5 Reasons To Be Excited About The Bruins - Besides Tuukka Rask
By Matt Dolloff, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- Don't look now - OK, maybe take a peek - but the Bruins enter Tuesday's action with the fifth-most points in the National Hockey League. Other teams have a couple of days to catch up, but the B's are off to a solid 10-6 start that you probably didn't predict.
The number-one reason for the Bruins' early-season success, by far, is goaltender Tuukka Rask and his 1.54 goals-against average, which is second in the NHL behind only Montreal's Carey Price. Rask is also fourth in the NHL with a .945 save percentage and tied for the league lead in shutouts with three.
Rask has been spectacular, and it's especially impressive that he's been the Bruins' team MVP while battling through an apparent lower-body injury. But the goaltender hasn't been the entire story for this team. He hasn't stolen the win every night. Here are some reasons to be excited about this Bruins team besides the goaltender ...
David Pastrnak is breaking out in a major way. Bruins GM Don Sweeney has remained steadfast in his dedication to developing the Bruins' young players and prospects. Winger David Pastrnak was at the top of that list. So far, the GM's promise is paying off big-time.
The 20-year-old Pastrnak is second in the NHL with 10 goals so far in 2016-17 and has fit in perfectly on the Bruins' top line with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand. He's getting plenty of scoring chances and firing his rocket of a shot at an elite rate - Marchand and Pastrnak are 1-2 in the league in total shot attempts.
Arguably the biggest problem for the Bruins since winning the Stanley Cup in 2011 - perhaps even during that season - has been an inability to finish scoring chances. The frustrating second-round loss for the Presidents Trophy-winning Bruins in 2014 wasn't a result of a lack of opportunities. The offensive system hasn't necessarily been the issue, so much as having that vaunted "scoring touch." Pastrnak certainly has it, and at age 20 he still has room to get even better.
David Krejci is looking more like himself lately. Count me among those who entered the season deeply concerned about Krejci's history of hip injuries. It may still prove to be an issue as the season goes along, especially as it concerns Krejci potentially injuring other parts of his body due to over-compensation. But in recent days, the problem appears to be going away.
Krejci has scored two goals and added five assists in his past seven games, including a goal and assist in the Bruins' 2-0 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday. The presence of David Backes on his right wing has certainly helped, as No. 42 is opening up the ice and providing the kind of physical net-front presence that Krejci has succeeded with in the past with linemates like Milan Lucic and Nathan Horton.
The Bruins cannot expect to make the playoffs, let alone go on the "deep run" that Jeremy Jacobs wants, if they are just a one-line team. The continued improvement and production of the Spooner-Krejci-Backes line, which was actually the Bruins' best forward group in Colorado on Sunday, will be a boon for the team if they can keep it going against better competition.
Other lines are starting to step up. The improvement of the aforementioned Krejci line has been clear, but the Bruins have also had problems with the bottom-six forwards in that department. Thankfully, some of the grinders and role players in those groups are playing better lately as well.
Austin Czarnik has been particularly striking since being recalled from Providence. The production has been relatively meager - just four points in 10 games - but more importantly, he's been playing fast and aggressively and winning puck battles, which is all you can really ask for from a grinding winger.
Players like Czarnik may not show up on the score sheet terribly often, but players like him are needed on a roster to be a true contender. The Bruins have lacked that kind of energy from the bottom-six forwards over the course of the season, especially the third line. Czarnik's compete level has given that line the spark it's desperately needed.
The system is working. The Bruins may still be imperfect. They may not have the kind of depth you'd like to see on a true Stanley Cup contender. You could even point to a lack of strong competition on the early schedule for why the Bruins have exceeded expectations so far.
But the truth is, for the most part, the Bruins are executing their team system well. The breakouts have been more efficient, the transition game has been stronger, and the offense has been among the most aggressive in the league. There are still times where the Bruins look like a haphazardly assembled pond hockey scheme, but in recent games they have rounded into form.
Of course, it helps that the competition has softened in the past few games. It's worth noting that the Bruins are a combined 0-4 against the Eastern Conference's top two teams so far, the Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers. But even if they have a chance to be a very distant third in the conference, that would almost certainly exceed whatever arbitrary expectations you set for the team at the start of the season. They have, at the very least, looked like a top-eight team in the conference. Which takes me to my final point ...
Their team stats point to the playoffs. Look, I know that stats don't tell the whole story. You can be the smartest number-cruncher in the world and find mind-blowing statistical correlations that no one else could see, but at some point you have to use the proverbial "eye test" to determine how good a team's chances of winning the Cup really are.
That being said ... there is a strong correlation between the teams that out-shoot the opposition in terms of attempts in "close" situations - that is, in games that are tied or within one goal - and making the playoffs. Shot attempt percentage in close games has determined most playoff teams in recent seasons. This season, the Bruins are third in the NHL in that category, behind only the defending Western Conference champion San Jose Sharks and the St. Louis Blues.
Last season, 12 of the 16 playoff teams were above 50 percent in shot attempt percentage in close games. So far this season, nine of the top 16 teams in the league are above the line. It's obviously still quite early, but the Bruins' standing in the league in that category bodes well for their prospects of returning to the playoffs after two seasons on the outside looking in.
The best part of this? The best cure for a bad possession team is great goaltending. The Bruins have had that so far and it will help them in games where they can't out-shoot the opposition. But it's just one of several reasons to feel good about how the B's have played as they reach the quarter-pole.
Matt Dolloff is a writer for CBSBostonSports.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect that of CBS or 98.5 The Sports Hub. Have a news tip or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff and email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.
