It definitely stings when the playoffs end early and you’re a team in Boston. The Bruins fell short of making it to the NHL Conference Finals, and now they’ll just get to watch the Boston Celtics come up with a campaign of their own instead. But what should the Bruins consider building on in the coming offseason to improve their chances and come up with a promising run in the next season?
How the Bruins’ 2024 Season Ended?
The Boston Bruins definitely felt the shock at the end of their game after being eliminated by the Florida Panthers in six games. What’s worse is that they lost that in front of their fans at TD Garden, leaving fans to just root for the only team left in the playoffs in the Boston area. This says a lot about the hype that the team has made to begin the season, only to fall short of making it back to the top of the NHL world considering that there have been a lot of promising strides in their campaign.
It cannot be denied that the Boston Bruins really fumbled their chances of making it back to the Stanley Cup Final. We are now seeing a rough patch from one of the most successful teams in recent NHL history, and it does seem that the team will need to come up with a bigger rally in their games.
For that to happen though, Boston may need to retool its squad and come up with some massive changes in their squad. Still, the Bruins have enjoyed a promising season despite losing a lot of their known players in Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, Tyler Bertuzzi, Taylor Hall, and Dmitry Orlov. In spite of all that, the Bruins still managed to keep its reputation of being a top club in the NHL, and their plans of upgrading the squad in the offseason should be a massive question that needs to be answered now more than ever.
Still, we have to give credit to where it is due. The Bruins did manage to put up a fight against one of the heavy emerging juggernauts in the NHL when they forced the Panthers to go six games against them. But now that all of its behind them, it is time to enter the offseason with a lot of big moves waiting to be made if they are coming to contend next season.
What’s Next for the Bruins’ Offseason?
The Bruins have a lot of free agents to consider, and they are even set to splurge on what they can with a meager $21 million of cap space. Still, that is enough to give them a series of significant moves that can actually help the squad improve and come up with better flexibility and rotational pieces ahead of the next campaign at hand.
So what should fans expect from the Bruins in the offseason?
Re-signing Ahead of the Free Agency
We all know for a fact that Bruins GM Don Sweeney has pledged himself to go all-in in the offseason market. It is intriguing to see what he will do next as his original plan was to build on the original six in the game, and this might just be the best time to see it come to fruition. He has addressed the media in his plans and has made it clear that Sweeney will be making every single penny work for the Bruins. He has expressed his desire to re-sign the key players in the team, which should be a good idea to begin with.
Boston is set to see names such as Jake DeBrusk, van Riemsdyk, Pat Maroon, Heinen, Matt Grzelcyk, Derek Forbort, Kevin Shattenkirk and Milan Lucic enter the market as unrestricted free agents. Not all of them are good to return to the team, but the biggest priority would be to sign Jeremy Swayman, who has been in his prime years in the squad and is starting to chalk up some Vezina Trophy conversations as well, and this is going to be one of the priorities that the Bruins must focus on.
Building on the Young Players of the Squad
The Bruins have enjoyed promising seasons from Matt Poitras, John Beecher, and Mason Lohrei, who are all looking to be future stars of the franchise. This set of youngsters have shown some massive performances in the season and even in the playoffs. Head coach Jim Montgomery has found ways to come up in giving them key minutes in fiery games, which is why it is enough to consider the way they have developed into a promising supporting cast so far.
Now more than ever, we are expecting the Bruins to build on the young side this time – something that they haven’t done in the past. The team has always opted to stick in win-now rosters. But with the end of a dominant era and finally facing some massive decisions in the summer, it does seem that the Bruins should invest well in their young stars. Let’s not forget that the team also has some youngsters who are waiting to be given a chance at the big stage, such as Fabian Lysell, John Farinacci, Brett Harrison and Georgii Merkulov.
Learning from the Season Mistakes
It cannot be denied that while the Bruins have enjoyed a massive season without its original cast, the team has also made some massive mistakes in key games that could have given them a better chance to sit at the top of the league and earn home ice advantage. We have seen the defensive lapses in their series against the Panthers. While it cannot be helped that Florida is one of the best offensive teams in the league, the Bruins could have avoided certain mishaps that could have even won them the series.
We are also looking at the offensive woes that the Bruins have endured in their first playoff campaign as a squad without its main stars. They barely made it out of the first round in their series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, nearly blowing a 3-1 lead that would have ended infamously for the team given the expectations around them. Offense is something that will need to be hunted by the team – more work on the attacking end, which says a lot about the way that the squad can be a lethal threat against some of the contenders in the East.
Catch the Fiery Stanley Cup Final While Boston Takes a Break
The Boston Bruins will have a long set of months to think about their future plans in the squad. Fans are hoping to see big strides from the team with a chance to deliver a big boost to the team and make the most out of their chances now more than ever. For now, fans will have to wait and enjoy the massive battles that continue to unfold in the Stanley Cup Final as two teams continue to wage war on the big stage!
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