why can't this team put up a consistent effort for a dozen straight games?
The Bruins start a 5 game road trip tonight against the Panthers. After swinging down south, they'll have some big games against Montreal, Pittsburgh, and Philly.
I stood by him as the Bruins fell apart in the playoffs last year, but I stated at the end of that season that the Bruins would need to come out hot, or it would be time to move on. I think that time has come, as the Bruins are playing flat, and I feel the only way they are going to get to the next level is to bring in someone who has a better breakout system, but above that can motivate these guys to play hard every night.
It wouldn't be a long term fix, because I don't think he is the best coach in the world, but I do feel Mike Milbury would be a good fit for the rest of this season. Tom Caron was on WEEI talking about this today, and I agree. At least with him on the bench you know the Bruins would play with some fire, and isn't that their biggest problem? I think it is.
This team just doesn't look hungry anymore, and if it wasn't for Tim Thomas standing on his head every night, the Bruins would be a bottom five team. It is time for a change, maybe they can find someone better then Mike Milbury, but I am sick of Julien (even though I thank him for all his work).
The Bruins are in the middle of what I called "Exam Week." It's an 8 day, 4 game stretch when the Bruins would be playing the Flyers, Sabres, Canadiens, and Capitals. They're 0-1-2 in that stretch, and are in danger of earning an F.
I know they've all been 1 goal games. But the manner by which this team has lost is what's pissing me off. The Philly game was an excellent effort and a fine performance. The Buffalo and Montreal games, were not.
Last night, the Bruins gave up a quick goal. Granted, it was the softest penalty shot call I've ever seen. However, Lucic gave the Canadiens the breakaway with a pass that wasn't worthy of a high school scrimmage.
Lucic had his worst game of the season. He scored a goal thanks to good positioning, and a clever tip-in, but he gave the puck away all night. I honestly felt like he should've been moved to another line. The B's wasted Horton and Krejci's shifts by having Lucic out there. Hopefully he's not hurt, and he remembers how to pass.
I don't expect this team to score many goals. In fact, I was stunned to look at the numbers and see that the B's are 12th in goals scored per game. Doesn't that surprise you? What irritates me is the lack of patience and discipline in the neutral zone, and on defense.
Montreal's 2nd goal was helped by Shawn Thornton failing to do his post-faceoff duty and collapse toward the net. That allowed 3 Canadiens to hover around Thomas, against just one Bruin defenseman. Easy goal. Thornton's not accustomed to playing center, but by this point in his NHL career, he should know the basic defensive duties after a faceoff.
I've praised the 4th line all season, but recently they've aggravated me. They bring energy, with no chance of scoring. Then Thornton has the above brain fart. Then Campbell goes after Subban after a big hit, gets 2 minutes, and Montreal takes advantage with a goal.
Julien gets touted as a great coach because of his disciplined positional style. But I just don't see it. Discipline isn't discipline unless it's consistent. And the Bruins haven't been consistent.
After winning 3 straight against subpar opponents, the Bruins have faltered against a pair of quality teams. They mounted a nice comeback Saturday night to salvage a point against the Kings, but still found themselves down 3-0. That happened again last night, except for the comeback part.
I hate Claude Julien and his "style" of play. He's too static, and that can be seen on the ice. The players don't react and independently adapt to what the opposition does. The Lightning owned the neutral zone with their 1-3-1 alignment, and the Bruins did little to change that.
Under Julien, the Bruins struggle whenever their opponents do anything that isn't standard.
And the Lightning didn't do much standard last night. They're fast, aggressive, deceptive, and always moving forward. I don't recall seeing a Lightning defenseman gather the puck in his zone, wait behind his net for a change, pass to the other defenseman, and continue with a basic A-B-C breakout. Instead, they skated. They pushed.
Rask got another hard luck loss. And while the defensive play of the Bruins was unfortunate, their lack of offense was the real killer. The box score credits the Bruins with 27 shots. I don't remember about 20 of them.
Thankfully, the Bruins will be in Miami Wednesday night to play the lowly Panthers. The B's crushed them 4-0 last week.
It sure doesn't sound like Marc Savard will be returning anytime soon...
"Claude Julien told ESPN Boston: "He's behind by at least a month, month and a half, already. We'll have to be patient and give him a chance to come back. Right now, I don't think there's any reason why we should push this guy to get back, more than we should be helping him get back (ESPN)."
Most reports suggest that Savard is eyeing a return sometime in December/January. You will most likely see the Bruins put Savard on the LTIR (long-term IR), so that his salary doesn't count against the cap until he returns. The reason for that is when Marco Sturm returns he will put the Bruins over the cap. Obviously, when everyone is healthy the Bruins are going to have to make a move to shed some cap space, but for now they have plenty of time to fill out their roster.
It's taken a little more than a week for Game 7 to properly settle in. I'm only recently cleaning up the empty beer cans around my house from this series, like spent artillery shells from the battlefields of World War I.
It was such a weird ending. The Bruins upset the Sabres, with relative ease, in 6 games. Then they draw the 7th seeded Flyers. Everyone anticipates a hard-fought, back-and-forth series. The Bruins win the first two, but in very tight contests.
Game 3 convinced us all that the Bruins had found a new gear. A 4-1 win on Philly's ice, going up 3 games to 0, an historically insurmountable lead. Then Game 5 convinced us all that the Bruins had taken their foot off the pedal, and had dropped a few cylinders in their engine. While Games 6 and 7 were close battles won by Philly's grit and their better finishers, Game 5 was a travesty. Losing 4-0, on home ice, against a backup goalie. Game 3 made us relax in Boston, Game 5 made us buy extra cigarettes and douse our livers with poison.
And while we'll always remember the last mistake in the final battle, that too-many-men call, it was allowed to happen by a completely pitiful effort in Game 5.
How can a team soar so high, then 4 days later crash so low? It's not an easy question to answer. But let's try.
Claude Julien is an excellent strategist, and a great defensive coach. He's instilled a game-changing defense and penalty kill scheme here in Boston. He deservedly won the Adams Award last season, and he's gotten a lot from the talent available to him. The Bruins have lacked the stars that other perennially successful teams have (Washington's Ovechkin, Green and Semin; Pittsburgh's Crosby and Malkin; Detroit's Zetterberg and Datsyuk; so on and so forth).
He is perhaps the best regular season coach in the NHL. Which is insufficient for the Bruins and their fans.
The Bruins are a moody team. Maybe it just seems so because we're familiar with them, but do other teams have moods? Do the Red Wings have good moods and bad moods? How about the Penguins, Blackhawks, or Devils?
In 2008, the Bruins squeeze into the playoffs as an 8th seed. The Bruins fall behind 2-0 against Montreal in the playoffs, then 3-1. They rally, winning an epic Game 6 5-4 in overtime. Then Game 7 comes around and the Bruins play a flat, uninspired game, losing 5-0. Nobody really criticizes them because they were an 8 seed, and it was an accomplishment to merely force 7 games.
In 2009, the Bruins have their best regular season since 1971-72. The top seed in the East, they roll through the Canadiens like Rommel through the Ardennes Forest. The Bruins win Game 1 of their 2nd round series against Carolina, dominating the Canes 4-1. Then they get complacent. Cam Ward has a great Game 2, the Bruins lose in OT in Carolina, then actually fall behind 3-1 before waking up. They win Games 5 and 6. But once again, lose in Game 7, this time in OT. The Bruins went from confident to arrogant to complacent, and they let the Canes take control of a series that never should have gone 7.
In 2010, the Bruins earned a 6th seed in the East. Disappointing compared to pre-season expectations, pleasing compared to mid-season expectations. They outfight the Sabres. But still saw themselves struggling to eliminate them in Game 5. In fact, Buffalo throttled them 4-1.
Then we know what happens next.
Claude Julien has been the Bruins coach for 3 seasons. He's made the playoffs 3 times, and has won 2 playoff series. Not bad at all. He's won the Adams for coach of the year, he's 133-78-35 as Bruins' head coach, or approximately 44-26-12 per season (that's an average of 100 points, which is usually good enough to vie for a divisional title).
But in the playoffs, which are a completely different game, his Bruins teams are 14-14. He was 4-7 in the playoffs when he coached in Montreal. So he's 18-21 overall. Most striking, he is 3-7 when his team can eliminate their opponents. He is 1-3 in Game 7s.
Maybe it's just coincidence. 10 games is indeed a small sample, and 4 of those are Game 7s, which are utter mayhem. Numbers can be so selectively chosen to suggest something larger at work. So let's get back to the human side of this.
We all saw how fierce the Bruins were in Game 6 of the '08 series against Montreal, seeming to will the puck into the net with their hearts and minds. Then we saw an empty, heartless, indifferent Game 7.
We all saw how intensely the Bruins crushed Montreal in '09. Then how they struggled with a basic 2 man forecheck, and couldn't maintain possession of the puck for 3 straight games.
Then there was this season. It'd be one thing if the Bruins and Flyers played 7 ridiculously tight games (like Games 1, 2, 4, 6 and 7), and it was almost coincidental the the Bruins won 3 then Philly won 4. But that's not how it happened. The Bruins broke the Flyers in Game 3. Then humiliated themselves in Game 5.
It's always hard to close teams out. A few weeks ago, a friend of mine was looking for a good hockey bet and I advised him to bet on any team down 3-0 in Game 4. But when the Flyers ignited and showed some serious fire, what was the Bruins' response? To shit the fucking bed.
I remember hearing before Game 4, that Claude Julien had ordered his players not to use the word "sweep" during practice or at any other time. Is that the attitude of a winner?
Hockey teams occasionally need inspiration. Laviolette provided that to the Flyers in Game 7 when he called a timeout. He kept his team confidently calm, but also energized and motivated. I'm not saying Claude should be Bill Parcells behind the bench. There are plenty of ways to inspire. And he just doesn't do it. Does he look or act inspirationally behind that bench?
The city of Boston is blessed with two of the best hockey coaches in the world: Jerry York and Jack Parker. The last 3 NCAA titles belong to these two giants. And their styles are completely different. York is the quiet and stern old man who seems friendly but you're also terrified to disappoint him. Parker is the aggressive, assertive guy who very vocally demands nothing but the best at all times.
What's Claude Julien? What's his personality? What do the players feel when he feels something? Claude's smart. He's a thinker, a master strategist. But to paraphrase Tedy Bruschi, hockey isn't like chess, it's like rock em sock em robots. And it's not like Julien is a nerd or anything, he played the game, he just puts too much emphasis on thinking and not enough on doing.
How many times did Dennis Wideman seem to overthink things this season? How about Michael Ryder, or Blake Wheeler? This was not a dumb team, but an extremely indecisive one. How many hesitations in the crease did we see? How many too-many-men penalties were there (that's a result of indecision, like Savard calling for a change, then staying on the ice).
It just doesn't seem to gel with this team, and I don't think it would work with any team, at least not work all the way to the Cup Finals. This team was at its best from Game 2 of the Buffalo series to Game 3 of the Philadelphia series. They took chances, were aggressive, and decisive. Then they get up 3-0 in a series, or 3-0 in a game. Then they start trying to adhere to some sort of gameplan. Fuck that, just play.
Gameplans and strategies are good to have before a game, and to keep in the back of your mind. But reality is unscripted, unplanned, and it just happens. In hockey, it happens even quicker.
So 2 things can happen for the Bruins to be successful
#1: Claude Julien needs to get fired and a more relaxing and less cerebral coach needs to replace him. #2: Claude needs to change, maybe with the help of his players.
If the Bruins are unwilling to cut Claude loose this instant, he at least has to be on probation. And he needs veterans of the Mark Recchi ilk, players who will act, not contemplate. Maybe give him 20-25 games in 2010-11 to see if things function properly. If not, it's the axe.
Heads are going to roll. And the first head that should roll is the bald, beefy melon of Claude "Les Choke" Julien. This guy is now 21-21 as a head coach in the playoffs, 1-3 in Game 7s (0-3 with the Bruins), and behind the B's bench his teams are 2-7 in games that they can eliminate their opponents. This guy is not a winner. Just replace "Elliot Ness" with "Claude Julien" in this clip:
And of course, it was a too-many-men penalty that allowed Philly to score their game-winning goal. The Bruins have been notorious for having too-many-men penalties called on them all season. I can't find the actual statistics for it, but I'd venture to say that the B's have had too-many-men on the ice about a dozen times this season. And of course, Philly fans will revel in the irony, as it was a missed too-many-men call that allowed Marco Sturm to score the game-winner in the Winter Classic.
But to pinpoint only one failure, one mistake, would be taking it easy on the Bruins. This was such an epic Bruins collapse that it can't just be because of one play, or even two. Countless errors, shortcomings, and fuckups have led us to this sad place. This was a clinic of defeatism. This is the biggest choke in Bruins history, which true fans of this team know is quite an allegation. It's like accusing the French of having the biggest defeat in their military's history.
The Bruins went up by 3 goals in Game 7. How? By outplaying Philadelphia. Plain and simple. The first goal was a great sequence, with Lucic blocking a shot, keying a breakaway which failed, but then winning the puck on the boards, allowing Savard to take a nice shot. The puck dribbled out to the neutral zone, but a tired Hartnell got sloppy with his stick and the B's earned a power-play. Faceoff win, Chara shoots, big rebound, Ryder has the best finish of his season and it's 1-0 B's.
Second goal: Wideman carries the puck in on another power-play, brilliant centering pass to Lucic, who simply has to tap it in. 2-0 Bruins.
Third goal: Lucic wins a battle in the defensive zone, with Philly's defensemen so involved on offense, this win triggers a 3-on-1 breakaway. Lucic wisely keeps it himself and goes 5-hole on Leighton. 3-0 Bruins.
But I have a saying for Claude Julien's Bruins. I'm much more comfortable with a 2 goal Bruins lead than a 3 goal lead. The B's get foolish with 3 goal leads. They try to be too clever. They don't value possession of the puck anymore. And they typically forget what it was that actually got them that 3 goal lead. In poker it's called "reverse tilt," when things go so well that a player kind of goes nuts, just assuming that he'll continue to get lucky and run well forever.
The B's kept the pressure up, and showed good puck support. They were relentless along the boards. Then in the defensive zone, that puck support failed. Wideman moved the puck along from the corner, but Satan whiffed on it. This allowed Philly to regain possession. A couple odd bounces later, and it's 3-1. But the bounces would have never happened had Satan played Hockey 101 and been able to move the puck along and out of the zone. Inexcusable.
The 2nd period has been dominated by the Flyers in this series. A clear indication of Peter Laviolette's outcoaching of Claude Julien. Going into Game 7's middle frame, Philly had outscored Boston 8-3 in 2nd periods. That turned into 10-3.
The Bruins came out decently, but couldn't get much on net. Leighton was reeling but the B's weren't able to do anything to capitalize. They were actually shooting too much, instead of waiting for clear shooting lanes, they allowed the Flyers to block shots (18 in total). Then Hartnell outworked the Bruins in the offensive zone and was able to sneak in a severe angle shot. 3-2 Flyers. Wake up time, right? Not for a Claude Julien team. Snooze button time.
The Flyers continued to get to every loose puck. They were hungry again. And should we be surprised? That's how Philly has been when they've faced defeat. Briere scored an excellent wraparound goal. And what a surprise, Andrew "Why Did I Get a Contract Extension" Ference was on the ice, and fell down as Briere maneuvered around him then the net.
But hey, the B's ended the 2nd period with a nice 5 minutes of possession, getting a few shots on goal, keeping Philly from doing anything more. Like a girl with a pretty face, nice legs, and a pudgy beer belly, the 2nd period had a good start, an ugly middle, and a good end.
The 3rd was crazy. Leighton made some big saves. Rask made some big saves. The Bruins were giving away the puck too easily, particularly Wideman and Chara. But Rask was forgiving them. The Flyers hit a post. The Bruins hit two posts. It seemed as though OT was predestined. Then the Bruins put 6 skaters on the ice.
It was unforced. And by that I mean that there was no panic, no confusion in a hurried situation, it was just your run-of-the-mill fuckup. It wasn't like when the puck drifts toward the benches during a change and someone plays it too early. It was an inexcusable, unforgettable, unbelievable mistake. The Bruins put 6 skaters on the ice. As if it were no big deal. But the refs can count to 6.
And give credit to Simon Gagne. As much as I'm blaming the Bruins for this loss, the Flyers showed us here in Boston how real scorers finish. Gagne's goal was just good solid offense.
Then air. A few near misses, a few nifty saves from Leighton, but the clock dwindled down seemingly at double-speed. And the season was over.
It's silly to discuss, but if you'd asked me in February if I'd be happy if the B's lost in a Game 7 of the 2nd round, I'd say "Yeah, sounds like a good season for this struggling team." But once you add the caveats that the Bruins were up 3-0 in the series, and up 3-0 in Game 7, I'd say "Fuck you, I'd rather lose in the 1st round or not make the playoffs at all."
Marc Savard had his worst game of his tenure here in Boston. I know he's concussed, but he'd been apparently fine until Friday night. In the 2nd he launched a breakaway shot about 10 feet above the net. This is against a goalie who has shown susceptibility to low goals, particularly in his 5-hole. Savard got a retarded hooking call in the 2nd (his actions were retarded, not the call), he aired on another breakaway shot from the top of the faceoff circle, and he completely failed to even touch the puck in the neutral zone, which allowed Hartnell to take possession, then Hartnell found Briere, and Briere scored his game-tying wraparound goal. At one point in the 3rd, Savard tried a no look pass between his legs. There's a two letter abbreviation for that: GV. It's short for giveaway.
Blake Wheeler was hit and miss. He had some solid plays, but wasn't the force he was in the Buffalo series. Same goes for Sobotka. Sometimes good, sometimes bad.
Lucic and Ryder woke up, especially Lucic. Milan outskated everyone, at least in the 1st period. His game depends entirely on skating. He's not a clever offensive player, nor is he a defensive genius. But he atones for those shortcomings with strength. But that strength is useless if he's not skating hard enough to get in on the play.
Chara gaveaway the puck too much, and wasn't much of a force on offense. He got an assist on the first goal, but that was because his slapshot was saved, then Ryder swatted the rebound in. To be fair, the guy has played about 2,000,000 minutes for the Bruins, plus the Olympics.
Satan gaveaway the puck too. He was to blame for Philly's 1st goal. And offensively, he never did anything of serious note. To be fair to him as well, he's carried the Bruins in this postseason, even though he was an add-on, garbage-heap kind of player, wallowing in the European leagues until the B's snagged him.
Daniel Paille is completely useless on offense. But he's only playing 19 minutes because other forwards are hurt, and because the B's traded Chuck Kobasew. Unfortunately, seemingly half of the Bruins' breakaway opportunities found the stick of Daniel Paille. If this guy were a Mortal Kombat character, his finishing move would be to shoot a puck 10 feet to the side of his opponent.
Briefly looking ahead to 2010-11, what do the Bruins need to do?
#1: Fire Claude Julien and hire anyone else in the Universe to replace him. I nominate Phil Esposito.
#2: Trade Thomas. As much as I love him, there are too many needs elsewhere to absorb his contract as a backup goalie.
#3: Bribe and/or blackmail Andrew Ference so he asks out of his contract.
#4: Re-sign Seidenberg. This team has great defense (Chara, Seidenberg, Boychuk, Hunwick, Wideman, Stuart), let's build around that.
#5: Get a solid, 20 goal type of forward (possibly in the Thomas trade).
#6: Hope the #2 draft-pick is a quick learner.
The Bruins need some ondemand offense. We saw in the last week how an effective counterattack can turn a series in an instant. Right now, the Bruins offense is based on the notion that if you shoot 40 times on a goalie, one or two pucks will randomly go in. When the Bruins get breakaways, it's a guarantee that they won't score. The best finishers on the Bruins are: Recchi, Chara, Boychuk, Krejci, and Savard. Recchi's collecting social security, Chara and Boychuk are D-men, and Krejci and Savard are supposed to be the set-up guys, not the finishers. They're on this short list by default.
The B's didn't skate in the 2nd or 3rd periods. Maybe they got tired and ran out of gas. Maybe they weren't properly motivated. Whatever the case, they lost, Philly won, deservedly so. Let's get a guillotine (spelled correctly on the 1st try), behead Claude Julien, then use his skull to play some pick-up soccer while we enjoy the World Cup.
NHL Draft is June 25th. The Bruins pick 2nd, 15th, 32nd and 45th.
If you have watched the Bruins this year at all you would know that Wideman has not nearly been the player he was last year. It has gotten to the point where Bruins' coach Claude Julien has even called him out...
"He's got to bring his intensity level up and he's got to have a better compete level. That's what makes him a great player. He should easily be a top-two at worst, a top-three defenseman for us, and he's not close to that right now. We know it. He knows it. He's got to pick up his game (NESN)."
There is not a lot going around about who may be interested, but one rumor that is flying around is that Wideman and Wheeler could be traded to rent Ilya Kovalchuk for the season. I would be all for this. Wideman seems to need a change of scenery, and Wheeler is a very up and down player. You add Kovalchuk and a healthy Bruins team and you really have something going into the playoffs.
"According to Claude Julien, Zdeno Chara has been good. But not great, which is what the Bruins have come to expect of their captain. "Good," said Julien. "But can be better. He knows that. He's been good. There are some games where we've seen him be dominant like we have in the past. But so far, he hasn't been dominant night in and night out like he has been. He's frustrated a little bit too."
In 11 games, Chara has zero goals and six assists while averaging 24:34 of ice time per match. Chara's offensive numbers are down, but his shutdown game has been off as well. Last night, Zach Parise won a puck battle against Chara behind the Boston net, then gained position on the captain in front. "His whole game, at times, has been up and down a little bit," Julien said. "He's never been terrible. But there are some nights where I'd say he's been OK. When you talk about Z, for our team to have success, we'd like to see him the way he was last year -- being a stellar defenseman, being stingy, and being a defenseman that every team hated playing against (Boston.com)."
We saw Julien do this to Savard earlier in the year. His general plan is to attack the stars in hope of motivating the team. The whole team has been anything but consistent (even before the injuries). I think the Bruins will be back to playing like they were last year once they get healthier.
Lucic has been held without a goal so far this season, but Julien seems to have faith that he will turn it around...
"He's only 21 years old and he's already got some big responsibilities," Julien told the Boston Globe. "That's good. Like I told him before, 'Do you want to be counted on, or be just a number?' I think it's a matter of finding his groove (ESPN)."
I don't think it is just Lucic. All the Bruins need to be more aggressive (especially the defense). Look for Lucic to come out hitting hard tonight, as the Bruins try to recapture the magic they had last season.
