By: Mike Dunshee
www.mikedunshee.com
mdunsh@gmail.com
The NHL finished the league all-star festivities Wednesday night with the West prevailing 12-9 and Daniel Briere of the Buffalo Sabres taking the MVP honors after a 5 point evening. Zdeno Chara, the Bruins lone representative had a good couple of days; Tuesday he won the hardest shot contest and Wednesday followed up with two goals in the game.
Since I couldn’t care less about the all-star game and the accompanying festivities, now is as good a time as any to take a look at how the key components of the Bruins have fared up to this point.
Zdeno Chara – The second since Chara inked his name to a huge contract with Boston, he has been the face of the franchise. The most sought after name on the free agent market, Chara immediately gave the fledgling Bruins an aura of respectability. So far this season the results seem to have been decidedly mixed; Chara has been prone to uncharacteristic mistakes in the defensive zone and the most criticized player on the team on message boards on the internet. The most vocal critics of Chara have already labeled the contract a bust and advocate dealing the leagues largest player. Those criticisms are severely misguided and the most extreme are downright ridiculous. Is Charas’ salary very high? Yes, welcome to the age of free-agency and trying to attract big-time free agents to a putrid franchise. All Chara has done this year is assume the Captaincy and taken the role very seriously, trying to lead a team filled with turnover and youth through a turbulent first half. Chara has also leads the league in ice time as Boston asks the hulking Slovak to assume more responsibilities than any other defenseman in the league. Through it all Big Z is on pace for close to 60 points and has been one of the two factors that has the Boston powerplay currently ranked 4th after finishing 25th last season. For those that deride relying on statistics to analyze hockey, just watch the game and see the physical presence Chara brings every night. GRADE B+
Marc Savard – The other big free agent signing in the off-season, Savard brings me to my mid-season confession; I was very skeptical about this signing. Savard, who had generally been a disappointment throughout his career, had his breakout season in 05-06, a contract year where he played with all-world wingers Illya Kovalchuk and Marian Hossa. These factors coupled with the reports of “poor defense” and “bad in the locker room” and the Bruins wonderful free agent history had me thinking Savard had bust written all over him. In contrary, Savard has been the Bruins best player to this point and has been the other reason for the powerplay success of the club. His passing ability hasn’t been seen in Boston since the days of Adam Oates and his impeccable passes have glen Murray back on the 40 goal pace. GRADE A
Patrice Bergeron – The young Bergeron has come along rapidly since the trade of Joe Thornton last season. At his best Bergeron looks like a potential 1st Team All-NHL player, other times he can disappear for a game or two. Still only 21, Patrice is on pace for close to 30 goals and 90 points with plenty of time to improve. Bergeron already has a very solid all around game and just needs to work on putting it together each and every night. GRADE B+
Glen Murray – The veteran sniper suffered a huge drop-off in goal production after the Thornton trade; with Marc Savard as his new set-up man, Murray has re-discovered his touch and reclaimed the mantle as the clubs most dangerous sniper. As much as fans love the long-time Bruin, the veteran could become trade bait if Boston falls out of the playoff race. GRADE A-
Brad Boyes – Boyes enjoyed a surprise breakout season last year racking up 26 goals and 69 points as filled out the Bruins only effective line with Bergeron and Sturm. In a sabermetrical study, (http://www.mikedunshee.com/) Boyes was the most effective player on Boston in 05-06 and ranked 27th amongst all forwards. This season has been another story for the 24 year old whose play has suffered badly. Boyes recently found himself demoted to the fourth line in an effort to shake him out of his funk. Oft mentioned in trade rumors, Boyes has played his value down to naught and would bring only a small return. GRADE D
Tim Thomas – Thomas continues his unlikely run in the NHL as the Bruins undisputed starting goalie at the all-star break. Carrying an incredible workload, Thomas has been streaky; playing incredible at times and like a back-up other. Thomas is an exciting goalie to watch who at times struggles with rebound control and his notorious “flopping”. Martin Broduer he is not, but given where he has come from and the workload he has been asked to carry he has been above average; in fact damn near remarkable. GRADE B
Hannu Toivonen – Hannu had played well enough before injuring his ankle last season that most had him pegged as the goalie of the future in Boston. In a scene that has become all to familiar to Bruin fans the rookie standout goalie has struggled terribly in his sophomore season keeping the with the tradition of Lacher, Raycroft and Co. Having been shuttled between Boston and Providence numerous times this season, Toivo put together two solid starts going into the break that he will need to build upon to give Thomas a break. GRADE D-
Phil Kessel – The highly touted rookie hasn’t exactly burned through the league, but his battle with cancer clearly took the forefront. Kessel handled the situation good – for a grown man – never mind an 18 year old in the public eye. His quick comeback has been inspiring and remarkable. Less importantly, his play has improved since his return and has Bruins fans excited about the future. GRADE A-
Brad Stuart – Free agency looms for the heavy hitter acquired in the Thornton deal; trade rumors will follow him until he is resigned or the deadline passes. Has played solid and chipped in on offense. GRADE B
Marco Sturm – Fighting injury most of the year Sturm came back rusty but has looked better of late. Another UFA to be, the rumors will follow Sturm until the deadline also. GRADE Incomplete
The Bruins are back with only a Saturday game this week against an Ottawa team that dominated Boston in the last game before the break. Lets hope to see a better effort this time. No teams have more than two games this week so it’s a chance for you fantasy players to get a big win; or suffer a big defeat.
