BOSTON -- The level of outrageous rumor-mongering and crazy speculation tossed against the wall when the Bruins called off practice Tuesday -- and instead announced a conference call with Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli -- was off the charts Monday night right on into Tuesday afternoon.
Its a testament to the new level of interest in the Black and Gold, and to the honking creativity of those inside, outside and around the team.
Some thought Marc Savard might be announcing his retirement on a conference callwhich on its face is ridiculous for multiple reasons, not the least of which is the six years and 24 million hed forfeit by calling it a career.
Others started tossing out rumors that Ray Whitney or Keith Yandle were getting dealt to the Bruins after their 3-5 start to the season, and Chiarelli was shaking it up again as he did two years ago dishing Chuck Kobasew to the Minnesota Wild just seven games into the 2009-10 season.
Not even close.
Theres a big difference between a salary cap-strapped hockey team coming off an anti-climactic second-round playoff defeat, and finding solutions for a battle-tested, playoff-hardened nucleus that now has a Stanley Cup victory on their resume. There arent that many truly valuable trade chips on the Bs roster that come without no-trade provisions, and the Bruins arent about to deal a Milan Lucic, David Krejci or Tuukka Rask to simply make a change.
Chiarelli isnt there yet, and nor should he be.
Boston Bruins
Weve got a Stanley Cup-winning team. When you want to create competition on the rosterand I do believe competition is healthyits hard to create it, said Chiarelli. Weve got roster space and weve got cap space. We could do it. But its hard to meddle and tinker with a Stanley Cup team.
I know it requires luck and it requires things happening at the exact right time to win the Cup, and by no means did we have an incredible regular season last year. But I also know the makeup of this team. The main obstacle to creating competition is that you have a team thats won the Stanley Cup. I have to get over that. But Im just not at that point yet. Its a broad picture, but at some point if I dont like the way things are going then I have to do something.
The Bruins crowed about having 18 players returning from last years Stanley Cup-winning bunch, but also fully acknowledged that the Cup hangover was something theyd have to face on. Chiarelli felt that malaise was too strong a word to describe his teams difficulty focusing and finding that extra gear, but hes also self-aware to realize that his team is amidst some level of a hangover.
The offensive explosion against the Maple Leafs and the golden scoring chances enjoyed against a quality team in San Jose are signs that perhaps the Bruins are coming out of their Cup haze. But Chiarelli wants to see his team start burying a few more of the great chances theyre generating, and display the kind of emotion the Bruins regularly exude when theyre playing Bruins style hockey.
Youve heard me talk about this hangover. Whether its been self-fulfilling or not, I believe the hangover is here in some form, said Chiarelli. I havent minded our game that much: the compete level is getting a little better and our execution is getting a little better. Were still a little sloppy here and there, but Ive got to stress this is something weve got to work through. I know our guys are working their way through this funk, and its my job to keep an eye on them.
The common denominator for me is two things: one were having more offensive chances and better offensive chances at this part of the season than we did last year, and were not scoring. That to me is the foundation of getting things back. When you score early you set the tone. The second thing is getting the proper mind frame again and I dont know how to do that. It may be more of a natural process and were working on it. This is new to us and I dont want to overreact.
Chiarelli canvassed plenty of other executives, coaches and players that have won the Cup in the past for advice heading into this season, and the feedback was unanimous. Every Cup winner told Chiarelli a letdown of some kind was unavoidable, and the Bs general manger talked about minimizing the down cycle while training camp was going on.
Chiarelli said that one Cup winner estimated it was 20 games before things felt back to normal again, so the best course of action was to simply grind through it. The hope is that an emotional home-and-home tilt against the Montreal Canadiens this weekend can snap the Bs out of it.
But most around the team would settle for two consistently good back-to-back performances that end with the Bruins nailing down four pointsand keeping pace with Toronto and Buffalo at the top of the division.
Its focus, execution and competition to stay in and take a hit. It requires addressing a couple of fronts. I havent minded our compete level, but I think it can be better, said Chiarelli. Weve been winning one and losing one. Ive seen that. But none of the games have been out of hand. For me that tells me that were not far off from getting it back.
Were a team that plays on emotion. To play with a level of compete that gets you wins and gets you what you want, you have to reach that emotional level. Were not there yet. We all have to get back to the way that we played and then itll come around.
Facts are fact: the Bruins averaged 2.98 goals per game through 82 regular season tilts last year, and theyre averaging only 2.25 this season good for 19th in the league. Finishing off offensive plays and full 60-minute efforts are the cure for the common hockey hangover that Chiarelli and Co. are expecting out of a hockey team that everyone knows has it in them.