Still hampered by the fallout from the Bruins previous administration, the Bruins brass vow to improve the team.
- Is a power vacuum in the front office what's holding back the team? Why is Cam Neely, the nominal decision-maker, seemingly reluctant to take control?[TheBostonGlobe]
- All Aboard! Now, where exactly was it that the Bruins are supposedly headed?!?[WEEI]
- Neither choke nor collapse, but rather an ill-timed slump and a very modest defensive corps doomed the Bruins. Meanwhile, Cam Neely is stuck serving two masters.[TheBostonGlobe]
- Perhaps Neely now has a bit more empathy for Claude Julien, as they now both bear a lot of scrutiny.[Hockeybuzz]
- Those seasons of stretching to make a deep playoff run both stifled player development and shoved the team against the cap. Then injuries set in. At least they didn't try to hang this all on Julien.[TheBostonGlobe]
- On this Marek vs. Wyshynski podcast, hear Chris Mason 's recollections of playing in Prince George with a young Zdeno Chara already showing signs of greatness... once they bought him a winter coat. Skip to the 27:20 mark. (Audio, 54:44)[Soundcloud]
- Rob O'Gara looked back on his Yale career, his teammates, and how playing hockey colored his college experience.[YaleNews]
- Peter Cehlarik is preparing to fight for a roster spot with the Bruins, now that his contract is up with Lulea. He is thankful for the chance to start his career so young, and has recovered from taking a blade to the throat. (Very rough Google translation from Slovak)[Pravda.SK]
- Joe Tasca spoke with Seth Lakso (his counterpart in Wilkes-Barre, PA) about the Providence Bruins' pending first-round matchup with the Penguin, who are plowing through goaltenders almost as quickly as Spinal Tap lost drummers. (Audio, 14:33)[Libsyn]
- The Penguins took game one 3-2 in overtime on home ice last evening after leaping out ahead by two goals. Sound familiar? Well, it looks like we have ourselves a dogfight![HighlandParkHockey]
- The PBruins demonstrated some pushback, the4 ice tilted, but it was too late. The teams meet again tonight in Providence for Game #2.[Worcester Telegram&Gazette]
Elsewhere around the rink:
- How about "Boaty McBoatface?" The Arizona Coyotes are pondering a fan contest to name their new AHL affiliate, the former Springfield Falcons. What could go wrong?[FiveForHowling]
- The Rangers have called up their black aces, including former Bruin Daniel Paille , who can bring his Stanley Cup ring.[TodaysSlapShot]
- Watch your mouth! The preponderance of cameras and microphones is noticeably reining in chirping and trash talk on ice.[NationalPost]
- The Panthers numbers guys that snickered at the Shawn Thornton signing have been decidedly quiet of late. Glue guys RULE![TheGlobeAndMail]
- It is never too late to study the NHL rule book for gems such as what happens when no officials show up for a game. It actually happened![TheHockeyNews]
- Just say no to corporate ads on uniforms. Blake Wheeler called this one right from the start.[Macleans]
- There is just a wee bit of bias in awarding assists when a player is in his home arena, as this numerical examination demonstrates.[FiveThirtyEight]
- Remember Tim Bozon , the young Canadiens prospect who nearly succumbed to bacterial meningitis two years ago? He hopes to represent France next month at the IIHF World Hockey Championship.[MontrealGazette]