The Athletic - Boston Will the Bruins improve? Will Zdeno Chara return? Our fan survey results

[Mathews28]

They won’t suck.

 

[RoccoF14]

Once people get over their bitterness that we didn’t sign Taylor Hall to a stupid contract, they just might come to appreciate the fact that the Craig Smith signing for $3mil/yr just might be one of the best moves made during this free agency.

He’s a solid middle 6 winger that will pot 20+ for excellent value, and anyone who doesn’t think he will make us better offensively hasn’t watched him play.

 

[BruinDust]

Once people get over their bitterness that we didn’t sign Taylor Hall to a stupid contract, they just might come to appreciate the fact that the Craig Smith signing for $3mil/yr just might be one of the best moves made during this free agency.

He’s a solid middle 6 winger that will pot 20+ for excellent value, and anyone who doesn’t think he will make us better offensively hasn’t watched him play.

Give him to Krejci and let him fire away. Smith loves to shoot. There is some Horton there in his offensive game.

 

[Over the volcano]

The old Dan Duquette "more days in first place" discussion all over again.

Would you rather be steadily in contention over a long period of time?

or

Would you rather be up and down? Win a Cup. Go into the lottery. Win another Cup.

We've assuredly been spoiled round these parts, and we've seen all sides of this.

The Patriots had a long stretch from 2005-2013 where they were winning divisions and making deep runs, but not winning Super Bowls.

The Red Sox as of late are feast or famine. Win a World Series one year. Bottom out the next.

The Celtics and Bruins have been consistently in the top echelon of their respective leagues, but have no hardware to show for it over this most recent window.

Focusing in on just the B's: Is it better now than it was in the mid to late 90s and early 2000s?

Yes, of course.

But the bar has been raised in this town. The core has aged. They came away with just the one Cup.

Now, they've let Krug walk and haven't brought in a big time player along the likes of a Taylor Hall to get fans excited about the team.

To be honest, these survey results make the fanbase look a little soft as far as I'm concerned.

Easy to answer when you assume one option includes championships the other doesn't. Think a more fair comp would be "would you rather be in contention regularly or sporadically?"

 

[Alberta_OReilly_Fan]

Thanks for this.

Tellingly, "Roughly the same" speaks volumes relative to the direction of this management, and their team.

Meh.

That's what it's going to be folks, for the foreseeable future, until the Stockholm Brothers are finally jettisoned.

4 playoff victories in the last 2 seasons (most in nhl)

3 straight seasons top 5 finsih in league standinds (best in nhl)

3 trips to cup finals in last 11 seasons (best in nhl)

Meh

 

[smithformeragent]

This is like when Chiarelli cited that his was the only club which had made it to the 2nd round of the playoffs 3 consecutive years (or something similar).

Who cares?

The bar has been set high in this region.

 

[DominicT]

4 playoff victories in the last 2 seasons (most in nhl)

3 straight seasons top 5 finsih in league standinds (best in nhl)

3 trips to cup finals in last 11 seasons (best in nhl)

Meh

Past success does not always translate to future glory, especially when age comes into play.

BTW, didn't St Louis also have 4 straight playoff series wins? And how about Tampa Bay?

And they did it in the last two seasons and won the ultimate prize - the Stanley Cup - which should be the goal of every franchise and fan base.

 

[Alberta_OReilly_Fan]

Past success does not always translate to future glory, especially when age comes into play.

BTW, didn't St Louis also have 4 straight playoff series wins? And how about Tampa Bay?

And they did it in the last two seasons and won the ultimate prize - the Stanley Cup - which should be the goal of every franchise and fan base.

Yes 4 playoff wins in last 2 years is the best anyone has done. I think vegas did it as well maybe?

I wonder if tampa, stlouis, and vegas fans spend as much time bitching as we do?

 

[Alberta_OReilly_Fan]

This is like when Chiarelli cited that his was the only club which had made it to the 2nd round of the playoffs 3 consecutive years (or something similar).

Who cares?

The bar has been set high in this region.

Honestly i think there are many fans who for their own sake...shouldnt declare their favorite team until the end of a season

If you cant find joy and pride watching your boys fight for you with heart... why get involved at all?

 

[Alberta_OReilly_Fan]

Past success does not always translate to future glory, especially when age comes into play.

BTW, didn't St Louis also have 4 straight playoff series wins? And how about Tampa Bay?

And they did it in the last two seasons and won the ultimate prize - the Stanley Cup - which should be the goal of every franchise and fan base.

In my lifetime st louis has 1 cup win
Tampa has 2
And boston has as many as both teams togethe

Yes it should be the goal

Toronto spends money and has zero
Rangers... 1
Philly... 2
Chicago god bless their success... not more than us

How many teams have won more cups than us in my lifetime?

Maybe we should all be oiler fans? After all they won... thats what we should cheer right?

 

[Mr. Make-Believe]

Honestly i think there are many fans who for their own sake...shouldnt declare their favorite team until the end of a season

If you cant find joy and pride watching your boys fight for you with heart... why get involved at all?

My opinion?

If management had done whatever it could to put the best team on the ice (not ignored the second line), I'd be disappointed with the lack of Cups, but I wouldn't pin it on Sweeney. It's the lack of execution in adding any impact players outside of Coyle that really hurts. Never thought they needed that core piece, but the complimentary talent has really lacked both in ambition and practice.

Still appreciate that I get to watch a team I love with players I love play good hockey nearly every game.

 

[LSCII]

Man, I know I'm in the minority here, but I'm good with Chara going elsewhere. His play has declined so much that I want no part in continually watching him be a shell of his old self, and having his sub par play hurt the team. He's fine situationally but if he's here, Cassidy won't use him that way. He'll be getting 21 minutes per night in all aspects, and simply he's not that guy any more.

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

Man, I know I'm in the minority here, but I'm good with Chara going elsewhere. His play has declined so much that I want no part in continually watching him be a shell of his old self, and having his sub par play hurt the team. He's fine situationally but if he's here, Cassidy won't use him that way. He'll be getting 21 minutes per night in all aspects, and simply he's not that guy any more.

Except he doesnt...

This is his usage breakdown the past year:

21:01 min/gm
17:46 ES TOI
3:10 PK TOI
0:03 PP TOI
64.3% d-zone start

Usage in 2018-19:

21:05 min/gm
17:56 ES TOI
3:05 PK TOI
0:04 PP TOI
53.2% d-zone start

and no he didnt hurt the team, defensively he was neck and neck with Carlo for best on the team. Yes his offense is gone, but put him with a puck carrier and problem solved.

He was Top 5 in the NHL in +/-, defensive point shares and PK time.
He had the highest d-zone start % in the league among players who played every day
He was Top 2 on the team in +/-, defensive point shares, blocks, PK time, d zone start, ESGA

You can't judge him on bubble play. No surprise a 42 yr old player looked slow after a 3 month break. By that logic we should dump Carlo because he is a bust given how awful he was in the bubble too

 

[LSCII]

Except he doesnt...

This is his usage breakdown the past year:

21:01 min/gm
17:46 ES TOI
3:10 PK TOI
0:03 PP TOI
64.3% d-zone start

Usage in 2018-19:

21:05 min/gm
17:56 ES TOI
3:05 PK TOI
0:04 PP TOI
53.2% d-zone start

and no he didnt hurt the team, defensively he was neck and neck with Carlo for best on the team. Yes his offense is gone, but put him with a puck carrier and problem solved.

He was Top 5 in the NHL in +/-, defensive point shares and PK time.
He had the highest d-zone start % in the league among players who played every day
He was Top 2 on the team in +/-, defensive point shares, blocks, PK time, d zone start, ESGA

You can't judge him on bubble play. No surprise a 42 yr old player looked slow after a 3 month break. By that logic we should dump Carlo because he is a bust given how awful he was in the bubble too

Do you think he looked good last year? Ignore the advanced stats and just tell me what you saw. Is his skating up to snuff in today's game? Again, no snippets of advanced stats, just what you see.

 

[BMC]

Do you think he looked good last year? Ignore the advanced stats and just tell me what you saw. Is his skating up to snuff in today's game? Again, no snippets of advanced stats, just what you see.

He was fine until the lockdown. Those 3 months off definitely took a toll. It remains to be seen if the Chara we saw during the bubble season is now the real Chara.

 

[LSCII]

He was fine until the lockdown. Those 3 months off definitely took a toll. It remains to be seen if the Chara we saw during the bubble season is now the real Chara.

Look at his game log month by month. He started off strong and then went south very quickly. Plus 1o, plus 6, plus 3, minus 2. First two months of the season he had 12 points, and just 2 the rest of the way. He didn't just start out strong and fade, he dropped off a cliff. And this was well before the often thrown out 3 month layoff. He was gassed. He wasn't effective. He can't skate well enough any more. If there's a lose puck, he's not winning the foot race and he's terrible at clearing the puck from his own zone. I've seen enough, especially if he's going to get 21-22 minutes per night.

Zdeno Chara

 

[PatriceBergeronFan]

It is still so hard to believe for all the talk by management that Smith for Krug is the "change".

These surveys are accurate to my beliefs as well. Bring Chara back.

 

[HooperDrivesTheBoat]

Man, I know I'm in the minority here, but I'm good with Chara going elsewhere. His play has declined so much that I want no part in continually watching him be a shell of his old self, and having his sub par play hurt the team. He's fine situationally but if he's here, Cassidy won't use him that way. He'll be getting 21 minutes per night in all aspects, and simply he's not that guy any more.

I’m with you on this one, Lonnie. Love the big guy and wish him the best either way. Personally, I would rather the team say goodbye and see what they have in Zboril and maybe Vaak or seek a trade for a more mobile D.

If he does sign for one more year in Boston, they need to severely cut his TOI. Like PK and against other team’s slower, larger players. I don’t see that happening though, should he sign.

I’m conflicted because, in my opinion, Chara is up there with the great, larger-than-life Bruins defensemen who defined their respective teams for years. And he can still be effective under the right circumstances. It’s just not at 20+ minutes per night.

 

[LSCII]

I’m with you on this one, Lonnie. Love the big guy and wish him the best either way. Personally, I would rather the team say goodbye and see what they have in Zboril and maybe Vaak or seek a trade for a more mobile D.

If he does sign for one more year in Boston, they need to severely cut his TOI. Like PK and against other team’s slower, larger players. I don’t see that happening though, should he sign.

I’m conflicted because, in my opinion, Chara is up there with the great, larger-than-life Bruins defensemen who defined their respective teams for years. And he can still be effective under the right circumstances. It’s just not at 20+ minutes per night.

That's just it in a nutshell. I don't dislike the guy at all and I've loved his time here and the cup win, but it's simply time. His skills are declining given his age, and they have plenty of youth that should hopefully be able to make the next step. It's a crossroads and I hope they make the right choice for the long term future of the team, and not the short term allegiance to an aging player.

 

[Alberta_OReilly_Fan]

If we needed chara its a no brainer to bring him back

The fact that we might be better off going with kids is actually a very good thing

Of course, if chara was still chara... then hed be the one to decide. His falloff is a reality. And he is no longer a savior

So... do we want a 40 year old in our 3rd pair? Are we ok trying zboril/vaakanainen with moore as a safty net?

It is only a 6th dman we are talking about. If no one fills this spot, we can go shopping

My heart says i want chara back... but in either event we will be ok.

 

[Don Cherry]

My opinion?

If management had done whatever it could to put the best team on the ice (not ignored the second line), I'd be disappointed with the lack of Cups, but I wouldn't pin it on Sweeney. It's the lack of execution in adding any impact players outside of Coyle that really hurts. Never thought they needed that core piece, but the complimentary talent has really lacked both in ambition and practice.

Still appreciate that I get to watch a team I love with players I love play good hockey nearly every game.

Coyle was definitely an impact piece, but not really at the time. To me he has become an impact player since we got him. My point is the only impact player added was kind of by accident.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

In my lifetime st louis has 1 cup win
Tampa has 2
And boston has as many as both teams togethe

Yes it should be the goal

Toronto spends money and has zero
Rangers... 1
Philly... 2
Chicago god bless their success... not more than us

How many teams have won more cups than us in my lifetime?

Maybe we should all be oiler fans? After all they won... thats what we should cheer right?

Canadiens, Islanders, Oilers, Penguins, Red Wings.

Devils also have 3.

 

[4ORRBRUIN]

Bring Z back.

As much as he was not pretty to watch sometimes neither was Carlo

 

[Sevendust]

That's just it in a nutshell. I don't dislike the guy at all and I've loved his time here and the cup win, but it's simply time. His skills are declining given his age, and they have plenty of youth that should hopefully be able to make the next step. It's a crossroads and I hope they make the right choice for the long term future of the team, and not the short term allegiance to an aging player.

Chara's minutes should have been cut down for a long time. The offensive game isnt really there anymore and age catched up with him especially with his speed. Still I would sign him up for the shortened season and let him play on the third line and pk. Losing Krug and Chara and then commit both roster places to youngsters is too much for me. Give Chara that last season and an well deserved farewell with the team, fans and city.

 

[bb74]

I’m with you on this one, Lonnie. Love the big guy and wish him the best either way. Personally, I would rather the team say goodbye and see what they have in Zboril and maybe Vaak or seek a trade for a more mobile D.

If he does sign for one more year in Boston, they need to severely cut his TOI. Like PK and against other team’s slower, larger players. I don’t see that happening though, should he sign.

I’m conflicted because, in my opinion, Chara is up there with the great, larger-than-life Bruins defensemen who defined their respective teams for years. And he can still be effective under the right circumstances. It’s just not at 20+ minutes per night.

Orr finished somewhere else.
Bourque finished somewhere else.
Chara can finish somewhere else.

It's not a slag on their legacy as a Bruin, just at a given time, the "time has come". It shouldn't impact what Chara has done for the franchise and his number will still go to the rafters either way. If they didn't sign Miller to a stupid deal I don't think this whole Chara thing would be a topic really. If not for that stupidity this would just be a guy riding into he sunset and fare thee well either way.