Ha Ha seriously.. How could I not put this as the title? I mean Charlie Sheen is winning in all aspects of life. As are the Big Bad Bruins. There has been 5 teams that have won 6 straight games on the Road. And the Bruins have done it twice. So technically there has only been 4 teams. But fuck it. They first did it in the 71-72 season and I hope you all know what happened at the end of that season. If not, here’s a little visual reminder.
If you don't know this picture. Kill yourself.
The Bruin’s have been on fire since their deadline acquisitions. Peverley and Kelly have added so much depth to the Bruin’s roster. Making their third line really solid. The Bruin’s certainly don’t have a first line that will go out and dominate like that of the Sharks (Marleau-Thornton-Heatly), Flyers (Carter-Giroux-Brierre), or even the Lightning (St. Louis-Stamkos-Prospel) but they can roll 3 lines fluidly and they can compete in all zones up and down the ice.
The B’s first line (Recchi-Bergeron-Marchand) has been the most consist over the last few months of the season, but the second line (Lucic-Krejci-Horton) has really been heating up. Over the roady, this line tallied nine goals and three of them were game winners. This team is full speed ahead. Their fourth line or their energy line has also contributed greatly. Claude Julien loves that he can roll his top 3 lines out there with the opportunity to put points up on the board. And the energy line of (Thornton-Seguin-Campbell) can also compete in all three zones. There has been a lot of controversy about rookie Tyler Seguin on the fourth line. However, there is no where else to put him. Claude and the Bruin’s play a very complicated defensive/counter-attack back zone system. Relying on the 19 year old in critical situations is just asking too much of him. He will be a dominant player one day and is the future of the Bruin’s but tossing him into the fire isn’t the best thing for him yet. Young players who are thrown into the mix on terrible teams may put up the decent offensive numbers, but they are never really able to grasp the defensive necessity and intelligence needed to defend in all three zones. Seguin is learning that and it is only going to help his maturation process. Joe Thornton, his rookie season, had fewer goals then Seguin already has now, and look his career. Was a captain of the B’s by age 23, and has lead the Sharks in scoring or assists every season since joining them via trade with the Bruins in 2005.
I have never been so excited for any Bruin’s season like I am now. I know that on the surface it looks like Peter Chairelli has put together a great team, but I am going to credit this all to my idol, Cam Neely. Neely took the position as president of the Boston Bruins and has really been putting his stamp on the team. Cam’s jersey is hanging among the greats at the garden and his rough and tough style got him there. He’s been pushing pussy’s outta Boston i.e. Phil Kessel, Blake Wheeler and Marco Sturm just to name a few, and is adding hard nose players who can handle playing in all three zones. I know I have said “all 3 zones” multiple times, but in hockey you have to be able to compete in all phases of the game.
The QB on the PP
The speed of the game is unparalleled and the counter-attack game the Bruin’s play is a physical style forechecking game coupled with a speed attack on the outside when in control of the puck. Entering the zone with speed to the outside, which Krejci and Bergeron do so well, is to get the puck deep into the zone on the wings and try to set up a back pass to the trailing forward/defensemen. The addition of Kaberle, or as some like to call him the QB on the PP, has already paid dividends with their power play. He is a quick and decisive passer on the back end and really helps to spread the puck around in Savy’s absence.
The B’s don’t have overwhelming scoring capability coming from one or two particular players, but they have depth that can’t be matched. They have 10 players with double digit goal tallies, and don’t be surprised if they have 3 more by the start of the playoffs (Krejci-9, Campbell-9, Thornton-8).
The major aspect of the team that I have left out until now is the goaltending. Tuukka Rask entered this year as the probably starter, but was beat out early by the spectacular goaltending of Timmy Thomas. Tim Thomas leads the league in goals against average (1.97), save percentage (.939), he is 2nd in shut outs with 8 (Hank Lundqvuist-9), and is tied for 3rd in wins (28). It was evident that the heavy work load was starting to hinder Thomas’s play, but Rask hadn’t been playing up to his playoff status of last year, until the recent roady. Rask went 4-0 on the road and notched his 8th career shut out against Ottawa to cap off the trip. His improved play will be vital to the Bruin’s playoff push. The ability to keep the aging Thomas fresh for the playoffs will only bolster the B’s opportunity to reach Lord Stanley’s Cup.
If the Bruin’s don’t at least reach the Eastern Conference Finals, this season will be an utter failure. Even anything less than a Stanley Cup appearance is not acceptable. I look forward to watching the Bruin’s hoist the biggest baddest trophy in all of sports this June. That’s not a guarantee, it’s a last request of a desperate man sitting atop the lethal injection table. I may visit Kevorkian if we don’t win it all.
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