30 in 30 with the Boston Bruins

DP · Aug 2, 2011

NHL.com

After 39 years filled with near-misses, the Stanley Cup again belongs to the Boston Bruins.

Younger generations of hockey fans in Boston no longer have to live on stories of Bobby Orr and Phil Esposito -- they can tell their own tales about Tim Thomas robbing Steve Downie, Brad Marchand's one-legged leap and the night Tyler Seguin looked like a future superstar.

The Bruins became the first team to win three seven-game series en route to the Cup, with Nathan Horton scoring the series-winning goal against Montreal and Tampa Bay, and then becoming an emotional rallying cry for the team in the Final after Aaron Rome knocked him out of the series with an illegal hit.

Boston was not the best team in the Eastern Conference during the regular season, but the Bruins pulled away from Montreal to win the Northeast Division and rallied from a 2-0 series deficit to beat the Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs -- the first time in franchise history they'd won a series after losing the first two games.

The Bruins swept Philadelphia in the second round and outlasted Tampa Bay in the conference finals. The home team won the first six games of the Stanley Cup Final, but Boston's Game 7 victory against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena was an exclamation point on a series the Bruins dominated for long stretches.

Now the Bruins have a new challenge -- become the first team to repeat as champions since Detroit in 1997 and '98.
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Outlook
Chiarelli went into the offseason knowing there would not be a lot of holes to fill. Recchi's retirement was expected, as were the departures of Ryder and Kaberle.

Corvo should be an upgrade on defense, and Seguin could very well surpass Recchi's production from last season (with Caron replacing Seguin as a potential top-six guy in training). Pouliot could be something of a wild card, and the same goes for Marchand -- will he be able to avoid a sophomore slump?

The health of Horton, who is expected to be ready after the concussion suffered in Game 3 of the Final, will be a big key. Savard's return would be a bonus, but the Bruins probably aren't counting on him, and they proved they could win a Cup with David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron as their top two centers.

Boston had room below the salary cap ceiling to make a big move, but Chiarelli opted not to. The Bruins could very well be better this season, especially if the kids continue to improve. They will also be a team to watch at the trade deadline, as Chiarelli will likely have lots of cap space and plenty of young assets to move.

The core of the Stanley Cup champions remains intact, with upside to improve. Even if Thomas can't repeat his magical season, Tuukka Rask is one of the League's top backups and could give him some extra rest this season.

Pittsburgh will be better if Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are healthy. Washington has improved its roster this summer. Philadelphia now has a goaltender.

Those three franchises were something of a big three in the East before last season, but Boston has wedged its way into that elite group. The Bruins are likely still the team to beat in the conference.
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Will the Bruins repeat? Will they make the playoffs? How will Seguin do this year? All questions I'm excited to see answered.

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30 in 30 with the Boston Bruins

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