Zdeno Chara to miss Bruins opener with upper-body injury

Longtime Bruin Brad Marchand told Joe Haggerty of CSNNE.com on the eve of training camp that last year’s Bruins team was “divided”, and that the lack of cohesion was an issue as the Bruins pushed unsuccessfully to make the playoffs. He did play five games for the Bruins last season, recording two assists.

Those are all things to look forward to.

Last season, the Bruins used a combination of Gregory Campbell, Daniel Paille, and guys like Jordan Caron, Craig Cunningham and Max Talbot throughout the season. Krejci will be matched up against top pair defense, Bergeron will be shutting down the other teams’ best lines, which leaves Spooner to just go about his business. “So we’re ready for that challenge”.

Like any 19-year-old, Pastrnak will likely have his ups and downs as he adjusts to his first full season in the National Hockey League.

Tuukka Rask made franchise record last season by playing 70 games. He posted a respectable 22-goal, 25-assist season past year, playing mostly on a line centered by Carl Soderberg, and he’s looked good in the limited chances he’s gotten to play with stronger offensive centers like David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron. It will be a tall order for the former Anaheim Ducks winger to attempt filling those shoes.

The Bruins hopes, for better or worse this season, rest on young defensemen making significant strides; aging, talented defensemen staying on the ice and squeezing a bit more out of the fountain of youth; and players once again buying into a system that has been so successful but is a message running the risk of falling on deaf ears.

Tuukka Rask remains the Bruins constant between the pipes. “So it’s more than just how I’m feeling”. “I think it’s a pretty solid three pairings, so we prepared to play against anyone”. Chara will be 39 before the regular season ends. Even though Chara is close to returning, we can’t forget he is old now. We’ve seen what they can do. “All we have to do is go out and show it”. The two have been so good, for so long, and in Chara’s case, he’s defied age and breakdown longer than many of us expected. “I do think we understand the thing they are able to do offensively”.

The aforementioned back end is where the problems start for the Bruins. “If it’s the other way around, if there’s a big risk, then why risk it when it’s early in the season?” Seidenberg, in my opinion, is someone the Bruins could part ways with for draft picks. Sweeney dealt Lucic and Hamilton to clear space. In 46 games past year the rookie had 10 goals and I feel he will take huge step forward. “It’s a growing process and we’re committed to allowing these guys to find their way, so to speak, within the framework”. That’s not something that’s going to change today.

The Boston Bruins will not make the Stanley Cup Playoffs for 2nd consecutive season. Perhaps there’s a trade for an established top-four defenseman and that could give Boston the upgrade they’ve needed since Hamilton packed his puck-moving bags for Calgary.

The only time Claude Julien had more new faces to open a season with the Bruins, his was technically the new one. That’s an immediate weight of pressure dropped on the shoulders of players who already have enough to worry about on their own. However, if the Bruins do not make the playoffs this season it might not come as such a surprise.

Julien said Chara and the club need to weigh the level of risk the player would be taking if he were to get back in the lineup before he’s 100 percent.