Boston sports fans have never had it so good - The Boston Globe
Bruins
The Bruins aren’t going to win the whole thing, but in the long haul they aren’t going to embarrass the family, either. Is that a fair appraisal?
First of all, hoist a stein for David Pastrnak. Signing him to a six-year deal a little more than a year ago looks like a managerial move of complete brilliance. He has emerged as one of the league’s top goal scorers, and he won’t turn 23 until May. On a team laden with enticing young talent, he is the standout. Let’s hope no cheap shot artist upends his career. Sadly, those creeps still exist.
It’s a good thing he is having such a good year, otherwise the Bruins would have who-knows-how-many fewer points. This is not a high-powered team overall, averaging fewer than three goals a game. Fortunately, team defense is a strength, presuming enough of their defensemen stay healthy. They’ve been forced to operate at different times without Zdeno Chara and Charlie McAvoy, among others. But they still rank high in goals allowed, which is also a testament to the goaltending duo of Tuukka Rask and Jaroslav Halak.
Two things are almost 100 percent guarantees in each Bruins game. The first is that Patrice Bergeron will win far more than his share of faceoffs and will do subtle things that might not occur to just about anyone else. Oh, and how’d you like his comeback game? Against Nashville? It was two goals and two assists, in case you missed it.
The second thing is that Brad Marchand will do something good and then something everyone on the other side will say is bad. At least he hasn’t licked anyone lately.
Keep an eye on GM Don Sweeney. Last year he went for Rick Nash for a veteran splash. I’m betting he’s got his eye on another big deal come the trade deadline.
Bruins
The Bruins aren’t going to win the whole thing, but in the long haul they aren’t going to embarrass the family, either. Is that a fair appraisal?
First of all, hoist a stein for David Pastrnak. Signing him to a six-year deal a little more than a year ago looks like a managerial move of complete brilliance. He has emerged as one of the league’s top goal scorers, and he won’t turn 23 until May. On a team laden with enticing young talent, he is the standout. Let’s hope no cheap shot artist upends his career. Sadly, those creeps still exist.
It’s a good thing he is having such a good year, otherwise the Bruins would have who-knows-how-many fewer points. This is not a high-powered team overall, averaging fewer than three goals a game. Fortunately, team defense is a strength, presuming enough of their defensemen stay healthy. They’ve been forced to operate at different times without Zdeno Chara and Charlie McAvoy, among others. But they still rank high in goals allowed, which is also a testament to the goaltending duo of Tuukka Rask and Jaroslav Halak.
Two things are almost 100 percent guarantees in each Bruins game. The first is that Patrice Bergeron will win far more than his share of faceoffs and will do subtle things that might not occur to just about anyone else. Oh, and how’d you like his comeback game? Against Nashville? It was two goals and two assists, in case you missed it.
The second thing is that Brad Marchand will do something good and then something everyone on the other side will say is bad. At least he hasn’t licked anyone lately.
Keep an eye on GM Don Sweeney. Last year he went for Rick Nash for a veteran splash. I’m betting he’s got his eye on another big deal come the trade deadline.
