Making predictions for next season already might be an exercise in futility, if for no other reason than because there’s no confirmation as to how exactly the divisions are going to shape themselves out. With realignment expected, early speculation has the Boston Bruins in a division with a whole new set of opponents. Some of that is good news. Some of it isn’t and the bad news, along with a few other factors make us wonder if the Bruins can repeat as Presidents’ Trophy Winners.
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With a record of 44-14-12 and 100 points to end a shortened 2019-20 NHL regular season, the Bruins walked away as the top regular season team in the NHL. At times, they were absolutely dominant. It didn’t translate into playoff success, but it was another amazing campaign by one of the best team’s in the NHL.
The upcoming 2020-21 season poses some early challenges for the Bruins. Enough so that the organization will be hard-pressed to repeat. Here are a few reasons why:
Big Losses the Team Hasn’t Replaced
To many, the Bruins are a team everyone is waiting on to see what other shoe drops. They lost defenseman Torey Krug in free agency to the St. Louis Blues, and they didn’t replace him. They have no idea what the status Zdeno Chara is and they’ve got a few key players that could miss the early part of next season. Knowing all of that, they’ve yet to bring in pieces that would help keep them near the top of the standings — with the exception of adding Craig Smith from the Nashville Predators on a three-year contract.
With holes on their blue line and as a team that has publicly admitted they’re not exactly sure how they’ll replace Krug’s minutes, these losses will hurt.
The Capitals and Flyers Might Join Their Division
While early division projections have the Bruins moving away from the Tampa Bay Lightning (which is good), they’ll be a part of a division that includes the Washington Capitals, New York Islanders and Philadelphia Flyers.
It could be argued that these are teams that will make things a bit more difficult for the Bruins as the season wears along. Specifically, the Capitals have owned the Bruins over the past number of seasons going 20-5 since 2012. That includes a 12-game winning streak between 2014-2018.
The Bruins are moving away from many of the NHL’s bottom feeders. This isn’t to say that gave them an easy road last season, but it certainly didn’t hurt.
Key Injuries to Start Season
Depending on when the season starts up, two key players may miss a large portion of the early goings and in a potentially shortened and condensed season, that’s a big deal. Both David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand being gone hurts more this coming season than it might in others.
If January 1st is a reasonable start date, the Bruins will be without two-thirds of their top line when the next NHL season starts. Pastrnak and Marchand each underwent surgery last month and Pastrnak isn’t expected back until mid-February, with Marchand out until mid-January. These are the team’s top-two scorers out.
As we mentioned at the outset, things could change, the season could be delayed and the Bruins could make additional moves, forcing us to reexamine the outlook on their 2020-21 season. But, as of now, the Bruins aren’t probably close to being the favorites to repeat as the NHL’s top regular season team.
Next: Predicting the Maple Leafs First Call-Ups During the 2020-21 NHL Season
