Boston Bruins Should the Bruins raise #40 to the rafters

[McGarnagle]

Curious to hear people's thoughts on this.

Statistically he should absolutely be up there - best goaltender this franchise has had since expansion. But I know a lot of people here have the "Brimsek didn't get his number retired" thesis and goalies have high standards, and comparison with Tim Thomas is going to complicate matters. Plus the unfairness of not having backstopped them to a cup as a starter.

I still say absolutely. Regardless of whether it's formally retired I don't think you're going to see anyone wear the #40 on a Bruins jersey again.

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[BruinsFanSince94]

Went with Option B. After Chara and Bergeron. (Who should both be done pretty much after they retire).

 

[McGarnagle]

Went with Option B. After Chara and Bergeron. (Who should both be done pretty much after they retire).

I'd retire Bergeron's number the day he chooses to hang them up. And Chara that same season as well. I think Krejci should eventually get it too but I'm not sure there will be enough groundswell to push them to retire it. He'll probably get the Rick Middleton 15 years later retirement.

 

[UConn126]

Love Tuukka, he will always be remembered, but voted no - because Thomas/Cheevers/Brimsek aren't retired.

There's been countless great Bruins players over the years, but only the truly special ones go up in the rafters. I think Bergeron is the only one who stands a realistic chance.

 

[The National]

Sorry no.

 

[rocketdan9]

Love Tuukka, he will always be remembered, but voted no - because Thomas/Cheevers/Brimsek aren't retired.

There's been countless great Bruins players over the years, but only the truly special ones go up in the rafters. I think Bergeron is the only one who stands a realistic chance.

Its going to be an interesting debate. Because if Bergeron and Chara are shoe ins. Why not Rask

All of these players won "best of" awards. Led the league in regular season stats or top 5 several times

 

[CharasLazyWrister]

If we’re going off of his longevity with the team and stats, it’s sort of hard to argue no?

I mean…I sort of want to say no (Bergeron is a slam dunk on the other hand), but objectively I feel like it should be a yes.

 

[WhalerTurnedBruin55]

Love Tuukka, he will always be remembered, but voted no - because Thomas/Cheevers/Brimsek aren't retired.

There's been countless great Bruins players over the years, but only the truly special ones go up in the rafters. I think Bergeron is the only one who stands a realistic chance.

Tuukka has longevity in the organization and provided consistency in net for over a decade.

That said, not enough hardware or even notoriety amongst his peers (Price is probably the best career to compare against, and I don't think Price would/should get his number retired. He's also played quite a bit less games played than some comparables, using Rinne, Lundqvist, Luongo as past comparables (and threw in Tim Thomas just for the numbers), and Price as a current. None of which won a cup as a starter (except for Thomas), but all got very close, the same as Tuukka.

I'm not an expert on this matter, but I don't think there's enough precedent to retire his number.

Rask: 564 gp, 308 wins , 2.28 GAA, 0.921 SV%

Current comparables
Price: 707 gp, 360 wins, 2.50 GAA, 0.917 SV%

Past comparables:
Tim Thomas: 426 gp, 214 wins, 2.52 GAA, 0.920 SV% - Number not retired
Rinne: 683 gp, 369 wins, 2.43 GAA, 0.917 SV% - Retired Number
Lundqvist: 887 gp, 459 wins, 2.43 GAA, 0.918 SV% - Retired Number
Luongo: 1044 gp, 489 wins, 2.52 GAA, 0.919 SV% - Retired Number

Rask has the best GAA and SV% amongst all of them, but has less games played save Tim Thomas.

I also hate how anything but idolizing Tuukka falls under, the "Tuukka hater" moniker, but 2 trophies (Vezina in 2014, Jennings in 2020), a cup as a backup, and 2 finals appearance as starter, I don't think is enough.

 

[Alicat]

100% yes.

 

[Ratty]

No. Bruins Hall of Fame....yes.

 

[EvilDead]

No. Until Tim Thomas gets his number retired, Tuukka Rask shouldn't have his number in the rafters. And even then...I don't like the idea of more numbers getting retired in the first place for the Bruins because of the limited amount of numbers left. The only player I make an exception for is Bergeron because of the fact he is the best two way forward in the game since Bob Gainey.

 

[Mr. Make-Believe]

Of course. No brainer.

I'm not fussy about the timing. But "when" not "if".

 

[UConn126]

Its going to be an interesting debate. Because if Bergeron and Chara are shoe ins. Why not Rask

All of these players won "best of" awards. Led the league in regular season stats or top 5 several times

What sets Bergeron apart is his longevity with the franchise. He's been here almost 20 years. He was here before Chara and Rask and he's still here after.

 

[DiggityDog]

No. Until Tim Thomas gets his number retired, Tuukka Rask shouldn't have his number in the rafters. And even then...I don't like the idea of more numbers getting retired in the first place for the Bruins because of the limited amount of numbers left. The only player I make an exception for is Bergeron because of the fact he is the best two way forward in the game since Bob Gainey.

No Zee?

 

[rocketdan9]

No. Bruins Hall of Fame....yes.

If Rask doesn't get in. Would say Jonathan Quick make it in? They played around the same amount of games. Wins etc.

 

[EvilDead]

No Zee?

I love Chara and I think he was critical to turning this franchise around. I don't know if he had enough longevity with the team to count. That said...I wouldn't say no to Chara getting his number up there too.

 

[quietbruinfan]

No, absolutely not. Thomas was better and Cheevers has his cups. Tuukka was a very good goalie not a great one.

 

[UncleRico]

No. Until Tim Thomas gets his number retired, Tuukka Rask shouldn't have his number in the rafters. And even then...I don't like the idea of more numbers getting retired in the first place for the Bruins because of the limited amount of numbers left. The only player I make an exception for is Bergeron because of the fact he is the best two way forward in the game since Bob Gainey.

Tim Thomas was a starter for the bruins for 6 years. He doesn’t have the longevity.

 

[rocketdan9]

No Zee?

There is no way the big guy doesn't get in. I think he also makes the HOF. Due to size + just how dominant he was once upon a time

 

[UncleRico]

It will always amaze me the people that hold Tuukka not having a cup as if it was his fault. People act like the top line didn’t completely disappear in the St.Louis series and that he’s had a very below average 2nd, 3rd and 4th lines for almost his entire tenure.

3rd all time in save percentage during the regular season and tied for 9th all time in playoff save percentage.

 

[smithformeragent]

Nope.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

Not sure that they should, but pretty sure that they will.

 

[smithformeragent]

Curious to hear people's thoughts on this.

Statistically he should absolutely be up there - best goaltender this franchise has had since expansion. But I know a lot of people here have the "Brimsek didn't get his number retired" thesis and goalies have high standards, and comparison with Tim Thomas is going to complicate matters. Plus the unfairness of not having backstopped them to a cup as a starter.

I still say absolutely. Regardless of whether it's formally retired I don't think you're going to see anyone wear the #40 on a Bruins jersey again.

I agree on the bolded since it’s an uncommon number unlike 1, 30, and 33.

 

[EvilDead]

Tim Thomas was a starter for the bruins for 6 years. He doesn’t have the longevity.

He also has two Vezina trophies, a William Jennings trophy, a Stanley Cup that he helped drag the Bruins to, and a Conn Smythe after posting the best GAA and save percentage in the playoffs (after doing so in the regular season too) since Bernie Parent. All of which happened in a shorter stretch than Rask.

Fact of the matter is that Tim Thomas had a better stretch at the peak of his career than Tuukka Rask did and Timmy should have his number in the rafters before Rask.

 

[BruinsNetwork]

12 seasons in Boston (double that of Tim Thomas) with his lowest Sv% coming in at .912 during that span. The longevity and consistency of this player is unmatched by all but a few modern-era goalies. Rask has the most wins in franchise history and that’s a feat we likely won’t see again for decades to come.

Swayman has potential, but to put that in context, he would have to average 30 wins every single season for the next decade to eclipse Rask’s win record, bringing him to roughly the same age Rask is today.

Not sure when it’ll happen, but no, I don’t think anyone in Boston should wear No. 40 again.