Bourque: Bruins 'A Few Years Away' From Returning To Cup Contender Status
BOSTON (CBS) -- There isn't much faith in the Boston Bruins right now, as they cling to their playoff lives following a 2-1 shootout loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night.
The B's no longer control their own fate, and need some help if they want their season to continue past this weekend. While it looked as though they had a playoff spot all but secured just a few weeks ago, it's very likely they'll be heading home early for the second straight season.
Bruins legend Ray Bourque joined 98.5 The Sports Hub's Zolak & Bertrand on Wednesday to discuss the current state of the team, and isn't too surprised the B's find themselves in such a dire situation.
"Like everybody else, it's somewhat surprising because of how well they had it going three or four weeks ago. But I looked at this team at the beginning of the year and thought they'd be battling for a playoff spot," said Bourque. "For me, it was a lack of depth. They have some top end players in [David] Krejci, [Patrice] Bergeron, [Brad] Marchand and [Loui] Eriksson, but if those guys aren't doing their job there isn't much coming after that."
Things may not get better anytime soon, either.
"They had a great team for [six years], and going into each season you thought they'd compete for a Cup. They're no longer that team," said Bourque. "[Don Sweeney] inherited some problems coming in with the salary cap, and under these rules now, it's so tough to manage or keep a team together. That's what he's going through now.
"They have some guys in the pipeline, but they're still a few years away. Patience is going to have to happen here for this thing to get back on track. I have a lot of confidence in Donny, but it's not going to happen this year or probably next year," he said.
Listen to the full interview here:
