Post-Game Talk: Bruins win 2-1!!!

[Flannelman]

On the downside...

I'm worried about this new "system tweak." I didn't like it when I heard about it and last night we saw multiple 2on1's that resulted in a Dman attempting to stand up.

Yessir. Reminded me of last Spring to be honest. Getting caught at the blueline flatfooted, or opposition knowing that we're pinching too frequently and taking advantage... I like that the forwards are coming back - but damn, sometimes they were the only one back...

 

[LouJersey]

barts a puck mover all right. he moves it blindly up the boards to the opposing team.
he can skate pretty good and thats it. He takes a holding penalty every game, plus his coverage in front is horrid. The guy plays like he's never watched a hockey game in his lfe.

i would def feel better with miller as top 4 than bart

To each his own.

I want to see the 2014-15 Bart (not 13-14) before I pronounce him DOA. I also think that Bart is a convenient whipping boy and gets held to a different standard than others. If Bart played like Sides or Dougie last night, people would be at his door this morning with the torches and pitchforks.

I like Miller, and he's a better skater than many give him credit for, but he has to prove he can make it in the Top 4.

Bart is way more suited for this "new system" than Wolf or Miller...They just don't have the recovery speed... Will be interesting to see if they put him in tonight.

 

[C77]

Went to the game last night...the first in a couple years.

Even forgetting about the winning goal, Kelly was fantastic. He was around the puck all night and stopped on it every time...no fly by's. I was really happy to see him perform well especially considering all the heat he takes here.

Soderberg was excellent as well whereas Lucic was not a visible presence.

Spooner had the puck a good deal but didn't seem to get too much done with it.

Cunningham brought a great effort and the B's could do worse on the 4th line.

Boston had much better puck support than Philly for the first period and a ways into the 2nd. Then Philly took over the play for the rest of the 2nd....Bruins were somewhat fortunate to get out of the 2nd still with the lead. I was frustrated because it seemed like the same story i.e. Bruins possess the puck much more than the opponent and yet the quality scoring chances were about equal. When the Bruins outplay the opponent they need to make it count.

On defense Chara made some excellent individual plays but the pairing of Chara - Hamilton got caught in its own end for a while....Then there was a change to Chara - McQuaid but that pairing has a major lack of foot speed and also got caught in the defensive end.

I agree with glorydaze that the Bruins should have a puck mover on each pairing...I too was hoping for Bart-Seidenberg on the 2nd pairing.

Seidenberg was excellent...faster than I thought he would be and his recovery probably helped in the decision to move Boychuk.

Krug was outstanding for most of the game.

 

[LouJersey]

I thought the boys had tremendous energy and drive, to a man.

I think I'd be okay with Cunningham replacing all of our expensive 4th line center options if his face-off skills prove to be decent. Loved his hustle, speed and hitting game last night.

Bobby Robins will be a cult hero to rival PJ Stock around here.

Soderberg and Eriksson have to stay together. That was the best Loui has looked in a month, and Soderberg is a beast. How is this guy NOT going to be worth $5m as a UFA?

I thought Spooner showed well in his 12 minutes. The effort was there on the defensive side and he got dirty in his own zone a couple times which freed up pucks for the breakout.

On the downside...

I'm worried about this new "system tweak." I didn't like it when I heard about it and last night we saw multiple 2on1's that resulted in a Dman attempting to stand up.

Perfectly summed up....

Kelly on the left makes those two able to do what they do... Great line.

 

[C77]

Not to be forgotten.....Bergeron stole Giroux's lunch money.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

I thought the boys had tremendous energy and drive, to a man.

I think I'd be okay with Cunningham replacing all of our expensive 4th line center options if his face-off skills prove to be decent. Loved his hustle, speed and hitting game last night.

Bobby Robins will be a cult hero to rival PJ Stock around here.

Soderberg and Eriksson have to stay together. That was the best Loui has looked in a month, and Soderberg is a beast. How is this guy NOT going to be worth $5m as a UFA?

I thought Spooner showed well in his 12 minutes. The effort was there on the defensive side and he got dirty in his own zone a couple times which freed up pucks for the breakout.

On the downside...

I'm worried about this new "system tweak." I didn't like it when I heard about it and last night we saw multiple 2on1's that resulted in a Dman attempting to stand up.

Bill, agree with almost all of this.

Spooner was pretty good. The highlight of the evening for me with him was a shift where he got back on D, went down low, and bumped a Flyer off the puck on the side of the B's net allowing the D to break it out. Simple, sound play that will make Stone Clode happy. CC was good, not sure how many hits he was credited it, but it seemed like he finished every check he was within 10 ft of. Very solid and I'm not sure how Cassidy thought this kid was "behind" a bunch of other PRO guys his summer? Stick with the D, Butch.

Soderberg was the best player on the ice, and probably would be worth $5m + on the FA market. The good news is that I highly doubt he ever gets there. I think the B's extend him for $4m or less.

I am going to disagree with you on the "system tweak" being responsible for all the 2 on 1's. For me, it was a lot more about bad decisions (and bad bounces) on the part of the players involved, than it was about a system tweak. Either way, the mistakes need to be eliminated.

 

[acr*]

I'd imagine Krug-McQuaid is a better pairing and Miller has the speed to play with Chara, could have a better chance of replicating Chara-Boychuk/Ward by far over McQuaid and then Hamilton has less pressure playing with Seids and Seids can worry less about puck handling.

Your McQuaid bashing is hilariously wrong. He may have been our best overall defender last night and didn't look at all bad playing on the second pairing. He carried Seidenberg for large portions of the game and played great minutes. He was excellent in the offensive zone too. Got the puck on the net several times and made some really pinches to keep plays alive. I think he stays on the second pair until he holds the play back when he is on the ice.

Looking at the ice time last night too, I think Julien really wants to go for a more equitable distribution of minutes. Nearly all the D played right around the 20:00 mark. One could argue that there won't be 1st, 2nd, or 3rd pairings this year. And for the sake of argument, if Miller is a better D, I would rather have him play with Krug and be in position to bail out Krug's inevitable overstretching on offense.

 

[C77]

I don't want to pile on the Flyers...but I think Grossmann is a terrible player. I know he's a shutdown defenseman but to him the puck is like a foreign object.

He's the type of guy that may be good defensively but assures that his team will be playing defense when he's on the ice.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

Your McQuaid bashing is hilariously wrong. He may have been our best overall defender last night and didn't look at all bad playing on the second pairing. He carried Seidenberg for large portions of the game and played great minutes. He was excellent in the offensive zone too. Got the puck on the net several times and made some really pinches to keep plays alive. I think he stays on the second pair until he holds the play back when he is on the ice.

Looking at the ice time last night too, I think Julien really wants to go for a more equitable distribution of minutes. Nearly all the D played right around the 20:00 mark. One could argue that there won't be 1st, 2nd, or 3rd pairings this year. And for the sake of argument, if Miller is a better D, I would rather have him play with Krug and be in position to bail out Krug's inevitable overstretching on offense.

I'm not a McQuaid basher at all, but I prefer him on the 3rd pair with Krug as well. His rugged stay at home style compliments Krug perfectly. This is a good thing.

 

[NeelyDan]

I hate the early returns on this, in my opinion, totally unnecessary defensive tweak.

 

[acr*]

I'm not a McQuaid basher at all, but I prefer him on the 3rd pair with Krug as well. His rugged stay at home style compliments Krug perfectly. This is a good thing.

He is better than Miller in this moment, I think. Miller had a terrible playoff series with Montreal and is still finding his feet in the NHL. McQuaid's experience gives him in edge right now, in spite of Miller having a higher ceiling. And like I was saying, I don't know if the team is going to go for really defined pairings this year. Ditching Boychuk means that they have to rest Chara by committee. I think the other 2 pairings are both going to see similar minutes. That is how I see it.

I also think that McQuaid has never had an opportunity to play in the top four. He COULD elevate his game with an opportunity and lock up the job. I think he gets at least a 15 game audition there.

 

[remer]

Some parts to the Bruins are still missing. The need to find another gem for the backend. Not upset that Boychuk was traded. They were not going to pay him 6 mill a year. They have a good top 3 in Chara, Seids, Hamilton. They need a fourth that is a puck mover, PP specialist and a big defender. Krug is 2/3 of that. They have a group of 6-7 defenseman in McQuaid/Krug/Bart/ Miller. I would like to see the Bruins find that 4th piece in a trade.

As well, they are missing a #1 RW. Loui is not the answer and at 4.25 mill, he is too expense to be sitting on the third line.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

He is better than Miller in this moment, I think. Miller had a terrible playoff series with Montreal and is still finding his feet in the NHL. McQuaid's experience gives him in edge right now, in spite of Miller having a higher ceiling. And like I was saying, I don't know if the team is going to go for really defined pairings this year. Ditching Boychuk means that they have to rest Chara by committee. I think the other 2 pairings are both going to see similar minutes. That is how I see it.

I also think that McQuaid has never had an opportunity to play in the top four. He COULD elevate his game with an opportunity and lock up the job. I think he gets at least a 15 game audition there.

I don't think McQ was bad by any stretch, but I just don't like him with Sides, for the same reason I didnt like JB and Sides together. Both physical, but too slow together.

 

[Fire Sweeney]

I don't want to pile on the Flyers...but I think Grossmann is a terrible player. I know he's a shutdown defenseman but to him the puck is like a foreign object.

He's the type of guy that may be good defensively but assures that his team will be playing defense when he's on the ice.

Their whole defense is junk... Grossmann, Del Zotto and Schultz shouldn't even be in the NHL.

 

[fighterfoo]

Can someone explain these nonsense "charging" calls against Robins and Schenn?

Robins legit barrelled into Rinaldo, but Schenn instigated the scrum so he got 2. Call it what you want, charging, roughing, cross-checking, it's 2 to even it up.

 

[BlackNgold 84]

How about that Spooner fella, its a damn shame he can't play in his own end, a defensive liability

 

[NeelyDan]

I don't think McQ was bad by any stretch, but I just don't like him with Sides, for the same reason I didnt like JB and Sides together. Both physical, but too slow together.

Spot on.

 

[bp13]

I thought the boys had tremendous energy and drive, to a man.

I think I'd be okay with Cunningham replacing all of our expensive 4th line center options if his face-off skills prove to be decent. Loved his hustle, speed and hitting game last night.

Bobby Robins will be a cult hero to rival PJ Stock around here.

Soderberg and Eriksson have to stay together. That was the best Loui has looked in a month, and Soderberg is a beast. How is this guy NOT going to be worth $5m as a UFA?

I thought Spooner showed well in his 12 minutes. The effort was there on the defensive side and he got dirty in his own zone a couple times which freed up pucks for the breakout.

On the downside...

I'm worried about this new "system tweak." I didn't like it when I heard about it and last night we saw multiple 2on1's that resulted in a Dman attempting to stand up.

I think we obviously need to give it some time. I see the reason for worry, but if I recall correctly, a few of those errors were on Hamilton (who I thought was awful last night) and at least one was when he jumped up inside their blue line and got a terrible hop. Just bad luck. On another one at his blue line, Spooner covered for him.

I think one rationale for instituting this change is that he's got a veteran-enough D corps, a responsible center group and a Vezina goalie whom he knows can cover up for mistakes. If the coach feels he wants to get a bit more offensive, I think this could easily work. And it plays into the hands of half his d-men now (Hamilton, Krug, Bart) and the remainder are all smart, savvy vets.

Can't quite tell yet whether this tweak is an effort to adapt and improve, or a fallback strategy to cover for not enough offense. Either way though I think we need to give it at least until Christmas to see how it plays out.

 

[wintersej]

Possibly? It may just be me, but I want dynamic players on my first line and Fraser doesn't strike me as that kind of player. He has a great shot, is an average skater at best, is big (but not nearly as physical as Iginla), and goes to the net. It seems to me that he is a "nice" player, and reminds me of a guy like Ryder, who I also would not want on the first line.

I was OK with dealing Boychuk, but I was really hoping that the B's could bring back a player better than Fraser (or the other options like Gagne) as part of the JB deal or in a separate one (which still could be coming). I really like the 2nd and 3rd line combos and hate to break them up, but at this point, I think that Smith's skillset is a better "fit" for 17 and 46 then any other candidate. We could also still see Loui in that role (once both 17 and 46 are 100%). If that happened, I would out Spooner on Carl's left and Kelly on his right. The easiest solution would be if one of the internal candidates like Pastrnak stepped up and filled the spot, but I'm not sure he's physically ready for that role?

I, for one, don't have faith in Fraser, but I at least want to see him up on that 1st line. All he brings is his shot. I want to see if he can be Glen Murray playing with Krejci. If he can't, I don't think he does enough other things to be on the roster by the end of the year. There is a lot of time to replace Fraser internally or externally if he doesn't look good after 20 games.

I also think we have to rethink our concepts of 1st, 2nd and 3rd lines. If we really are going to pair Lucic/Krejci, Marchand/Bergeron, Soderberg/Eriksson, they should be getting rolled out there at roughly equal ice times and having a Ryder type playing with Krejci shouldn't be so bothersome.

 

[don]

Very impressed with the overall performance of everyone tonight. Cunningham, Robins, and Spooner looked great, and HF whipping boys Eriksson and Kelly played outstanding as well. It's going to be tough to break up that Soderberg line. I thought the only negatives were McQuaid, despite the assist on the game winner. Made a couple of mistakes that could have been costly, still a little worried about that second pairing without Boychuk. I didn't really notice Fraser after the 1st period, but not really expected him to be a huge factor in his first regular season game.

Who ever was in favor of adding Robins to this team hats off to you, good call.

You mention MQuaid and say nothing about Hamilton!!! Why do you think Hamilton was dropped to the 2nd pair and then the 3rd? He was the worst player on the ice.

 

[Son of Donegal]

You mention MQuaid and say nothing about Hamilton!!! Why do you think Hamilton was dropped to the 2nd pair and then the 3rd? He was the worst player on the ice.

Worst player on the ice? I think that is a bit of an overstatement.

He made a few bad pinches, bad passes and Claude made him pay for it, but I think there were a few Flyers out there playing ECHL hockey.

 

[Ace0813]

Spooner may have had the puck a lot but I saw nothing worth writing home about him last night... looked much stronger in the preseason.

Hopefully he plays stronger tonight

 

[hooked]

I'm not a McQuaid basher at all, but I prefer him on the 3rd pair with Krug as well. His rugged stay at home style compliments Krug perfectly. This is a good thing.

I agree. McQuaid and Krug go together like peas and carrots. If all D pairs get about 18 to 20, there's really no bottom pairing.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

Spooner may have had the puck a lot but I saw nothing worth writing home about him last night... looked much stronger in the preseason.

Hopefully he plays stronger tonight

Thought he looked really good on the backcheck and in his own zone. The offense will come, and it's not ONLY about scoring, as Stone Clode would be more than happy to explain to you

 

[don]

Worst player on the ice? I think that is a bit of an overstatement.

He made a few bad pinches, bad passes and Claude made him pay for it, but I think there were a few Flyers out there playing ECHL hockey.

OK, worst BRUIN on the ice.