Boston Bruins Lost Control Of Destiny Before This Week

If you’re a fan of the Boston Bruins you know the team is bound for the lottery. Boston will be eliminated from the NHL playoffs with a Penguins win against the last-place Sabres on Saturday and Ottawa earning one point against the Flyers. Don’t blame the Boston Bruins failures on recent games.

Boston was nine points ahead of the ninth-place Florida Panthers on February 1st. A playoff berth was all be locked up. The next three weeks saw the lead cut to one point. Teams go through tough stretches and the Boston Bruins are no different.

February 20th changed the season for the Boston Bruins. David Krejci was lost in a game against the Washington Capitals to a knee injury. Losing a player that has posted more than 60 points in his last three full seasons is a big blow to any team. Krejci has only played 46 games this season and his loss has exposed depth issues within the lineup.

If Krejci had sixty points he would be the Boston Bruins scoring leader this year and that doesn’t count the impact he has on his teammates, in particular Milan Lucic. There’s only so much the Boston Bruins youth has been able to make up. David Pastrnak, Reilly Smith and Dougie Hamilton are the future of the Boston Bruins and have played well. But the veterans have struggled to find consistency without Krejci.

So what does the offseason hold for the Boston Bruins? Patrice Bergeron will still be there as will Tuukka Rask. But the depth of the roster has been exposed. Earlier this season a fire sale was suggested and that didn’t happen, nor should it have. But the salary cap needs to be managed well with the Boston Bruins at a crossroads with certain players.

Recently rumors of GM Peter Chiarelli moving the contract of Marc Savard for cap relief have popped up, similar to what the Columbus Blue Jackets did with Nathan Horton. That’s a nice start if he can find a trade partner. But it doesn’t address Zdeno Chara on the back-side of his career. There is the matter of a few pending unrestricted free agents also, led by Daniel Paille and Gregory Campbell according to spotrac.com.

Of course the Boston Bruins could win the NHL Draft Lottery, pick Connor McDavid and all the rumors and concerns are shut up quickly. It’s a 1% chance but it’s still possible. What’s more likely is the Bruins will pick in the middle of round one and make trades and signings to fix the depth concerns complicated by the Krejci injury.

Missing the playoffs isn’t the end of the world for the Boston Bruins. It’s a disappointment and wasn’t expected this year. But the Bruins don’t have to fall to the bottom of the NHL to rebuild. There is plenty of talent still here and great young players are making quick impacts.

But the Boston Bruins missed opportunities to start that process at the trade deadline. It was a calculated risk that didn’t pay off. Now the offseason will force Chiarelli to look towards a future possibly without Chara and other key role players. Chiarelli has been bold before with the Tyler Seguin trade.

That level of trade isn’t out of the question but isn’t necessary to put the Boston Bruins back into the playoffs next season. The Boston Bruins will be a very interesting team to watch both at the draft and in free agency. Expect the Bruins to be active because their window for success is far from closed.

Next: Big Changes With Pittsburgh Penguins Regardless Of Playoffs

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