It’s been just over two weeks since the Boston Bruins lost their captain and perennial Norris Trophy finalist Zdeno Chara to a significant knee injury. Originally expected to miss four to six weeks with a torn ligament in his PCL (though that timetable is still unconfirmed by both Chara and the Bruins), the Black and Gold have soldiered on considerably well without their giant, posting a 5-1-0 record since Oct. 25. The results haven’t necessarily been pretty for the B’s -- they needed overtime to beat the Atlantic Division cellar-dwelling Buffalo Sabres and Florida Panthers -- but you gotta play the schedule in front of you with what you have on your roster.
And the Bruins most certainly have done just that.
“It definitely doesn’t feel like our best hockey,… B’s defenseman Dougie Hamilton, the player the Bruins have relied on heavily in the absence of No. 33, said after last night’s comeback win over Edmonton.
“I think when we’re playing our best it’s pretty easy hockey and we’re grinding them down. All four lines are rolling in their end, and I think lately it’s just been kind of spurts of that,… the third-year pro admitted. “We just gotta keep focusing on those little things of defensive parts and then chipping the pucks in, getting the pucks on net, and I think we’ve definitely improved on it so we just need to keep improving.…
There’s been an obvious emphasis on the Bruins’ makeshift top-pairing of Hamilton and Dennis Seidenberg, which has played well, but it’s also been the call-ups and improving play of the entire defensive unit in light of injuries to Kevan Miller (shoulder) and Torey Krug (finger) that’s kept Boston afloat and even pushed them back into the thick of things for the top spot in the Atlantic.
Rookies Joe Morrow, Zach Trotman, and David Warsofsky have all ‘bought’ in to what head coach Claude Julien is preaching, and the results are certainly beginning to show.
Morrow, a former first-round pick, has slid in well on the Bruins’ second pairing, playing with Adam McQuaid, and firing 10 shots on net through four games. The bigger Trotman has proven himself to be a slick skater in spite of his 6-foot-3 frame, and has put up two assists in six games. And the undersized Warsofsky, a product of Marshfield, Mass., recorded his first point of the season in Thursday’s win.
And all three have been asked to step up and in for guys with proven NHL track records, no less.
“We found ways to win and it hasn’t been pretty always, but we’ve stuck with it. Played a couple of solid sixty minute games. We knew when he went down that we really needed to tighten our defense up and really pay attention to that,… B’s netminder Tuukka Rask said of the club’s sans Chara defensive performances. “I think the past six, seven games, whatever, we’ve really done that and gone the right direction. So we have to keep doing that, and whenever [Chara] comes back we can’t change a thing.…
The 27-year-old Rask has certainly had a say in the club’s success, too.
In five post-Chara starts, the defending Vezina winner has won four games, allowing just 10 goals on the last 149 shots thrown his way, posting an impressive .933 save percentage,
“Injuries happen and we know that it doesn’t matter who goes down, we still have to play with each other and play for each other,… Rask told reporters at his stall after his seventh win of the season. “That’s really come to play even more now when you lose a captain. So it’s nothing more than just battling hard and protecting your net and starting from the defense. We really paid attention to that.…
But the Bruins know that they’re not out of the woods just yet. This month still features showdowns with the St. Louis Blues, Montreal Canadiens, and Pittsburgh Penguins, and Julien still believes that he can get even more out of a club that’s rattled off wins in seven of their last nine games played.
“I’m going to be honest with you. I really feel there’s still a lot from our team that can get better,… Julien said last night. “And I mean a lot like – we still have those waves, you talk about the second period and stuff like that. As we get along here, I’d like to see our team become a little bit more consistent.
“At least tonight what I was looking for in the second period is getting some better line changes, where, we’ve been changing a lot on the backcheck and with those long changes you’re leaving your D’s out to try,… Julien noted. “Tonight there wasn’t many of those; we made some better changes, either on the dump-ins or in the offensive zone or third man high was changing. You’re trying to get some of those good habits back in and I still feel that there’s a lot more untapped potential with our team as a whole.
“So that’s a work in progress right now.…
And it’ll continue to be a work in progress for the Bruins, who will skate without the 5-foot-9 Warsofsky for ‘a while’ according to their coach. Warsofsky was injured in the third period, and missed Friday’s practice. The good news: Krug, who practiced with the club today, may be nearing a return sooner rather than later.