Cassidy shouldn't have been fired. His successor is okay but has yet to win a playoff series.
And the mere thought of the Bruins considering Miller is a bad mark.
That said I've been saying the Bruins are trending downhill especially since that Cassidy move and been proven wrong. I think they're a decent organization but let's not sugarcoat it, there was a time not so long ago where Bruins fans wanted Sweeney and Neely gone lol
I disagree with this but you are absolutely entitled to this view in an understandable way, I’ve had this debate with many a bruins fan. At any one time those two along with Cassidy rotated on the hot seat and each bruins fan had their particular guy they placed the most amount of ire on.
Whether it was sweeney making poor draft selections that left the center depleted, or made trades and signings people hated on (nash trade and hayes trade were big ones, along with Beleskey and Backes signing)
Neely not knowing how to build a modern team and forcing signings or trades the bruins didn’t need
Cassidy not having the right system or not developing young guys
The truth of the matter is it was all of that in varying degrees. When you’re going for cups, it’s all a razor thin margin of error and you need everything clicking at the right time to go all the way getting that 16th win. Even when you do, you’re also relying on health which can certainly be supported by good roster building along with systems that make you the hammer and not the nail but shit happens
The reason I personally placed the majority of blame overall on Cassidy and was glad he was let go and believe it was the right decision;
2019 I really soured on Cassidy. He made critical line up errors along with not doing anything to try to game the refs or influence the series in any marketable way, never used his time outs correctly, didn’t have the guy’s ears in an inspiring way that could have made that difference in the razor thin margin of error that it came down to. Cassidy regrets that loss more than anyone here or within the bruins organization, that I can guarantee. But, it certainly wasn’t on him entirely as players still need to step up and play, and the team he had was not as heavy as he really needed them to be to execute his system to the extent that was needed to put the Blues away.
Then the following seasons, while the bubble really derailed what was a promising season, their showing against tampa was bad. 5 games is unacceptable
2021, they lose to an islanders team they could have beaten, and again, in less than 7. When it comes to a game 7 I can be more forgivable, so I put more scrutiny when coaches consistently lose short of that.
Carolina they probably could have beaten but by then it was pretty clear that Cassidy just had lost the room, his style became stale. He himself needed a change of scenery and different group to employ what worked really well and improve upon what didn’t work. He got that with vegas, but there is absolutely no telling what the bruins 2023 campaign would have been like. It’s more likely that Krejci wouldn’t have returned, the younger guys would have continued to lose confidence, DeBrusk would have been lost, and overall the bruins wouldn’t have had a historical season and then still lost in the first round…arguably to Toronto
So while the bruins didn’t win a cup with Montgomery, they still played well above where people expected them to and meanwhile, Monty changed the culture of the room from the top down and has helped some of the young guys be a part of why threads that we are currently in are being made. You can disagree and you can put all of the emphasis on winning a cup as what defines success, but the fact is the bruins consistently rise above expectations multiple times during a decade span where people rightfully expect other teams to rise above them. Every years it’s this is Toronto’s year (which I myself logically agree with at one point) or Buffalo or Detroit or Ottawa…
The only team that’s really broken through and stayed there is Florida, and un-coincidentally they were the team that had the grit to defeat a very good and well rounded bruins team last year.
Monty has his own failings and when history is written we’ll be able to determine if he was the right coach overall to replace Cassidy with, but letting Cassidy go had to happen and I think it’s fitting he grew as a coach and took the right team for his system to a cup that was knocking at the door already for a few seasons
Monty may never win a cup here, but if he helps build young guys up and then another coach takes over and is that final piece, he’ll still have been the right hire at the time. Winning a lot a lot along my the way makes it fun to watch in the meantime. I’ve gotten to a point in my life where playoff wins are great, but I just enjoy good hockey and I think the bruins can eventually win another before I pass, if they don’t, summer of 2011 was special and I’ll cherish getting something a lot of NHL fans don’t get to experience: a cup, multiple finals, multiple high awards, uniquely skilled memorable hockey players, fun series, epic regular season consistency, being a contender or right around it basically every year they’ve made the playoffs, sexy as hell uniforms, goofy entertaining broadcast teams, heart warming and inspiring charity work. Meeting guys like Patrice Bergeron
All of it is part of being a fan and damn, Bruins fans have it f***ing good the last 15 years
