Could this be the year the Bruins finally miss the playoffs?

[Stickpucker]

Last year right about this time Carolina slapped Edmonton around and there was a similar thread and everyone knows how that turned out.

The Atlantic has some teams that have been easy pickins the last number of years. Buffalo, Montreal, Ottawa, and Detroit. I don't think any of them have improved a ton but the gap between Boston and them has shrunk. I think they finish the season 4 or 5 in the Atlantic.

 

[nbwingsfan]

The only time it was more relevant was the 2019 Finals.

You realize they wouldn’t be able to afford all of Connor, Barzal, etc right?

Maybe they don’t draft McAvoy? They don’t make the trade for Lindholm? They don’t draft Swayman? Carlo is traded? They dont bring back Krejci?

 

[banks]

C depth has been a problem since Bergeron hung up his skates. Unfortunately for Boston, Lindholm seems to have been a mirage and Coyle is somehow getting even worse. It's just not a strong group, even with Marchand and Pasta.

I believe in Swayman more than most, but he'll have to be in vezina form here on out to keep them in the playoff race.

 

[RickyLafleur]

Fans of teams in the Atlantic sure hope so!

 

[DaStinger]

It's time to rebuild. Ownership however wants the team to stay competitive. Although I wish they would sell off they will probably search for bandaids and be just outside a wildcard.

 

[redwings86]

Of course it is early, but with them being blown out tonight they are sitting at the bottom of the Atlantic in 8th. Could this finally be the year they begin to show they are entering post contender status ala Capitals, Penguins, etc?

I consider Boston miss the playoffs Ottawa take the playoffs status Boston's defence leaking.

 

[BB79]

Fattest team in the NHL. Gravity catching up?

View attachment 924818

Well they're also one of the tallest too

 

[chaz4hockey]

Why? What happened in 2015?

Top Players available after that include Barzal, Connor, Boeser, Konecny, Ericsson Ek, Aho:

 

[BlueBaron]

It would be nice but it's too much to hope for.

 

[mobilus]

You realize they wouldn’t be able to afford all of Connor, Barzal, etc right?

You realize they didn’t need all three picks to pan out? Just one first liner would have been nice, no? Instead they got two career dishwashers and a tweener forward who left the second he was eligible to go, with zero assets coming back.

 

[nbwingsfan]

You realize they didn’t need all three picks to pan out? Just one first liner would have been nice, no? Instead they got two career dishwashers and a tweener forward who left the second he was eligible to go, with zero assets coming back.

Tweener forward? Debrusk was a very obvious top 6 forward lol.

Add in Brandon Carlo in the 2nd too.

Like I said, if they draft those three, who knows if they have (they definitely wouldn’t have all) McAvoy, Lindholm, Swayman

 

[Discipline Daddy]

The weirdest thing about the game last night was the Bruins' identity wasn't clearly recognizable. But a franchise doesn't just lose that in a game. I believe the Bruins will be back better. They still have enough talent on that roster to make the playoffs. I looked over their roster and I was surprised by how many young players they have. A lot of us outsiders may think the Bruins live and die by just Pastrnak, Marchand, Swayman, and McAvoy. They're the drivers, but the team has a lot of decent young pieces that may take some time to learn the Bruins' system.

Perhaps this is the end of an era, but I bet more likely it's a cold streak.

Lord knows my Hurricanes looked like dog shit defensively in the first month of last season, but they came around to being like the #2 team in the league defensively after December, and that was after missing Freddie Andersen for like 60 games.

 

[Prettyisland]

They most likely find a way to squeak in but the regular season armor has cracked

 

[jgatie]

Gotta love a pile on thread filled with fans of one out of two teams Boston has a win against.