The Athletic - Boston Bruins team of the decade: Few franchises could match this consistency

LouJersey

Registered User
Jun 29, 2002
68,265
42,281
Graves to Gardens
youtu.be
I'd wonder if we couldn't choose a better 4th liner than Thornton? I know he is more valuable, being an enforcer, than his stats alone would indicate, but would we really need more "police" than Lucic, McQuaid and Chara?

Best Bruins 4th line ever was Miller-O'Dwyer-Plett. My all time fave….. I did like when Byers played on that line as well.
 

DarrenBanks56

Registered User
May 16, 2005
12,064
7,867
They didn't have 3 dominant lines. Bergeron in
the 2008-2009 season was literally a shell
of what he was pre-concussion and what he
became from 2011 on. He had 8 goals regular
season and 0 in 11 PO games. Think about how
awful that production is.

Then move to D and G and Chara and Thomas
absolutely carried them. There was no Boychuk
and Seidenberg. Ference only played 3 PO games
so you were dealing with the likes of Wideman, Ward Montador, Hnidy and Mark Stuart.

Were they better than Carolina? Yes, but not
as much as you think. Carolina beat NJ and Boston
in the PO and were destroyed by Pitt.

Pitt would absolutely have exploited that Bruins D
and Bergeron was not close to what he was 2011
on.
we just disagree then.
bergeron was legit when we acquired recchi.
the ryder krejci wheeler line shouldve never been broken up for byron bitz.
the lucic savard kessel also solid. and we had kobasew who had a solid year.

we dominated teams that year. wanna say our gd was +70.
 

KillerMillerTime

Registered User
Jun 30, 2019
6,775
5,355
we just disagree then.
bergeron was legit when we acquired recchi.
the ryder krejci wheeler line shouldve never been broken up for byron bitz.
the lucic savard kessel also solid. and we had kobasew who had a solid year.

we dominated teams that year. wanna say our gd was +70.

Wheeler put up goose eggs in 8 PO games that year, he was terrible.

That Bruins team wasn't deep enough
on D to beat Pitt or Detroit. They couldn't beat
Carolina who took 3 out of the first 4.
 

Alberta_OReilly_Fan

Bruin fan since 1975
Nov 26, 2006
14,331
3,941
Edmonton Canada
im 51 years old now... theres a damn good argument to be made for bruins being the team of the last half century

final appearences… final wins... 500 regular seasons... president trophies... playoff appearances... hard to find any team that beats us in any of these catagories

then you look at the individual players... argument to be made we had the best player of all time bobby orr… a second dman that ranks easily top 5 all time... couple goalies that have posted numbers that rank all time great... the best powerforward in hockey history... Bergeron... chara... Esposito maybe the best slot scorer in history...

I have never complained about being a bruin fan because its been 50 years as the best franchise in hockey even if we didnt win every single season {no one else did either}
 

Alberta_OReilly_Fan

Bruin fan since 1975
Nov 26, 2006
14,331
3,941
Edmonton Canada
ill throw up my list of dream bruin team for my lifetime... past 50 years

first line... I like the current guys
pastrnak/Bergeron/marchand
I will say one of the top 3 2-way lines ive ever seen

neely/oates/lucic
who beats this as a legion of doom line?

middleton/Pederson/Cashman
Pederson only had 2 years of healthy hockey but wow was he ever good... Cashman was a little past his prime by this time but middleton is a justified hof player

oreilly/Esposito/kasper
im going with a ragtag 4th line because they would never see the ice at even strength so going with some roleplayers…

orr/chara
not going to worry right shot/left shot... if these arent the 2 most intimidating dmen of all time to play against they would rank top 10 for sure

bourque/park
park wasnt here a long time but he was very very very good

McAvoy/gonchar
gonchar never got a game for us but I will include him because doesnt really matter who the 3rd pair is... McAvoy has a long way to go before he makes the top 4 but maybe he will get there

Thomas
rask

2 cup worthy goalies even if rask hasnt actually won yet

lets face it... as bruin fans weve been pretty damn lucky to have this team to cheer for quite some time now
 

Dennis Bonvie

Registered User
Dec 29, 2007
29,206
17,561
Connecticut
ill throw up my list of dream bruin team for my lifetime... past 50 years

first line... I like the current guys
pastrnak/Bergeron/marchand
I will say one of the top 3 2-way lines ive ever seen

neely/oates/lucic
who beats this as a legion of doom line?

middleton/Pederson/Cashman
Pederson only had 2 years of healthy hockey but wow was he ever good... Cashman was a little past his prime by this time but middleton is a justified hof player

oreilly/Esposito/kasper
im going with a ragtag 4th line because they would never see the ice at even strength so going with some roleplayers…

orr/chara
not going to worry right shot/left shot... if these arent the 2 most intimidating dmen of all time to play against they would rank top 10 for sure

bourque/park
park wasnt here a long time but he was very very very good

McAvoy/gonchar
gonchar never got a game for us but I will include him because doesnt really matter who the 3rd pair is... McAvoy has a long way to go before he makes the top 4 but maybe he will get there

Thomas
rask

2 cup worthy goalies even if rask hasnt actually won yet

lets face it... as bruin fans weve been pretty damn lucky to have this team to cheer for quite some time now

Espo a role player? His role was scoring, not 4th liner. Besides, if he played on that line he'd of stayed on the ice long enough to play with everyone else.

No Letemin Lacher?
 

Lobster57

Registered User
Nov 22, 2006
7,673
5,843
Victoria, BC
ill throw up my list of dream bruin team for my lifetime... past 50 years

first line... I like the current guys
pastrnak/Bergeron/marchand
I will say one of the top 3 2-way lines ive ever seen

neely/oates/lucic
who beats this as a legion of doom line?

middleton/Pederson/Cashman
Pederson only had 2 years of healthy hockey but wow was he ever good... Cashman was a little past his prime by this time but middleton is a justified hof player

oreilly/Esposito/kasper
im going with a ragtag 4th line because they would never see the ice at even strength so going with some roleplayers…

orr/chara
not going to worry right shot/left shot... if these arent the 2 most intimidating dmen of all time to play against they would rank top 10 for sure

bourque/park
park wasnt here a long time but he was very very very good

McAvoy/gonchar
gonchar never got a game for us but I will include him because doesnt really matter who the 3rd pair is... McAvoy has a long way to go before he makes the top 4 but maybe he will get there

Thomas
rask

2 cup worthy goalies even if rask hasnt actually won yet

lets face it... as bruin fans weve been pretty damn lucky to have this team to cheer for quite some time now

I'd lose Pederson and include Thornton, i might even play him between Looch and Cam, just because that line is completely unstoppable physically. Oates would be great feeding Nifty and Cashman. I'd lose Gonchar and bring in my personal binky, Johnny Mantruck. He was an underrated PKer (one of the best i've ever seen at firing a puck around the corners and actually getting it out) and obviously a great hitter.

PP1
Espo/Cam/Middleton/Oates
Orr

Espo and Cam in front, Oates on the half wall, Nifty freelancing/bumper. Orr at the point

PP2
Bergy/Marchand/Thornton/Pasta
Bourque

PK1
Bergy/Marchand
Chara/Orr

PK2
Kasper/Whoever
Bourque/Park

Imagine how much fun Looch, Cam, O'Reilly and Cashman would have knowing those guys are going to be killing off the penalties.
 

Alberta_OReilly_Fan

Bruin fan since 1975
Nov 26, 2006
14,331
3,941
Edmonton Canada
I'd lose Pederson and include Thornton, i might even play him between Looch and Cam, just because that line is completely unstoppable physically. Oates would be great feeding Nifty and Cashman. I'd lose Gonchar and bring in my personal binky, Johnny Mantruck. He was an underrated PKer (one of the best i've ever seen at firing a puck around the corners and actually getting it out) and obviously a great hitter.

PP1
Espo/Cam/Middleton/Oates
Orr

Espo and Cam in front, Oates on the half wall, Nifty freelancing/bumper. Orr at the point

PP2
Bergy/Marchand/Thornton/Pasta
Bourque

PK1
Bergy/Marchand
Chara/Orr

PK2
Kasper/Whoever
Bourque/Park

Imagine how much fun Looch, Cam, O'Reilly and Cashman would have knowing those guys are going to be killing off the penalties.

I missed the boat not going with thornton over oates for our version of the legion of doom line

Has any team in past 50 years had more tough guys that could play a regular shift than us?

Man ive loved my time as a bruin fan... but as good as it was in the 1970s when everything was new to me... this past decade has ranked right there as good as it gets

Im shocked so many posters here still find more to complain about then cheer for. Its good to have a thread like this we can celebrate
 

Braunbaer

Registered User
May 21, 2012
3,752
1,101
I'll agree with everything besides McQuaid over Charlie?

That's a head scratcher. No disrespect to McQuaid and everything he did for this organization.. But Charlie has been playing top 4/2 pairing minutes since he entered the league.

It's not an overall best player roster, but the best players with regard to their position. McQuaid is a third-pairing guy; McAvoy is not.

Otherwise I'd also make a strong case for ranking Savard higher than Kelly and Campbell.
 

JCRO

At least I'm safe inside my mind
Sponsor
Mar 8, 2011
8,548
9,372
It's not an overall best player roster, but the best players with regard to their position. McQuaid is a third-pairing guy; McAvoy is not.

Otherwise I'd also make a strong case for ranking Savard higher than Kelly and Campbell.
Well see that's what I was thinking prior to posting that.

However, Seguin played what? 1 1/2 seasons on the first line RW? Krug has been in the top four for quite a few seasons as well. While they both spent time on lower spots on the roster, they didnt spend all that time there during this decade..

Also I was thinking the same thing on Savvy but he didnt play much at all in 2010 so idk if he counts.

Idk, I guess Im just being nit picky. This who thing seems silly to me.
 

CharasLazyWrister

Registered User
Sep 8, 2008
24,360
21,007
Northborough, MA
Iginla really should not have been a tough cut...

He wasn’t even very good in the one year he was here. The fact that he made it to 30 goals that year was extremely deceiving.
 

jgatie

HFBoards Sponsor
Sponsor
Sep 22, 2011
11,376
11,799
Iginla really should not have been a tough cut...

He wasn’t even very good in the one year he was here. The fact that he made it to 30 goals that year was extremely deceiving.


First we have the guy who says "ugly" goals don't count. Now "deceiving" goals don't count? The guy scored 30 goals at the age of 36., a feat not many achieve, and you are calling it deceiving?

Hot take, as usual.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Spooner st

CharasLazyWrister

Registered User
Sep 8, 2008
24,360
21,007
Northborough, MA
First we have the guy who says "ugly" goals don't count. Now "deceiving" goals don't count? The guy scored 30 goals at the age of 36., a feat not many achieve, and you are calling it deceiving?

Hot take, as usual.

Didn’t say they don’t count. I just was not impressed with Iginla during his time here, given his reputation coming in. You can label it a “hot take”. I label it “my opinion” on his time here and that opinion has been there since halfway through the 13-14 season.

He fell off a cliff completely within two years after he left. He was given top line even strength and PP minutes during his time here with a good surrounding cast. Not trying to say “anyone could score 30” (this has easily been disproven), but many fans wanted him to be the answer to put us over the top to another Cup and he was far from it. Also worth mentioning that Pitt fans were pretty underwhelmed with his playoff performance the previous year (at least speaking with the ones with whom I interacted).

Iginla was honestly up there with Loui Eriksson in my book. Guys that showed decent stats, but didn’t at all convince me thy were going to take the team to the next level, like a lot of fans wanted with their role on the team. I loved Jarome’s heart and drive (one thing I didn’t like about Loui), but he didn’t challenge the opposition on a nightly basis like I wanted.

Disagree with me all you want. I respect that. But I’m certainly not simply trying to raise controversy with a “hot take”.
 

jgatie

HFBoards Sponsor
Sponsor
Sep 22, 2011
11,376
11,799
30 goals is 30 goals. 30 goals out of a 36 year old is not "deceiving" in the least. He also had 5 fights, 4th on the team behind Thornton, McQuaid and Lucic. Name the last 36 year old that scored 30 and had 5 fights? And what does the fact that he fell off a cliff the next season have to do with what he did for the Bruins?

Sorry, but we will agree to disagree.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Spooner st

Lobster57

Registered User
Nov 22, 2006
7,673
5,843
Victoria, BC
Hot take:

Jason Allison is the guy you want centering Lucic and Neely in the hypothetical monster line
ughh..i always forget Allison, he had a couple fantastic years. He'd be a great choice if Jumbo didn't exist, but Thornton's mean streak (especially pre-face-cave-in) give him the edge for that line

Guerin, Muzz, Samsonov and the good version of Rolston all deserve consideration for the 50 year team too. Really tried to find a way to sneak Rolston in for the 2nd PK unit, but i don't think you can have him over Cashman or O'Reilly overall.
 
Last edited:

BigGoalBrad

Registered User
Jun 3, 2012
9,908
2,684
30 goals is 30 goals. 30 goals out of a 36 year old is not "deceiving" in the least. He also had 5 fights, 4th on the team behind Thornton, McQuaid and Lucic. Name the last 36 year old that scored 30 and had 5 fights? And what does the fact that he fell off a cliff the next season have to do with what he did for the Bruins?

Sorry, but we will agree to disagree.

He wasn't cooked and he had 29 goals the next season and 22 the season after that. His 3rd year in Colorado was his first mediocre season of his career and he hung them up afterwards.

Iggy was great in 2014. The problem was his behavior in 2013 and the bonus laden nature of his contract which screwed us in 2015 leading to the JB trade and a step back when our core was in their absolute primes that didn't need to happen. If you look up mercenary in the dictionary there will be a picture of him but its not reasonable to expect players to leave money on the table he just did us no favors at all. We couldn't even compete with Colorado to keep him because of the 2014 contract. But thats not really his fault.
 

BigGoalBrad

Registered User
Jun 3, 2012
9,908
2,684
This is mine for their careers with each guy in their prime. Oddly enough the lines look great as do the D pairings.

Iggy-Bergy-Recchi
Marchand-Seguin-Pasternak
Wheeler-Krejci-Horton
DeBrusk-Coyle-Lucic

Kelly/Peverley

Chara-Mac
Krug-Carlo
Seids-Boychuk

Ference

Thomas/Rask
 

Pay Carl

punished “venom” krejci
Jun 23, 2011
13,094
3,192
Vermont
I'll agree with everything besides McQuaid over Charlie?

That's a head scratcher. No disrespect to McQuaid and everything he did for this organization.. But Charlie has been playing top 4/2 pairing minutes since he entered the league.

They have been making a ton of these and every single one has had some glaring omissions

He picked Casey DeSmith over Quick for the all New England team, no Kucherov on the all European team lol

I honestly could probably do a better job with these as could just about everyone on here :laugh:
 
  • Like
Reactions: JCRO

McGarnagle

Yes.
Aug 5, 2017
28,435
37,669
2014 Iginla was a good player, and he was one of the few Bruins who actually brought it during those playoffs.

Yet I can't view him as anything but a net negative. I'm fully convinced he cost us a cup in 2013 (not only for screwing us over with the trade, but also hurting Horton in a fight afterward), as well as his bonus-laden contract that he extracted out of Chiarelli led to the dismantling of the old core in 2015 starting with the Boychuk deal.
 

Bruinswillwin77

My name is Pete
Sponsor
May 29, 2011
21,860
10,850
Hooksett, NH
Reminds me of one of those scratch tickets where you scratch off all the numbers, and every single number is a winning value, and then they're all worth pennies and thinking you won thousands turned into like 100 bucks.
 

member 96824

Guest
2014 Iginla was a good player, and he was one of the few Bruins who actually brought it during those playoffs.

Yet I can't view him as anything but a net negative. I'm fully convinced he cost us a cup in 2013 (not only for screwing us over with the trade, but also hurting Horton in a fight afterward), as well as his bonus-laden contract that he extracted out of Chiarelli led to the dismantling of the old core in 2015 starting with the Boychuk deal.

Pretty sure if Iginla had it his way, all of his money would have been guaranteed. That’s all Chia, but I don’t blame him for going all in on that roster.... I just blame him for backing off the stance, not replacing Seidenberg when he went down, and leaving the top 4 with a gaping hole
 

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Ad

-->