BOSTON — Who among us hasn’t played Candyland? You remember that children’s board game, where the end goal is to get your gingerbread man to Candy Castle before hitting any number of roadblocks or pratfalls.
Well, the Boston Bruins began their 2024-25 journey with lots of promise and expectations … only to have the NHL’s version of Lord Licorice set them tumbling backwards time and time again.
Both the Bruins and the Chicago Blackhawks were playing out the string Thursday night at TD Garden, two of the league’s most popular franchises now bottom dwellers. They, along with fellow Original 6’ers Detroit and the New York Rangers, will miss this year’s playoffs as a quartet for the first time since Moses wore short pants (actually, the spring of 1968).
So how did a season that some believed could result in Boston reaching to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in six years (author embarrassingly raises hand) back in October go so far off the rails?
From this vantage point in the press box, it boils down to five main points.
1. Awful offseason signings
No one in the NHL could have foreseen how badly the two most sought after free agents at their positions last summer, center Elias Lindholm and defenseman Nikita Zadorov, would flop in their first season in Black-and-Gold. If the Bruins thought they were getting the 42-goal Lindholm from Calgary three years ago, they were sorely misled: he’s tallied just 16 goals and 43 points in 79 games while looking like a poor fit for Boston’s system. The hulking Zadorov somehow has managed a plus-21 rating, but has taken bad penalties all season (leading the NHL with 39 PIMs) and finds himself getting beat wide repeatedly. For $7.75 million and $5 million a year respectively, neither has provided nearly enough bang for the bucks they’re getting.
2. Swayman’s bet on himself goes bad
Hindsight is a funny thing, isn’t it? I’m sure there is a part of goaltender Jeremy Swayman that believes he did the right thing in refusing to sign a contract with Boston over the summer, then holding out the entire training camp only to sign two days before the season opener in Florida. He was rushed back, looked rusty from the get-go and, save for a scattered glimpses of his true potential, has been miserable between the pipes all season. What should’ve been a stalwart first campaign for him as a bonafide 60-games-a-year starter instead has him shuffling along with lousy numbers: 22-29-6 record, 3.06 GAA, .895 save percentage heading into Thursday night — making him the 26th ranked goalie in the NHL. ‘Ugh’ surmises his season quite well.
3. Losing the ‘other’ Lindholm
When defenseman Hampus Lindholm went down with a fractured patella in mid-November after blocking a shot against St. Louis, few realized the repercussions his missing the remainder of the 2024-25 would have. Boston’s No. 2 defenseman and his steadying presence, heavy shot, ability to eat up minutes in all situations and veteran leadership all went poof! … as eventually did Boston’s season.
4. Mismanaging Monty
What a terrible decision it was to fire Jim Montgomery back in November, one week after Lindholm’s injury. The Bruins were 8-9-3 when management decided the guy behind the bench was the reason why the players weren’t playing up to expectations. The last four-plus months have told us otherwise; aside from a few bright spots (David Pastrnak and 41 goals/100 points; Morgan Geekie’s 30 goals and ascending into the No. 1 center’s role), this collection of talent simply isn’t good enough to compete night in and night out. Meanwhile, Montgomery’s new employer, the St. Louis Blues, have gone 34-16-6 since he was hired. One of the league’s hottest teams, they’re a squad no one in the Western Conference wants to face in the playoffs.
5. Misdiagnosed McAvoy
The Bruins were hanging onto their playoff dreams when the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament began in mid-February. But when McAvoy suffered an injury to his right shoulder AC joint in the Americans’ opener vs. Finland, then not properly diagnosed and allowed to play two nights later against Canada, causing further damage and hospitalization, the Bruins were furious with Team USA’s medical staff. It cost them their best defenseman for the remainder of the season, made official by interim head coach Joe Sacco Thursday morning.
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