NFL
By: Greg Rector
The Boston Bruins have set a new standard for regular season points and wins. As with so many things in sports, a historic mark thought to be unbeatable by the 1976-1977 Montreal Canadiens has been surpassed. You can argue about the points record for the fact that the Bruins play an 82 and not a 72-game schedule like Montreal did in the 1970s. Neither here nor there for me. This Boston Bruins team has been impressive from the opening puck drop.
Having witnessed that 1976-1977 Montreal Canadiens team that went 60 – 8 -12 (Ties were a part of the game) and having watched this Boston Bruins team, sorry Beantown fans this 2022-2023 Bruins team would lose in a series to that Canadiens team. Just go back and look at the number of Hockey Hall of Fame members who played for Montreal not to mention being coached by Scotty Bowman.
Favorites
One would think that this Boston Bruins team would be a prohibitive favorite to waltz through the NHL playoffs and the betting odds suggest they are currently favored. This has not been a good thing though in NHL playoffs for the last decade. The last team to win the President’s Trophy to go on to win the Stanley Cup were the Chicago Blackhawks exactly ten seasons ago.
NHL teams are notorious for not touching either the Prince Of Wales Trophy for winning the Eastern Conference or the Clarence Campbell Bowl for winning the Western Conference. Teams are almost all convinced that doing so curses your chances for the one trophy they really want, the Stanley Cup. The President’s Trophy has to be at this point in that same category.
The Hardest Trophy In Sports To Win
Sorry NBA MLB or NFL fans but the hardest trophy in sports to win is the Stanley Cup. Imagine having to play the full 28 games over four series pretty much playing every other night. The sheer physical toll in hockey is incredible and then add in the travel, the ticket requests for family and friends, and of course the media demands that come along the way. The NHL playoffs will always be a war of attrition. Just getting out of your conference is tough enough when you consider the number of games in the regular season played against division and conference rivals.
There are other reasons for the Stanley Cup being the hardest trophy to win. Upsets abound because if there’s one sport where momentum can be very hard to overcome it’s hockey. The quarterbacks are often given the credit for Super Bowl runs, sorry but a hot goaltender can absolutely steal a series from the favorites and we’ve seen that happen time and again in the NHL playoffs. A power play unit that has been great all season can go into a slump, teams take stupid penalties and don’t remain disciplined and those teams find themselves on the golf course.
Why Boston Wins
The Boston Bruins win if they continue to play Bruins hockey. They are not the fanciest team, it’s a gritty style of play and usually, that bodes well for the NHL playoffs. Games are tighter and when you are a team that doesn’t beat themselves that’s a huge bonus. I’ve seen a large number of Bruins games this year and again I have yet to see them beat themselves except on a few occasions only natural in an 82-game marathon.
If they can stay healthy through the Eastern Conference games and that’s no sure thing given the fact this is not a young team at all the Bruins have enough to get at least to the Stanley Cup finals. Even their younger players are all at the so-called prime of their careers and grizzled veterans like Bergeron Marchand Hall and Foligno know how to look after their bodies. The grind of the NHL playoffs is a very real thing. If the veterans have one more run in them then this Boston Bruins team can reach their ultimate goal.
Why Boston Loses
As I said earlier all it takes is running into a hot goaltender from an opponent. No matter how good of a team you are when the other team’s goaltender is hot it leads to frustration and trying to do much so often. It then makes the opponent’s game much easier to pounce on those mistakes from doing too much.
The head coach Jim Montgomery had a very short stint as the Dallas Stars head coach prior to being fired for unprofessional conduct and later seeking treatment for alcohol abuse. Good for him for recognizing he had an issue and dealing with it. The important part though is not having coached very many NHL playoff games. Playoff hockey is a very different animal. Line matching is far more important as are the special teams of the power play and penalty killing. Having the right guys on the ice at the right time makes all the difference in the world. Montgomery needs to continue having that remain in the Bruin’s favor. It is one of the hardest things to accomplish night in and night out.
Goaltender Linus Ullmark has been around for a while and this is by far his best season. That has to remain the case. Can he handle games when the Bruins fall behind without giving up another goal? That remains to be seen at this point.
Are the Bruins deep enough if they have to deal with injuries? They have stayed healthy for the most part all season. This is a factor that has brought down many other teams in the NHL Playoffs over the years.
Good Luck
I grew up in a family divided. My grandfather loved Montreal and my dad loved Boston. Thankfully Edmonton got a team and I had an out from the uncivil war between my family members. I wish the Boston Bruins good luck in winning the hardest trophy in sports to get. The Stanley Cup has remained out of reach for a decade for the best regular-season team and it is very conceivable for that to happen again.
