Management 1 PM May 22nd - Charlie, Cam, Don and Monty address media - NESN

[Fenway]

Wednesday, May 22 at 1 p.m. (TD Garden, Boston, MA)
- End of season press conference with CEO and Alternate Governor Charlie Jacobs, President Cam Neely, General Manager Don Sweeney and Head Coach Jim Montgomery

- Media should enter through back security and proceed to Legends Club on Level 3

- Light refreshments will be provided to the media​

Click to read more...

 

[whatsbruin]

Team is solid coach is solid management is solid. We lucky guys.

I don't disagree, but someone needs to identify what needs to be done to take the next step.
There is no guarentee to win the cup, but this team needs to be a lot better to have a real chance.
Is this group able to identify, and make the changes to take that step ? I don't think so. they have had more than enough chance.

You want a good , solid team, Donnie is your man, just don't think he is stanley cup material, something lacking.

 

[Gordoff]

The leafs were a special kind of crap. The 70's they were building a team that had an incredible future ahead.By the mid 80's they turned into a laughingstock.

McDonald.
Sittler
Keon ("I'll never step into MLG again!")
Turnbull
They all felt the unprofessional wrath of Happy Harold.

Realistically you won't see changes with Don or Cam by the Jacobs.The team would dramatically have to falter. As long as the turnstiles are clicking it's ka-ching in Jacobs pockets.

LOL remember when the NHL ruled that all players have their names on the jerseys. He tried putting the names in the same color as the jersey to blend in.
IIRC he also played with the idea of putting the names on upside down. A true dickhead!

Well that’s on Neely and Sweeney not jacobs.

Though if there is one thing the jacobs can fix that’s a disaster every year, it’s the ice.

"You mean that the beautiful Olympia machines can't fix that?" Charley Jacobs

 

[whatsbruin]

Cup in 3 years or gone for me. Prime years of the D, Swayman and Pasta so it’s up to these guys to put together a champion. All on them now

How long has Sweeney been around, since 2015 ? That's 8 years with a Super solid core, just needing to add pieces. Now he's in a position where he needs to add several significant pieces. He has had his chance.

 

[The don godfather]

I don't disagree, but someone needs to identify what needs to be done to take the next step.
There is no guarentee to win the cup, but this team needs to be a lot better to have a real chance.
Is this group able to identify, and make the changes to take that step ? I don't think so. they have had more than enough chance.

You want a good , solid team, Donnie is your man, just don't think he is stanley cup material, something lacking.

Donny was a game away at home from delivering the silver mug but team laid a egg. Last year Donny assembled the team of the century and team turned into a deer in the headlights come playoff time in the first round. This isn't on him. Hes the best in the business . Now with this cap space watch the master at work. Team and coaching have to deliver.

 

[Fire Sweeney]

Chiarelli brought in Chara, Savard, Rask, Peverley, Kelly, McQuaid, Recchi, Boychuk, Seidenberg, Ryder, etc. When has Sweeney ever made an positive impact on the trade or signing market ? All of his moves have been flops.

 

[Bruinswillwin77]

Chiarelli brought in Chara, Savard, Rask, Peverley, Kelly, McQuaid, Recchi, Boychuk, Seidenberg, Ryder, etc. When has Sweeney ever made an positive impact on the trade or signing market ? All of his moves have been flops.

All those players were one goal away from being flops.

Don't get me wrong - those were solid players but be real.

Yes sorry I'm not including Chara in that.

 

[Dr Hook]

I can't wait for this presser! Had a department meeting get cancelled for this week, so I need my fix of insititutional/corporate bullshit with lots of words but nothing definitive being said.

 

[Festy1986]

Sweeney built a Cup winner in 2019. That was mostly on 63-37-88.

How can I debate Sweeneys job performance with someone who thinks the Bruins won the cup in 2019.

Donny was a game away at home from delivering the silver mug but team laid a egg. Last year Donny assembled the team of the century and team turned into a deer in the headlights come playoff time in the first round. This isn't on him. Hes the best in the business . Now with this cap space watch the master at work. Team and coaching have to deliver.

He almost won the cup 5 years ago

Peter won a cup and almost won another and was fired within 4 years.

I can tell some of you are battered and bruised from decades and decades of this conditioning but I'm here to tell you it's not normal.

You're talking about Donnas if he's accomplished something. He hasn't.

 

[lopey]

They go hand in hand though. Win a championship and you profit even more

Yes I agree 100% but this year will be considered a success in ownership’s eyes based on this years expectations. Next year with all the cap space and trade options (Ullmark) they will expect more playoff success

 

[Fire Sweeney]

All those players were one goal away from being flops.

Don't get me wrong - those were solid players but be real.

Yes sorry I'm not including Chara in that.

I don't like exaggerating the importance of a single player, but the one reason the Bruins made the finals in 2013 and 2019 is called Tuukka Rask. He had a record of 8-0-0 in 8 games with a goals against average of 0.82 and a save percentage of .972 in conference finals in his career.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

Chiarelli brought in Chara, Savard, Rask, Peverley, Kelly, McQuaid, Recchi, Boychuk, Seidenberg, Ryder, etc. When has Sweeney ever made an positive impact on the trade or signing market ? All of his moves have been flops.

Too funny.

 

[Festy1986]

We are proud to extend Don Sweeney to a multi-year contract as General Manager of the Boston Bruins," said Bruins CEO Charlie Jacobs. "Under his management, the Boston Bruins have been one of the winningest franchises in the league and a perennial playoff contender year in and year out. While we recognize there is work to be done to achieve the ultimate goal of bringing the Stanley Cup back to Boston, I'm confident that Don's commitment to being best-in-class on and off the ice will help us climb that mountain once again."



So two years ago the Bruins recognize there was work to be done in order to bring a cup to Boston. In 2022 they had a ridiculous regular season and went all in and flamed out in historic fashion.

This year they had to pay the bill for he credit card spending and exceeded expectations (which was what exactly? Vegas had them as 7th best team before season started)

No one can deny that as of today they are farther away from their stated goal of winning the cup than 2 years ago when they signed Don to a extension.

There's no doubt in my mind he's getting fired this time next year if next year ends like this year did.

 

[The don godfather]

How can I debate Sweeneys job performance with someone who thinks the Bruins won the cup in 2019.



He almost won the cup 5 years ago

Peter won a cup and almost won another and was fired within 4 years.

I can tell some of you are battered and bruised from decades and decades of this conditioning but I'm here to tell you it's not normal.

You're talking about Donnas if he's accomplished something. He hasn't.

Donny has avoided this team from rebuilding from the dark ages and retooled this team to contend for years and now with poitras sway and lohrei the future is bright also. Donny is the man!

 

[goldenblack]

Chiarelli brought in Chara, Savard, Rask, Peverley, Kelly, McQuaid, Recchi, Boychuk, Seidenberg, Ryder, etc. When has Sweeney ever made an positive impact on the trade or signing market ? All of his moves have been flops.

Really though? You're going to list names like Kelly, Ryder etc and then not acknowledge the ones Sweeney hit on?

I'm baffled by that.

 

[bobber]

McAvoy had 52 hits and blocked 33 shots in 12 playoff games according to an article on stats. Shows he was physical.

 

[mjhfb]

I have mixed feelings, I just wish they had gone all in, like last year, when the elite core was younger.
As JFK said, "The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining".

 

[BB79]

Pastaneck

So is his neck made from ziti or angel hair?

 

[Bruinswillwin77]

Really though? You're going to list names like Kelly, Ryder etc and then not acknowledge the ones Sweeney hit on?

I'm baffled by that.

The funny part is Pastrnak wasn't mentioned. Sweeney was assistant GM to Chiarelli iirc.

 

[GordonHowe]

Most likely. There is a portion of the fanbase that is happy just to be consistently making playoffs, and there is a larger share still that happy or not will keep turning up, selling out games and buying merch as long as the team is vaguely competitive. In that sense the current management have absolutely done their job and it really does feel like that's enough to keep them employed until the bottom really does fall out and the team takes a proper slide.

And that's how it's generally been. The Bruins have historically had long-tenured GMs and presidents and are an organization that has almost always highly prized stability. That's good but it does tend to mean less proper highs even if it also mostly avoids the real lows. Safe and conservative but somewhat boring. For better or worse, we just have to roll with it and hope for the best.

Sure they've spent up to the cap. It's how they've spent it that is the problem.

It's who they've entrusted to do the spending.

 

[GordonHowe]

Well that’s on Neely and Sweeney not jacobs.

Though if there is one thing the jacobs can fix that’s a disaster every year, it’s the ice.

No. Ultimately, Jacobs is responsible for the results, or lack thereof, produced by the "team president" and GM he hired and has kept in place.

As for the Garden ice, what makes anyone believe he would spend the money to fix it?

There is zero pressure to do so, which means zero motivation to do anything.

The media doesn't say boo.

As noted, the beat guys, I get.

KPD, Steve Conroy, Shinzawa, even Haggerty or Murphy could draw attention to the issue, but to my knowledge, no one has.

I heard about it here -- from Fenway.

 

[BiteThisBurrows]

Yes, but where's the limit? How many tries do you get? I think it's very safe to say that the Bruins are not, and just about have never been, a team that's quick to fire people if success doesn't happen rapidly. The current GM and prez have been in position for quite a long time. Neely has one Cup, well over a decade ago now, Sweeney has none. They've been through one core of players, are now firmly on to another, have their 3rd coach in position. How much time do they get to guide the group that's emerging now to a Cup? Is it indefinite as long as they're competitive, or is there any sort of deadline?

That's fair but I think you have to acknowledge that it's quite an accomplishment to be able to stay competitive while you go from one core to another. Very few teams can ever manage that. Usually you drop to the bottom or near it before coming back.
What he does this off season matters a lot to where that deadline is imo. Let's just say he manages to add Lindholm and Zadorov (or something similar) and signs Swayman and the rest of the roster is most of what we had now. Add in Poitras maybe and say one other guy from Providence steps up, you going to fire the guy who put that team together? I think not. I think we'd be right in it and have a serious shot at winning it all.

 

[DaBroons]

No DK injury, Bruins make a long run in 2010.
2011 . . .if not for a historic reversal of a lifetime of agony save by TT in OT against the Habs, that "great" 2011 team bows out at home in the 1st round.
2019 at home Game 7. No Covid, things coulda been different there? Last year they go on a tear if they win Game 7 against FLA.
Mngt has a respectable body of work with some unfortunate breaks going against the boys.

Seven home playoff games with Geekie and Danton on your first line. I mean come on. Yes mngt created this mess but they gave JJ the best chance to get one last Cup for him.

My only real question is in regards to the dreadfull home playoff record.
Thoughts?
Hypothesis?
Widely regarded as one of the worst ice surfaces in the league. Remedies?

Great post.

2010: Bs up 3 games to none when Krejci gets hurt in Game 4. Also, Gagner was hurt and came back in Game 4. Huge talent swing when those two things happened.
2011: Came very close to losing to Habs in 4 straight. And Subban hit the post in OT in Game 7 and it stays out. Horton hits the post and it goes in.
2013: Injuries, injuries, injuries. Similar to 2011 in reverse; could easily have beaten Chicago in 4 straight had they won Game 1 in regulation. Nice pass, Krug. Also, without the big comeback in Game 7 against Toronto in Round 1, rumor was that JJ was going to fire everyone had they lost.
2019: The cup wasn't lost in Game 7; it was stolen in Games 2 and 5 by Crooked Koceri and Crooked Kelly.

The difference between losing and winning is so narrow sometimes.

 

[Bruinfanatic]

That's fair but I think you have to acknowledge that it's quite an accomplishment to be able to stay competitive while you go from one core to another. Very few teams can ever manage that. Usually you drop to the bottom or near it before coming back.
What he does this off season matters a lot to where that deadline is imo. Let's just say he manages to add Lindholm and Zadorov (or something similar) and signs Swayman and the rest of the roster is most of what we had now. Add in Poitras maybe and say one other guy from Providence steps up, you going to fire the guy who put that team together? I think not. I think we'd be right in it and have a serious shot at winning it all.

Detroit did it for I think 25 years and they also managed to win 4 Cups.Then it caught up on them.

 

[BiteThisBurrows]

I mean at some point just making the playoffs is definitely a failure. If I told you they'd make it the next 10 years but win no cups how would you feel?

I'd say Buffalo fans will be really annoyed by that

You never know who can win the cup though. Look at this year. Vegas-Dallas. That series was pretty much dead even and was won by a bounce here or there. Vegas was out in the first round but I guarantee you had they played Vancouver or Edmonton they'd still be playing and maybe win the cup. Dallas is a favorite now but the margin between winning and losing is really small.
We score on that second breakaway and maybe we play Florida game 7. As we've said a million times Marchand scores at the end of game 5 last year and maybe we win the cup last year. It's just that close.

We paid the price this year for the Bergeron-Krejci run last year. Can this current roster as is win the cup? Probably not. Can this roster with a few additions and one or two rookies stepping up win the cup? Absolutely it can.

The off season for me determines my stand on Sweeney. If this team is better on paper come next October or not. If he fails in this off season I will probably join you in the time for a change camp, but not before. We are close enough to keep trying and with the culture they've built here I am quite optimistic.

 

[Roll 4 Lines]

Yes I agree 100% but this year will be considered a success in ownership’s eyes based on this years expectations. Next year with all the cap space and trade options (Ullmark) they will expect more playoff success

Change the bolded to my eyes and I'm in 100% agreement.

I can't get on Sweeney's case about this year, because I agreed with what he did last year, which is what made this year so difficult.

They exceeded my expectations this year and now they need to make serious changes.

If I'm ownership I want to see a tough, tenacious "built for playoffs" team within 2-3 years.