Bruins mid-term grades are in

By Ryan Hannable

In the midst of the All-Star break the Bruins currently sit at third in the Eastern Conference standings. They have compiled 63 points, which puts them four points behind the Tampa Bay Lightning and eight behind the Philadelphia Flyers. This gives a chance to grade the Bruins and their first half performance.

Forwards: Overall the Bruins forwards have had pretty solid seasons thus far. Center Patrice Bergeron leads the team in points with 40. He is second on the team in goals, and second in assists with 16 and 24 respectively. Milan Lucic has been hot and cold, but in the end he has been producing. He leads the team in goals with 20, and has 13 assists. He could be a little more consistent with his physical play. New comer Nathan Horton has had a decent first half of the year in his first with the Bruins. 12 goals, and 16 assists is not too shabby. Veterans Mark Recchi and David Krejci continue to produce. Krejci leads the team in assists with 26, while Recchi has 32 points on the year. Brad Marchand has been a pleasant surprise, he had four shorthanded goals. Grade: B+

Defensemen: Captain Zdeno Chara has been inconsistent from time to time by his standards, but was still worthy of being named to the All-Star team. He has 10 goals and 16 assists. Some members of the media have called him out for not being as vocal as you would normally expect a captain to be when things are going bad. But, this is not who Chara is. He is not a vocal guy, he leads by example. Dennis Seindenberg has had a productive first half with 18 assists. Overall, this unit has been pretty good, but could be a little more consistent. Grade: B

Goaltending: Goaltending has been very solid so far this year for the Bruins. After last season many thought that Tuukka Rask would be taking over the full time position, but that has not been the case. Tim Thomas has had an outstanding season so far, including being named to the All-Star team. Thomas is 24-5 on the year with a 1.81 GAA. Rask has played better than his record shows. He is 4-10 with a 2.64 GAA. This is the position that needs to continue to be rock solid for the Bruins to try and reach their goal, the Stanley Cup Finals. Grade: A-

The Bruins are in pretty good shape going into the second half of the year. They have played like the best team in the Eastern Conference at times, but at other times one of the worst. They need to start playing more consistent and hit their peak at the right time going into the playoffs. The goal going into the year was to avenge last years playoff debacle versus the Flyers and get to the Stanley Cup Finals, that goal is still definitely within reach. Consistency will be the key.

Check back next week for next weeks update. Feel free to email me at ryanhannable@yahoo.com with any questions or comments. Follow me on Twitter at Hannable84.

Bruins are on the rise again

By Ryan Hannable

Don't look now, but the Bruins are quietly playing some of their best hockey of the season and are in the midst of a two game winning streak and have won five of their last six. In what was thought to be a difficult stretch with two back to backs, the Bruins handled it with ease winning those four games. The one loss came at home to the Penguins in an entertaining 3-2 defeat. They are now in first place in the Northeast Division and are in a tie for second in the Eastern Conference, seven points behind the Flyers.

Offense has been the key during this stretch. The Bruins have averaged nearly five goals a game (4.8) in their last six games. They scored seven goals twice and six once. That is exactly what they needed coming off of a stretch where they lost four of five and were having trouble finding the back of the net.

Center Patrice Bergeron has been on a tear of late for the Bruins. He has recorded seven goals in his last seven games, and has added 11 points. Bergeron stepping up definitely given the team someone to look at and follow, which was something that was being questioned a few weeks ago- a leader.

Captain Zdeno Chara's play was also questioned a few weeks ago, and he has responded as well. He has recorded at least one point in six of the last seven games, including five goals. Chara had a hat trick in the Martin Luther King Day matinee at the Garden, when the Bruins dominated the Hurricanes 7-0.

The past few weeks have shown that this Bruins team is pretty resilient. They won't give up, and they really want to win. They have been playing with a lot of emotion and a lot of heart, and it starts with their two leaders Chara and Bergeron. If those two continue to play and do their jobs like they can, this team could be on a roll for awhile.

Check back next week for my weekly Bruins column. Feel free to email me at ryanhannable@yahoo.com with any questions, comments or suggestions. Follow me on twitter at Hannable84.

Consistency is the key for this years Bruins

By Ryan Hannable

At times this season the Bruins have played like they are the best team in the Eastern Conference, but then at times they have played like one of the worst teams in the league. The team has been extremely inconsistent this season, and that is the thing that is keeping them from being considered one of the elite teams in the league.

Since Dec. 11 the Bruins have had a three game winning streak, and then after tonight they have won two in a row. But, they have also had a three game losing streak, and another streak losing three out of four. That is enough up and downs to last an entire half of a season, but the Bruins did that in about a months span.

Through all the ups and downs the media has called out the captain Zdano Chara and well as the coach Claude Julian. Some have said that Chara has not been the leader that the captain should be. The fact of the matter is that Chara is not a vocal leader, he leads by example. It cannot be expected for Chara to be the vocal leader some expect from the captain. The same media members have called out Julian saying he does not get the most from his players and can not fire the team up when they need it. He is not that kind of coach, he is a players coach. He is not one to go off on his team, that just isn't his style. These media members are trying to make Chara and Julian into a captain and a coach that they are not.

Milan Lucic has been inconsistent just like the rest of the team, but he still leads the team in goals with 16, and is second points with 28. Some have said he needs to be more physical though Patrice Bergeron leads the team in points with 29. Nathan Horton has made a positive impact in his first season as a Bruin. He is second in goals with 12, and third in points. The Bruins will need all three of these players to be on top of their game in the second half of the years and the playoffs in order for the team to repeat last years deep playoff run.

Goaltending has not really been an issue for the Bruins. Tuukka Rask and Tim Thomas have both seen time between the pipes, but Thomas has seen the most time and he has responded by playing outstanding. He has an 18-4 record, with a 1.84 GAA. Goaltending is not really the issue with this team, with Rask and Thomas each gives the team a solid chance of winning each time they take the ice. They can only hope to get the same consistency from the other positions in the second half of the season.

I will be posting a weekly Bruins column appearing here every week. Feel free to send me any questions/comments at ryanhannable@yahoo.com, or in the comment section. Follow me on twitter at Hannable84