B’s GM stays optimistic
Late-season fatigue non-issue
Bruins general manager Don Sweeney took to the podium yesterday at Warrior Ice Arena to address the state of his hockey team going in to the postseason.
The Bruins were 1-3-1 in April and squandered their chance to capture the Eastern Conference regular-season title and homeice advantage through the opening three rounds of the Stanley Cup playoffs with Sunday’s night’s 4-2 loss to the Florida Panthers at the Garden.
The B’s have played 21 games in 39 days in their stretch run to the postseason, and the residual effects of their back-loaded schedule were on display against the Panthers.
At the finish, the B’s were heavy-legged, mentally fatigued and lacking passion and urgency, a combination that allowed Tampa Bay to win the East by one point.
Sweeney dismissed the possibility of that fatigue carrying into Thursday night’s Game 1 against the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Garden. The Bruins finished 50-20-12, their best mark since going 54-19-9 in 2013-14, but they had to settle for the second seed in the Atlantic Division. The Lightning will face the New Jersey Devils in the best-ofseven opening round.
“Well, we won 50 games, and I think the body of work speaks that this team deserves to be where we are, and (now) we focus on Thursday night,” Sweeney said. “We always felt March was the daunting part of the schedule, unfortunately.
“We are in a pretty good position, but we are still pushing forward. That’s the type of team that we had. They wanted to win, and we had a chance right up to the final bell to try and keep climbing the standings and meet every challenge.
“We fell short in that regard, but I think they are ready to look forward, and hopefully they’ll play their best hockey because that is what it is going to take.”
Sweeney assembled a collection of rookies and veterans and allowed coach Bruce Cassidy, in his first full season behind the bench, to mix and match the personnel.
The Bruins struggled early but reversed course in the middle of December. Their push to the playoffs began with an 18-game points streak that stretched from Dec. 16 to Feb. 7.
Sweeney got involved before the NHL trade deadline on Feb. 26. He knew the Bruins needed depth for a run at the Cup, so he acquired Rick Nash and Nick Holden from the New York Rangers, Tommy Wingels from Chicago and free agent Brian Gionta, who had played on the United States Olympic team.
Nash has missed the past 12 games because of a concussion. His untimely departure was offset by the arrival of Ryan Donato, who signed a two-year contract with the Bruins after Harvard was eliminated from the ECAC tournament.
“Our goal was to deepen the team, and I think we did that,” Sweeney said. “We tested our depth coming down the stretch, and we knew with 16 games in March that we were going to have to utilize everybody.
“Ryan Donato was not a fait accompli that he was joining our team. But once that decision was made, he has acquitted himself well and added that depth.”