The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts.
They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL).
The team has been in existence since 1924, is the league's third-oldest team and is the oldest in the United States.
It is also an Original Six franchise (along with the Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers and the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Bruins have won six Stanley Cup championships which is the fifth most of all-time and second most of any American NHL team (behind the Red Wings, who have 11).
The team's home arena is the TD Garden (where they have played since 1995).
Prior to 1995, the team played its home games at the Boston Garden for 67 seasons, beginning in 1928.
History[]
Pre-World War II Years[]
In 1924 (at the convincing of Boston grocery tycoon Charles Adams), the NHL decided to expand to the United States.
Adams had fallen in love with hockey while watching the 1924 Stanley Cup Finals between the NHL champion Montreal Canadiens and the WCHL champion Calgary Tigers.
He persuaded the NHL to grant him a franchise for Boston which occurred on November 1, 1924.
With the Montreal Maroons, the Bruins was one of the NHL's first expansion teams.
Adams' first act was to hire Art Ross, a former star player and innovator, as general manager.
Ross was the face of the franchise for the next thirty years, including four separate stints as coach.
Adams directed Ross to come up with a nickname that would portray an untamed animal displaying speed, agility and cunning.
Ross came up with "Bruins", an Old English word used for brown bears (from the Dutch 'bruin' meaning brown) in classic folk-tales.
The team's bearlike nickname also went along with the team's original uniform colors of brown and yellow, which came from Adams' grocery chain, First National Stores.
On December 1, 1924, the new Bruins team played their first NHL game against the Maroons, at Boston Arena with the Bruins winning the game by a 2–1 score, but the team only managed a 6–24–0 record (for last place) in its first season.
They played three more seasons at the Arena, after which the Bruins became the main tenant of the famous Boston Garden while the old Boston Arena facility (the world's oldest existing indoor ice hockey venue was eventually taken over by Northeastern University and renamed Matthews Arena when the university renovated it in 1979).
During their third season (in 1926–27), the team markedly improved.
Ross took advantage of the collapse of the Western Hockey League to purchase several western stars, including the team's first great star, a defenseman from Fort Qu'Appelle, Saskatchewan named Eddie Shore.
The Bruins reached the Stanley Cup Final despite finishing only one game above .500, but lost to the Ottawa Senators in the first Cup Final to be between exclusively NHL teams.
In 1929, the Bruins defeated the New York Rangers to win their first Stanley Cup. Standout players on the first championship team included Shore, Harry Oliver, Dit Clapper, Dutch Gainor and goaltender Tiny Thompson.
The 1928–29 season was the first played at Boston Garden, which Adams had built after guaranteeing his backers $500,000 in gate receipts over the next five years.
The season after that (in 1929–30), the Bruins posted the best-ever regular season winning percentage in the NHL (an astonishing .875, winning 38 out of 44 games, a record which still stands) and shattered numerous team scoring records, but lost to the Montreal Canadiens in the Cup Final.
The 1930s Bruins teams included Shore, Thompson, Clapper, Babe Siebert and Cooney Weiland. The team led the league's standings five times in that decade.
In 1939, the team changed its uniform colors from brown & yellow to the current black & gold and captured the second Stanley Cup in franchise history.
During that year, Thompson was traded for rookie goaltender Frank Brimsek. He had an award-winning season, capturing the Vezina and Calder Trophies, becoming the first rookie named to the NHL First All-Star Team, and earning the nickname "Mr. Zero."
The team skating in front of Brimsek included Bill Cowley, Shore, Clapper and "Sudden Death" Mel Hill (who scored three overtime goals in one playoff series), together with the "Kraut Line" of center Milt Schmidt, right winger Bobby Bauer and left winger Woody Dumart.
In 1940, Shore was traded to the struggling New York Americans for his final NHL season.
In 1941, the Bruins won their third Stanley Cup after losing only eight games and finishing first in the regular season.
It was their last Stanley Cup for 29 years.
World War II and the "Original Six" Era[]
World War II affected the Bruins more than most teams.
Brimsek and the "Krauts" all enlisted after the 1940–41 Stanley Cup win and lost the most productive years of their careers at war.
Cowley (assisted by veteran player Clapper and Busher Jackson) was the team's remaining star.
Even though the NHL had by 1943 been reduced to the six teams that would in the modern era be called the "Original Six", talent was depleted enough that freak seasons could take place.
In 1944, Bruin Herb Cain would set the then-NHL record for points in a season with 82, but the Bruins did not make the playoffs that season & Cain was out of the NHL two seasons later.
The stars returned for the 1945–46 season, and Clapper led the team back to the Stanley Cup Final as player-coach.
He retired as a player after the next season, becoming the first player to play twenty NHL seasons, but he stayed on as coach for two more years.
Brimsek proved to be not as good as he was before the war. After 1946, the Bruins lost in the first playoff round three straight years which resulted in Clapper's resignation.
Brimsek was traded to the last-place Chicago Black Hawks in 1949, followed by the unexpected lifetime ban of promising young star Don Gallinger on suspicion of gambling.
The only remaining quality young player who stayed with the team for any length was forward Johnny Peirson (recognizable to fans of a later era as the Bruins' television color commentator in the 1970s).
During the 1948–49 season, the original form of the "spoked-B" logo, with a small number "24" to the left of the capital B signifying the calendar year in the 20th century in which the Bruins team first played, and a similarly small "49" to the right of the "B" for the then-current season's calendar year in the 20th century, appeared on their home uniforms—a nod to the Boston area's nickname of "The Hub."
The following season, the logo was modified into the basic "spoked-B" form that was to be used, virtually unchanged (except for certain proportions within the logo), through the 1993–94 season.
The 1950s began with Charles Adams' son Weston (who had been team president since 1936) facing financial trouble.
He was forced to accept a buyout offer from Walter A. Brown (the owner of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s Boston Celtics and the Garden) in 1951.
Although there were some instances of success (such as making the Stanley Cup Final in 1953, 1957 and 1958, only to lose to the Montreal Canadiens each time), the Bruins mustered only four winning seasons between 1947 and 1967.
They missed the playoffs eight straight years between 1960 and 1967.
On New Year's Day 1954, Robert Skrak (an assistant to Frank Zamboni, the inventor of the best known ice resurfacing machine of the time) demonstrated a very early model of the machine at Boston Garden to the team management.
As a result, the Bruins ordered one of the then-produced "Model E" resurfacers to be used at the Garden (the first known NHL team to acquire one of the soon-to-be-ubiquitous "Zambonis" for their own use).
The Bruins' Zamboni Model E, factory serial number 21—used as late as the 1980s on an emergency basis—eventually ended up in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto in 1988 for preservation.
On January 18, 1958, a milestone in NHL history occurred as the first black person ever to play in the NHL stepped onto the ice for the Bruins, New Brunswick-born left wing Willie O'Ree.
He played in 45 games for the Bruins over the 1957–58 and 1960–61 seasons, scoring six goals and ten assists in his NHL career.
During this period, the farm system of the Bruins was not as expansive or well-developed as most of the other five teams.
The Bruins sought players not protected by the other teams, and in like fashion to the aforementioned signing of Willie O'Ree, the team signed Tommy Williams from the 1960 Olympic-gold medal winning American national men's hockey team (at the time, he was the only American player in the NHL) in 1962.
The "Uke Line" (which was named for the Ukrainian heritage of Johnny Bucyk, Vic Stasiuk and Bronco Horvath) came to Boston in 1957 and enjoyed four productive offensive seasons, heralding along with scoring stalwarts Don McKenney and Fleming MacKell, the successful era of the late 1950s.
There followed a long and difficult reconstruction period in the early, mid-1960s.
Expansion & the Big Bad Bruins[]
Weston Adams repurchased the Bruins in 1964 after Brown's death and set about rebuilding the team.
Adams signed a defenseman from Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada named Bobby Orr, who entered the league in 1966 and became (in the eyes of many) the greatest player of all time. He was announced that season's winner of the Calder Memorial Trophy for Rookie of the Year and named to the Second NHL All-Star Team.
When asked about Bobby Orr's NHL debut game on October 19, 1966 against the Detroit Red Wings, then-Bruins coach Harry Sinden recalled:
"Our fans had heard about this kid for a few years now. There was a lot of pressure on him, but he met all the expectations. He was a star from the moment they played the national anthem in the opening game of the season."
The Bruins then obtained young forwards Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield from Chicago in a deal that was celebrated as one of the most one-sided in hockey history.
Hodge and Stanfield became key elements of the Bruins' success. Esposito (who centered a line with Hodge and Wayne Cashman0 became the league's top goal-scorer and the first NHL player to break the 100-point mark, setting many goal- and point-scoring records.
Esposito remains one of four players to win the Art Ross Trophy four consecutive seasons (the other three are Jaromir Jagr, Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe).
With other stars like forwards Bucyk, John McKenzie, Derek Sanderson and Hodge, steady defenders like Dallas Smith & goaltender Gerry Cheevers (the "Big Bad Bruins") became one of the league's top teams from the late 1960s into the 1980s.
In 1970, a 29-year Stanley Cup drought came to an end in Boston as the Bruins defeated the St. Louis Blues in four games in the Final.
Orr scored the game-winning goal in overtime to clinch the Stanley Cup.
The same season was Orr's most awarded—the third of eight consecutive years he won the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the top defenseman in the NH and he won the Art Ross Trophy, the Conn Smythe Trophy and the Hart Memorial Trophy (the only player to ever win four major awards in the same season).
"No one, absolutely no one, could have finished a goal in like manner. For years Orr had been described as someone who was graceful, elegant, powerful, without fear—poetry in motion. All these epithets were captured and immortalized in the photos of the goal that won the 1970 Stanley Cup."
The 1970–71 season was (in retrospect) the high-water mark of the 1970s for Boston.
While Sinden temporarily retired from hockey to enter business (he was replaced by ex-Bruin and Canadien defenseman Tom Johnson), the Bruins set dozens of offensive scoring records: they had seven of the league's top ten scorers—a feat not achieved before or since—set the record for wins in a season and in a league that had never seen a 100-point scorer before 1969, the Bruins had four that year.
All four (Orr, Esposito, Bucyk, and Hodge) were named First Team All-Stars (a feat matched in the expansion era only by the 1976–77 Montreal Canadiens).
Boston were favored to repeat as Cup champions, but ran into a roadblock in the playoffs. Up 5–1 at one point in game two of the quarterfinals against the Canadiens (and rookie goaltender Ken Dryden), the Bruins squandered the lead to lose 7–5.
The Bruins never recovered and lost the series in seven games.
While the Bruins were not quite as dominant the next season (although only three points behind the 1971 pace), Esposito and Orr were once again one-two in the scoring standings (followed by Bucyk in ninth place) and they regained the Stanley Cup by defeating the New York Rangers in six games in the Finals.
The Rangers blueliner Brad Park (who came runner-up to Orr's (then) five-year monopoly on the Norris Trophy), said: "Bobby Orr was—didn't make—the difference."
The 1972–73 season saw upheaval at the Bruins. Former head coach Sinden became the general manager.
Bruins players Gerry Cheevers, Derek Sanderson and Johnny McKenzie left to join the upstart World Hockey Association.
Coach Tom Johnson was fired fifty-two games into the season and was replaced by Bep Guidolin (who had once coached Orr).
The Adams family (which had owned the team since its founding in the 1920s) sold it to Storer Broadcasting.
The Bruins' season came to a premature end in a first-round loss to the Rangers in the 1973 playoffs, losing Esposito to injury in that first round.
In 1974, the Bruins regained their first place standing in the regular season, with three 100-point scorers on the team (Esposito, Orr, and Hodge). However, they lost the 1974 Final in an upset to the Philadelphia Flyers.
Don Cherry stepped behind the bench as the new coach in 1974–75.
The Bruins stocked themselves with enforcers and grinders and remained competitive under Cherry's reign, the so-called "Lunch Pail A.C"., behind players such as Gregg Sheppard, Terry O'Reilly, Stan Jonathan and Peter McNab.
This would also turn out to be Orr's final full season in the league before his knee injuries worsened as well as the last time that Orr and Esposito would finish 1-2 in regular season scoring.
The Bruins placed second in the Adams Division and lost to the Chicago Black Hawks in the first round of the 1975 playoffs, losing a best-of-three series, two games to one.
Continuing with Cherry's rebuilding of the team, the Bruins traded Esposito and Carol Vadnais for Brad Park, Jean Ratelle and Joe Zanussi to the Rangers.
That trade was particularly controversial for both Bruins and Rangers fans, as Esposito was one of the most popular Bruins players (though it was known that he disagreed with Cherry's coaching) while Park and Ratelle were Rangers stalwarts, however Boston ended up getting the better of the trade as Esposito never reached his previous scoring highs with the Rangers while Ratelle maintained his skill level with the Bruins and was a high scorer for several years more.
Particularly it was Park who reemerged as one of the league's best defencemen and filled the void left by Orr (who had been sidelined by surgery at the start of 1975-76 and only managed to play ten games before being injured and lost for the rest of the season).
The Bruins made the semifinals again, losing to the Flyers.
As an impending free agent, contract talks with Orr and his agent Alan Eagleson had been tumultuous throughout 1975-76.
Although insurers would not underwrite Orr and doctors advised that he could not play much longer, the Bruins still attempted to re-sign Orr and offered him a five-year deal at US$925,000 or 18.6 percent ownership of the club in 1980.
However, Eagleson turned down the offer without informing Orr, instead signing him to the Chicago Black Hawks in 1976.
Orr was never effective (having only played 26 games in Chicago) and retired after many knee operations in 1979.
Cheevers returned from the WHA in 1977, and the Bruins got past the Flyers in the semifinals, but they were swept by the Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Finals.
The story repeated itself in 1978—with a balanced attack that saw Boston have eleven players with 20+ goal seasons, still the NHL record (as the Bruins made the Final once more, but lost in six games to the Canadiens team that had recorded the best regular season in modern history).
After that series, Johnny Bucyk retired, holding virtually every Bruins' career longevity and scoring mark to that time.
The 1979 semifinal series against the Habs proved to be Cherry's undoing.
In the deciding seventh game, the Bruins up by a goal were called for having too many men on the ice in the late stages of the third period.
Montreal tied the game on the ensuing power play and won in overtime.
Never popular with Harry Sinden (by then the Bruins' general manager), Cherry was dismissed as head coach, but he was later hired in the same capacity with the Colorado Rockies.
On December 23, 1979 (at Madison Square Garden), a New York Rangers fan stole Stan Jonathan's stick, hitting him with it during a post-game scrum.
When other fans got involved, Terry O'Reilly charged into the stands followed by his teammates.
The game's TV commentator remarked that "they're going to pull that guy apart."
O'Reilly (a future team captain) received an eight-game suspension for the brawl.
Boston Bruins: 1980s and 1990s[]
The 1979 saw new head coach Fred Creighton replaced by the newly retired Cheevers the following year.
The Bruins trade of Ron Grahame to Los Angeles for a first round pick, that turned out to be 8th overall, enabled the Bruins to draft Ray Bourque, one of the greatest defensemen of all-time and the face of the Bruins for over two decades.
The Bruins made the playoffs every year through the 1980s behind stars such as Park, Bourque and Rick Middleton) and had the league's best record in 1983 behind a Vezina Trophy–winning season from ex-Flyer goaltender Pete Peeters, but always fell short of making the Finals.
Bourque, Cam Neely, and Keith Crowder led the Bruins to another Cup Final appearance in 1988 against the Edmonton Oilers.
The Bruins lost in a four-game sweep, but a memorable moment in the would-be fourth game ensued, when in the second period with the game tied 3–3, a blown fuse put the lights out at the Boston Garden.
The rest of the game was cancelled and the series shifted to Edmonton.
The Oilers completed the sweep, 6–3, back at Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton in what was originally scheduled as Game Five.
The event is considered to be the reason the Bruins began work on a new arena.
Boston returned to the Stanley Cup Final in 1990 (with Neely, Bourque, Craig Janney, [[[Bobby Carpenter]], rookie Don Sweeney and former Oiler goalie Andy Moog and Reggie Lemelin splitting goaltending duties), but again lost to the Oilers, this time in five games.
In 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, and 1994, they defeated their Original Six nemesis Montreal Canadiens in the playoffs, getting some revenge for a rivalry which had been lopsided in the Canadiens' favour in playoff action (with Montreal having won 18 consecutive playoff series against the Bruins between 1946 and 1987).
In 1991 and 1992, the Bruins suffered two consecutive Conference Final losses to the eventual Cup champion, the Mario Lemieux–led Pittsburgh Penguins.
Starting from the 1992-93 NHL season onwards, the Bruins had not gotten past the second round of the playoffs until winning the Stanley Cup after the 2011 season.
The 1992-93 season ended disappointingly for several reasons.
Despite finishing with the second-best regular season record after Pittsburgh, Boston was swept in the first-round by the Buffalo Sabres.
During the postseason awards ceremony, Bruin players finished as runner-up on many of the honors—Bourque for the Norris, Oates for the Art Ross and Lady Byng Trophy, Joe Juneau (who had broken the NHL record for assists in a season by a left-winger, a mark he still holds) for the Calder Trophy, Dave Poulin for the Frank J. Selke Trophy, Moog for the William M. Jennings Trophy and coach Brian Sutter for the Jack Adams Award.
Poulin did win the King Clancy Memorial Trophy while Bourque made the NHL All-Star First Team & Juneau the NHL All-Rookie Team.
The 1995 season would be the Bruins' last at the Boston Garden.
The final official match played in the Garden was a 3–0 loss to the New Jersey Devils in the 1995 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
On September 28, 1995, the Bruins went on to play the final game at the fabled arena in an exhibition matchup against the Canadiens. They subsequently moved into the FleetCenter, now known as the TD Garden.
In 1997, Boston missed the playoffs for the first time in thirty years (and for the first time in the expansion era), having set the North American major professional record for most consecutive seasons in the playoffs.
Historically, their most bitter rivals have been the Montreal Canadiens, whom the Bruins have played a record thirty-four times in the playoffs.
The Bruins also have a rivalry with the Philadelphia Flyers and were rivals to the now relocated Hartford Whalers.
Boston Bruins: 21st Century[]
After a 3–4–1 start, the Bruins fired head coach Pat Burns and went with Mike Keenan for the rest of the way.
Despite a fifteen-point improvement from the previous season, the Bruins missed the playoffs in 2000–01 by just one point and Keenan was let go. Centerman Jason Allison led the Bruins in scoring.
The following season (in 2001–02) the Bruins improved again with another thirteen points, winning their first Northeast Division title since 1993 with a core built around Joe Thornton, Sergei Samsonov, Brian Rolston, Bill Guerin, Mike Knuble and the newly acquired Glen Murray.
Their regular season success did not translate to the postseason as they lost in six games to the underdog eighth-place Canadiens in the first round.
The 2002-03 NHL season found the Bruins platooning their goaltending staff between Steve Shields and John Grahame for most of the season. A mid-season trade brought in veteran Jeff Hackett.
In the midst of a late-season slump, general manager Mike O'Connell fired head coach Robbie Ftorek with nine games to go and named himself the interim coach.
The Bruins managed to finish seventh in the East, but they lost to the eventual Stanley Cup Champion New Jersey Devils in five games.
In 2003–04, the Bruins began the season with ex-Toronto Maple Leaf goalie Felix Potvin.
Later in the season, the Bruins put rookie Andrew Raycroft into the starting role. He eventually won the Calder Trophy that season.
The Bruins went on to win another division title and appeared to get past the first round for the first time in five years with a 3–1 series lead on the rival Canadiens, however the Canadiens rallied back to win three straight games, upsetting the Bruins.
The 2004-05 NHL season was wiped out by a lockout and the Bruins had a lot of space within the new salary cap implemented for 2005–06.
Bruins management eschewed younger free agents in favor of older veterans such as Alexei Zhamnov and Brian Leetch.
The newcomers were oft-injured and by the end of November, the Bruins team traded their captain and franchise player, Joe Thornton (who went on to win the Art Ross and Hart Trophies).
In exchange, the Bruins received Marco Sturm, Brad Stuart and Wayne Primeau from the San Jose Sharks.
After losing ten of eleven games before the trade, the Bruins came back with a 3–0 victory over the league-leading Ottawa Senators as rookie goaltender Hannu Toivonen earned his first career NHL shutout.
When Toivonen went down with an injury in January, journeyman goalie Tim Thomas started sixteen straight games and brought the Bruins back into the playoff run.
Two points out of eighth place at the Winter Olympic break, the Bruins fired general manager Mike O'Connell in March and the Bruins missed the playoffs for the first time in five years.
Peter Chiarelli was hired as the new GM of the team.
Head coach Mike Sullivan was fired and Dave Lewis (the former coach of the Detroit Red Wings) was hired to replace him.
The Bruins signed Zdeno Chara (one of the most coveted defensemen in the NHL and a former NHL All-Star from the Senators) and Marc Savard (who finished just three points short of a 100-point season in 2005–06 with the Atlanta Thrashers) to long-term deals.
The 2006–07 season ended in the team finishing in last place in the division. The Bruins traded Brad Stuart & Wayne Primeau to the Calgary Flames for Andrew Ference and forward Chuck Kobasew.
Rejuvenation in Boston[]
After the disappointing 2007 season, Lewis was fired as coach.
On June 21, 2007, it was announced that former Canadiens/Devils head coach Claude Julien had been named as the new head coach.
The Bruins also unveiled a new logo, and a brand new shoulder patch closely based on the main jersey logo used until 1932.
The 2008 campaign saw the Bruins regain some respectability, finishing 41–29–12 and making the playoffs. The season ended on a bright note for the Bruins when they forced the Canadiens to play a seven-game playoff series, including a memorable Game 6 in which Boston came back to win 5–4.
Their performance (despite a 5–0 loss in the seventh game) rekindled interest in the team in New England where the Bruins had for years been heavily overshadowed by the Red Sox, Patriots and the Celtics, all of whom had recently won championships in their respective leagues.
Although Bruins center Patrice Bergeron was injured with a concussion most of the season, youngsters Milan Lucic, David Krejci, Vladimir Sobotka and Petteri Nokelainen showed promise in the playoffs.
After a slow start to the 2008–09 season, the Bruins won seventeen of their next twenty games leading many to see them as a revival of the "Big Bad Bruins" from the 1970s and 1980s.
During the 2009 All-Star Weekend's Skills Competition, captain Zdeno Chara fired the NHL's then-fastest measured "hardest shot" ever, with a clocked in speed of 105.4 mph (169.7 km/h) velocity. (Chara has since broken his own record 3 times, two of those on the same night.)
The number of injured players in the season saw many call-ups from the Bruins' AHL Providence Bruins farm team, with rookie defenseman Matt Hunwick and forward Byron Bitz seeing success.
The Bruins went on to have the best record in the Eastern Conference and qualified for the playoffs for the fifth time in nine years, facing the Canadiens in the playoffs for the fourth time during that span, defeating them in four games before losing in seven games to the Carolina Hurricanes in the conference semifinals.
The 2009 summer off-season saw the departure of long-time defensive forward P.J. Axelsson from Sweden, who signed a multi-year contract with his hometown Frölunda HC team.
With Maple Leafs G.M. Brian Burke threatening an offer sheet and Bruins management unable to meet his salary demands, forward Phil Kessel was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs for a trio of future draft picks.
On January 1, 2010, the Bruins won the 2010 NHL Winter Classic over the Philadelphia Flyers in a 2–1 overtime decision at Fenway Park, thus becoming the first home team to win an outdoor classic game.
However (following the New Year's Day game0, the Bruins (hobbled by injuries) would go through a five-week long period of lackluster play with only two wins and compiling ten regulation losses earning them only eight points in the Eastern Conference standings in that 15-game long period, before breaking the losing streak in an away game against the Canadiens on February 7, 2010 with Tuukka Rask, shutting out the Habs 3–0.
The win over the Canadiens was the first of four successive victories leading into the break in play for the NHL's participation in the 2010 Winter Olympics and established Tuukka Rask as the number one goaltender for the Bruins as Tim Thomas would only start eight of the 22 games remaining in the post-Olympic period of the season, with Rask winning eight of his post-Olympic starts, including two shutouts.
Thomas was on the silver-medal winning US team with Patrice Bergeron on the gold-medal-winning Canadian team.
The importance of former Sabre forward Daniel Paille's acquisition by the Bruins, and his emergence as a penalty killing forward, was emphasized on April 10, 2010, as Paille, Steve Begin and Blake Wheeler combined for the first-ever known trio of short handed goals within one penalty kill in only 1:04 of game time in a home game against the Carolina Hurricanes, helping the Bruins to sixth place in the NHL Eastern Conference and a 2010 NHL playoff opening round appearance against the Buffalo Sabres which they won 4 games to 2 games.
Boston became only the third team in NHL history to lose a playoff series after leading 3–0 when they lost in Game 7 to the Philadelphia Flyers after losing a 3–0 lead in the second round on May 14, 2010, also losing the services of Marco Sturm in the first game and playmaking center David Krejci to injury in the third game of the series.
On April 13, 2010, the Boston Bruins received the second overall draft pick for the 2010 NHL Draft, having received it via the trade that sent Phil Kessel to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
With the pick, the Bruins selected Tyler Seguin on June 25, 2010.
In other offseason moves, Gregory Campbell and Nathan Horton joined the team and Vladimir Sobotka & Dennis Wideman left the Bruins in the 2010 free agency.
After the season ended on June 16, 2010, Cam Neely was named the new team president of the Bruins.
Boston Bruins: 2011-2013[]
On February 15, 2011, the Bruins acquired center Chris Kelly from the Ottawa Senators after Savard's attempted comeback ended due to another concussion; this one delivered in Colorado by former Bruin Matt Hunwick.
Ottawa received the Bruins' second-round pick in 2011. Just two days later and on the brink of the trade deadline, the Bruins acquired defenseman Tomas Kaberle in a trade from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for prospect Joe Colborne, a first-round selection in 2011, and a potential second-round pick in 2012 (which became official on May 27, 2011 when the Bruins clinched a berth in the Stanley Cup Finals).
Mark Stuart and Blake Wheeler were also traded to the Atlanta Thrashers for Rich Peverley and Boris Valabik.
In the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Bruins became the first team in NHL history to win a 7-game series without scoring a power-play goal as they eliminated the Montreal Canadiens in 7 games and also won their first playoff series after trailing 2 games to none.
On May 6, 2011, the Bruins swept the Philadelphia Flyers in four games to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 1992.
Boston then defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in seven games and advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1990 to face the Vancouver Canucks.
The Bruins lost the first two games of the series in very close contests, 1–0, on a goal with less than 19 seconds left in regulation, and then 3–2 in overtime.
Game 3 did not start well for the Bruins either as they lost Nathan Horton to injury at the 5:07 mark of the first period following a late hit by Canucks defenseman Aaron Rome that left Horton prone on the ice for nearly 10 minutes.
Despite losing Horton to a devastating hit, the Bruins defeated the Canucks, with 4 goals in each of the second and third periods, twice scoring short-handed goals, and going on to win, 8–1.
It was the highest score by one team and largest winning margin, in a Finals game since 1996. Game 4 saw the Bruins defeating the Canucks in a 4–0 shutout.
The home team continued to be the winner, with Game 5 in Vancouver going to the Canucks in a 1–0 shutout, then Game 6 going to the Bruins, who staved off elimination with a 5–2 defeat of the Canucks.
The Bruins set a new record for the quickest four goals ever in a playoff series game, scoring in only 4:14 of game time in the first period of Game 6.
Game 7 (which was played in Vancouver on June 15, was the first time the Bruins have ever played in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. The Bruins shut out Vancouver 4–0, winning the sixth Stanley Cup in franchise history and breaking a 39-year Cup drought.
The 2010–11 Bruins were the first team in NHL history to win a Game 7 three times in the same playoff run.
Following their Stanley Cup win, the Bruins lost Mark Recchi to retirement and Michael Ryder and Tomas Kaberle to free agency.
The Bruins tweaked their roster by adding defenseman Joe Corvo and forward Benoit Pouliot.
The Bruins' short summer took its toll early, going 3–7–0 in the month of October, before responding with a 21–3–1 record to cap off 2011, highlighted by a near-perfect November in which the team did not lose in regulation.
Sophomore forward Tyler Seguin shone the brightest during the streak, eventually paving the way for his first All-Star Game selection, joining teammates Zdeno Chara and Tim Thomas on Team Chara.
On January 23, 2011, Thomas caused a stir by not attending the Bruins' visit to the White House, saying that the government had "grown out of control."
After an 8–4–1 record to begin 2012, the Bruins' inconsistent form resurfaced for much of February and March, during which they endured key injuries to Nathan Horton (concussion) and Tuukka Rask (groin), and an impotent power play.
At the February 27 trading deadline they traded for Greg Zanon, Mike Mottau, one-time Bruin Brian Rolston & then signed goalie Marty Turco to add goaltending depth.
The Bruins went on to finish second in the Eastern Conference with 102 points, winning the Northeast Division title.
They faced the Washington Capitals in the first round of the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs.
In a seven-game series which all of the games were decided by only one goal, the Bruins came up short against rookie goalie Braden Holtby and head coach Dale Hunter's defensive-minded game plan.
The seventh game saw Joel Ward deflect the series-winning goal past Tim Thomas in overtime to give the Capitals the victory and end the Bruins' season.
During the offseason preceding the lockout, Tim Thomas made his decision to sit out the 2012–13 season.
General Manager Peter Chiarelli confirmed Thomas' decision. Thomas was first suspended for not reporting to training camp & then his rights were traded to the New York Islanders on February 7, 2013.
The Bruins decided to go with the goaltending pair of Tuukka Rask and Anton Khudobin for the season.
Meanwhile, highly touted prospect Dougie Hamilton was promoted to the main roster after spending a season in the juniors.
The Bruins battled the Montreal Canadiens for leadership in the Northeast Division all season, before a loss to the Ottawa Senators in a make-up game following the Boston Marathon bombings on April 28, 2013 gave the Canadiens the division title.
Boston settled for fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings with 62 points.
On April 2 the Bruins acquired former All-Star Jaromir Jagr from the Dallas Stars, after failing to acquire Jarome Iginla from the Calgary Flames.
Jagr would end up being a winger for the Bergeron-Marchand forward line, as usual winger Tyler Seguin was transferred to the third line with Chris Kelly and Rich Peverley to give a more even scoring threat across all four forward lines for the Bruins.
In the opening round of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Bruins took on the Toronto Maple Leafs.
After leading the series 3–1 with a pair of wins in Toronto, the Maple Leafs won Games 5 and 6 to force Game 7 in Boston.
Toronto led 4–1 in the third period of the decider before the Bruins came back late with three goals.
A goal from Nathan Horton 9:18 into the period cut the deficit to two, but the Bruins were unable to cut more into the lead until late in the period when Milan Lucic and Patrice Bergeron scored at 18:38 and 19:09 respectively with the goalie pulled to tie the game at four.
Bergeron would score again in overtime, netting the series winner to eliminate the Maple Leafs.
Boston's Game 7 win marked the first time a team came back from a three-goal deficit in the third period to win a playoff game.
In the second round, Boston led 3–0 against the New York Rangers before winning the series in five games.
Boston then defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Eastern Conference Finals in a four game sweep to advance to the Stanley Cup finals.
In the 2013 Stanley Cup Final, they faced the Chicago Blackhawks, another Original Six team. The Bruins fell in 6 games (with 3 going into overtime) including an epic Game 1, in which a third overtime period was needed before it was settled.
The only game Boston lost by more than one goal was Game 5 in which Chicago scored on an empty net in the closing seconds.
The 2013 Stanley Cup run by the Bruins was one that further united the New England region that had been rocked by tragedies (such as the Boston Marathon Bombing and the Newtown Shooting).
Coach Julien said after the deciding Game 6:
"You know, at the end of the day, I think that's what hurts the most is in the back of our minds, although we needed to focus on our team and doing what was going to be the best thing for our team to win a Stanley Cup, in the back of our minds we wanted to do it for those kind of reasons, the City of Boston, what Newtown has been through, that kind of stuff. It hit close to home and the best way we felt we could try and cheer the area was to win a Stanley Cup. I think that's what's hard right now for the players. We had more reasons than just ourselves to win a Cup."
Team Ownership[]
Team founder Charles Adams owned the team until 1936 when he transferred his stock his son Weston Adams, general manager and minority owner Art Ross & minority owner Ralph Burkard.
Weston Adams remained majority owner until 1951 when the Boston Garden-Arena Corporation purchased controlling interest in the team.
Under the Garden-Arena Corporation's management, Celtics founder Walter A. Brown ran the team from 1951 until his death in 1964.
After Brown's death Weston Adams returned to the role of team president. In 1969 he was succeeded by his son, Weston Adams, Jr.
On December 7, 1973, Storer Broadcasting, owner of WSBK-TV, and the Garden-Arena Corporation agreed to a merger which resulted in Storer acquiring a 100% interest in the Bruins. Adams remained as team president.
In August of 1975, Storer Broadcasting then sold the team to an ownership group headed by Jeremy Jacobs. He had to promise to keep Bobby Orr as a condition of the purchase.
The Bruins and Orr reached a verbal agreement with Jacobs during the summer of 1975, including a controversial agreement for Orr to take an 18.5% share of the Bruins after his playing days were over.
The agreement was to be checked out as to whether it would be legal for tax reasons and whether or not the league would approve it, however Orr's agent, the later notorious Alan Eagleson, rejected the deal
Jacobs represents the club on the NHL's Board of Governors and serves on its Executive Committee & he has chaired the Finance Committee.
At the NHL Board of Governors meeting in June 2007, Jacobs was elected Chairman of the Board, replacing the Calgary Flames' Harley Hotchkiss, who stepped down after 12 years in the position. He has frequently been listed by Sports Business Journal as one of the most influential people in sports in its annual poll and by Hockey News.
Jacobs company owns the TD Garden and he is partners with John Henry the owner of the Boston Red Sox) in the New England Sports Network (NESN).
After taking over as owner in 1975, the Bruins have been competitive (making the playoffs for 29 straight seasons from 1967-68 to 1995-96, 20 of which were with Jacobs as owner) but have won the Stanley Cup only once, in 2011 and only in his 36th year as owner.
Under previous ownerships, the Bruins had won the Stanley Cup five times. Under Jacobs, the Bruins have reached the Stanley Cup Final six times (twice against the Bruins' arch-rival Montreal Canadiens in 1977 and 1978, twice against the Edmonton Oilers in 1988 and 1990, finally winning in 2011 against the Vancouver Canucks, and losing in 2013 to the Chicago Blackhawks).
Jacobs's management of the team in the past earned him spots on ESPN.com's "Page 2" polls of "The Worst Owners in Sports" and No.7 on their 2005 "Greediest Owners In sports" list.
Sports Illustrated has suggested that longtime star defenseman Ray Bourque, who "often drawn the ire of the NHLPA for his willingness to re-sign with Boston with minimal negotiations over the years" instead of setting the "watermark for defenseman salaries," requested and received a trade in 2000 since the team's "hardline and spendthrift ways" meant that he would have to make the move to get his elusive Stanley Cup (Bourque holds the record for most games played before winning the Cup).
Prior to the new collective bargaining agreement signed in 2005, fans felt team management was not willing to spend to win the Stanley Cup.
Since 2005, Jacobs's public image has improved as he invested in the team and rebuilding the front office to make the team more competitive.
The Bruins were the second highest ranked team in the NHL in the 2008–2009 season and were the top seeded team in the East.
With a complete change in management including new General Manager Peter Chiarelli, Coach Claude Julien and Cam Neely's appointment as President, which subsequently led to the Bruins' Stanley Cup victory in 2011.
Current Administrators
- Jeremy Jacobs: Owner
- Charlie Jacobs: Principal
- Peter Chiarelli: General Manager
- Cam Neely: President
- Harry Sinden: Senior Advisor to the Owner
Unofficial Theme Songs[]
When Boston television station WSBK-TV began broadcasting Bruins games in 1967, the producers of the games' telecasts wanted a suitable piece of music to air for the introduction of each game.
Perhaps inspired by the Boston Ballet's annual Christmas performance of The Nutcracker had become closely identified with Boston, The Ventures' instrumental rock version of the Nutcracker's overture (known as "Nutty" itself) thought to be that group's version of the slightly earlier hit Nut Rocker was selected as the opening piece of music for Bruins telecasts.
The song "Nutty" has been identified with the Bruins ever since, and is still sometimes played at the TD Garden during Bruins games.
On ice, "Paree", a 1920s hit tune written by Leo Robin and Jose Padilla, has been played as an organ instrumental for decades, typically as the players entered the arena just before the start of each period and for many years, after each Bruins' goal.
It was introduced by John Kiley (the organist for the Bruins from the 1950s through the 1980s) and is still played during Bruins' games.
"Kernkraft 400 (Sport Chant Stadium Remix)" by Zombie Nation has been played for a number of seasons now after every Bruins goal scored on home ice after two short blasts of a Kahlenberg KM-135 replica boat horn.
Currently "Cochise" by Audioslave is played whenever the Bruins enter the ice. "The Game" by Motörhead is played before the opening faceoff, and after every Bruins' win at the TD Garden (as with the NESN-covered Boston Red Sox when winning a baseball game at Fenway Park), "Dirty Water", by the Standells, is played.
Quincy punk rock band Dropkick Murphys wrote their song "Time to Go" (released in their 2003 album Blackout) as a Bruins rally tune, and has performed their own version of The Ventures' song "Nutty" at games.
Although it did not come with the band's guarantee to help bring home a championship, as they did with their song "Tessie" for the Red Sox, it is still a part of the team's culture and is played during third period TV timeouts.
Another Dropkick Murphys song which is sometimes played at the TD Garden to rally the home crowd is "I'm Shipping Up to Boston."
Bruins Mascots[]
Blades the Bruin, an anthropomorphic bear serves as the Bruins' team mascot.
In January and February, Blades travels around the greater Boston area to raise money for the Bruins Foundation.
For a sizable amount of the team's more recent TV and online ads, a different anthropomorphic ursine character simply known as "The Bear" appears in official Bruins video advertising.
Players[]
Hall of Fame Players[]
- Marty Barry, C, 1929–35, inducted 1965
- Bobby Bauer, RW, 1935–52, inducted 1996
- [[Leo Boivin, D, 1954–66, inducted 1986
- Ray Bourque, D, 1979–2000, inducted 2004
- Frank Brimsek, G, 1938–49, inducted 1966
- Johnny Bucyk, LW, 1957–78, inducted 1981
- Billy Burch, LW, 1932–33, inducted 1974
- Gerry Cheevers, G, 1965–80, inducted 1985
- Dit Clapper, LW/D, 1927–47, inducted 1947
- Sprague Cleghorn, D, 1925–28, inducted 1948
- Paul Coffey, D, 2000–01, inducted 2004
- Roy Conacher, LW, 1938–45, inducted 1998
- Bun Cook, LW, 1936–37, inducted 1995
- Bill Cowley, C, 1935–47, inducted 1968
- Cy Denneny, LW, 1928–29, inducted 1959
- Woody Dumart, LW, 1935–54, inducted 1992
- Phil Esposito, C, 1967–76, inducted 1984
- Fernie Flaman, D, 1944–50 and 1954–61, inducted 1990
- Frank Frederickson, C, 1926–28, inducted 1958
- Busher Jackson, LW-D, 1941–44, inducted 1971
- Tom Johnson, D, 1963–65, inducted 1970
- Duke Keats, C, 1926, inducted 1958
- Guy Lapointe, D, 1983–84, inducted 1993
- Brian Leetch, D, 2005–06, inducted 2009
- Harry Lumley, G, 1957–60, inducted 1980
- Mickey MacKay, C, 1928–1930, inducted 1952
- Sylvio Mantha, D, 1937, inducted 1960
- Joe Mullen, RW, 1995–96, inducted 2000
- Cam Neely, RW, 1986–96, inducted 2005
- Adam Oates, C, 1992–97, inducted 2012
- Harry Oliver, C, 1926–34, inducted 1967
- Bobby Orr, D, 1966–76, inducted 1979
- Brad Park, D, 1975–83, inducted 1988
- Bernie Parent, G, 1965–67, inducted 1984
- Jacques Plante, G, 1973, inducted 1978
- Babe Pratt, D, 1946–47, inducted 1966
- Bill Quackenbush, D, 1949–56, inducted 1976
- Jean Ratelle, C, 1975–81, inducted 1985
- Terry Sawchuk, G, 1955–57, inducted 1971
- Milt Schmidt, C, 1936–55, inducted 1961
- Eddie Shore, D, 1926–40, inducted 1947
- Babe Siebert, D, 1933–36, inducted 1964
- Hooley Smith, C, 1936–37, inducted 1972
- Allan Stanley, D, 1956–58, inducted 1981
- Nels Stewart, RW-D, 1933–37, inducted 1962
- Tiny Thompson, G, 1928–39, inducted 1959
- Cooney Weiland, C, 1928–32 and 1935–39, inducted 1971
Retired Numbers[]
| No. | Player | Position | Career | No. retirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Eddie Shore | D | 1926–40 | January 1, 1947 |
| 3 | Lionel Hitchman 1 | D | 1925–34 | February 22, 1934 |
| 4 | Bobby Orr | D | 1966–76 | January 9, 1979 |
| 5 | Aubrey "Dit" Clapper | LW, D | 1927–47 | February 12, 1947 |
| 7 | Phil Esposito | C | 1967–75 | December 3, 1987 |
| 8 | Cam Neely | RW | 1986–96 | January 12, 2004 |
| 9 | Johnny Bucyk | LW | 1957–78 | March 13, 1980 |
| 15 | Milt Schmidt | C | 1936–55 | March 13, 1980 |
| 24 | Terry O'Reilly | RW | 1972–85 | October 24, 2002 |
| 77 | Ray Bourque | D | 1979–2000 | October 4, 2001 |
Hall of Fame Builders[]
- Charles Adams, President, 1924–36, inducted 1960
- Weston Adams, Sr., Director; President, 1936–51, inducted 1972
- Walter A. Brown, President, 1951–64, inducted 1962
- Murray Costello, former player 1955-57, inducted builders category 2005
- Frank Patrick, Head coach, 1934–36, inducted 1958
- Art Ross, Head coach; General Manager, 1924–54, inducted 1945
- Harry Sinden, Head coach; General Manager; President; Senior Advisor, 1966–present, inducted 1983
Boston Bruins First-Round Draft Picks[]
- 1963: Orest Romashyna (3rd overall)
- 1964: Alex Campbell (2nd overall)
- 1965: Joe Bailey (4th overall)
1966: Barry Gibbs (1st overall)
- 1967: Meehan Bonnar (10th overall)
- 1968: Danny Schock (12th overall)
- 1969: Don Tannahill (3rd overall), Frank Spring (4th overall) and Ivan Boldirev (11th overall)
- 1970: Reggie Leach (3rd overall), Rick MacLeish (4th overall), Ron Plumb (9th overall) and Bob Stewart (13th overall)
- 1971: [[Ron Jones (6th overall) and Terry O'Reilly (14th overall)
- 1972: Mike Bloom (16th overall)
- 1973: Andre Savard (6th overall)
- 1974: Don Larway (18th overall)
- 1975: Doug Halward (14th overall)
- 1976: Clayton Pachal (16th overall)
- 1977: Dwight Foster (16th overall)
- 1978: Al Secord (16th overall)
- 1979: Ray Bourque (8th overall) and Brad McCrimmon (15th overall)
- 1980: Barry Pederson (18th overall)
- 1981: Normand Leveille (14th overall)
- 1982: Gord Kluzak (1st overall)
- 1983: Nevin Markwart (21st overall)
- 1984: Dave Pasin (19th overall)
- 1986: Craig Janney (13th overall)
- 1987: Glen Wesley (3rd overall) and Stephane Quintal (14th overall)
- 1988: Robert Cimetta (18th overall)
- 1989: Shayne Stevenson (17th overall)
- 1990: Bryan Smolinski (21st overall)
- 1991: Glen Murray (18th overall)
- 1992: Dmitri Kvartalnov (16th overall)
- 1993: Kevyn Adams (25th overall)
- 1994: Evgeni Ryabchikov (21st overall)
- 1995: [[Kyle McLaren (9th overall) and Sean Brown (21st overall)
- 1996: Johnathan Aitken (8th overall)
- 1997: Joe Thornton (1st overall) and Sergei Samsonov (8th overall)
- 1998: None
- 1999: Nick Boynton (21st overall)
- 2000: Lars Jonsson (7th overall) and Martin Samuelsson (27th overall)
- 2001: Shaone Morrisonn (19th overall)
- 2002: Hannu Toivonen (29th overall)
- 2003: Mark Stuart (21st overall)
- 2004: None
- 2005: Matt Lashoff (22nd overall)
- 2006: Phil Kessel (5th overall)
- 2007: Zach Hamill (8th overall)
- 2008: Joe Colborne (16th overall)
- 2009: Jordan Caron (25th overall)
- 2010: Tyler Seguin (2nd overall)
- 2011: Dougie Hamilton (9th overall)
- 2012: Malcolm Subban (24th overall)
- 2013: None
- 2014: David Pastrnak (25th overall)
Team Awards[]
Stanley Cup
- 1928–29, 1938–39, 1940–41, 1969–70, 1971–72 & 2010–11
Presidents' Trophy
- 1989–90 & 2013–14
Prince of Wales Trophy
- 1927–28, 1928–29, 1929–30, 1930–31, 1932–33, 1934–35, 1937–38, 1938–39, 1939–40, 1940–41, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1973–74, 1987–88, 1989–90, 2010–11 and 2012–13
Art Ross Trophy
- Phil Esposito: 1968–69, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1973–74
- Bobby Orr: 1969–70, 1974–75
- Joe Thornton: 2005–06 (traded to the San Jose Sharks during the 2005–06 season)
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy
- Charlie Simmer: 1985–86
- Gord Kluzak: 1989–90
- Cam Neely: 1993–94
- Phil Kessel: 2006–07
Calder Memorial Trophy
- Frank Brimsek: 1938–39 (trophy known as "Calder Trophy")
- Jack Gelineau: 1949–50
- Larry Regan: 1956–57
- Bobby Orr: 1966–67
- Derek Sanderson: 1967–68
- Ray Bourque: 1979–80
- Sergei Samsonov: 1997–98
- Andrew Raycroft: 2003–04
Conn Smythe Trophy
- Bobby Orr: 1969–70, 1971–72
- Tim Thomas: 2010–11
Frank J. Selke Trophy
- Steve Kasper: 1981–82
- Patrice Bergeron: 2011–12, 2013-14
Hart Memorial Trophy
- Eddie Shore: 1932–33, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1937–38
- Bill Cowley: 1940–41, 1942–43
- Milt Schmidt: 1950–51
- Phil Esposito: 1968–69, 1973–74
- Bobby Orr: 1969–70, 1970–71, 1971–72
- Joe Thornton: 2005–06 (traded to the San Jose Sharks during the 2005–06 season)
Jack Adams Award
- Don Cherry: 1975–76
- Pat Burns: 1997–98
- Claude Julien: 2008–09
James Norris Memorial Trophy
- Bobby Orr: 1967–68, 1968–69, 1969–70, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1973–74 & 1974–75
- Ray Bourque: 1986–87, 1987–88, 1989–90, 1990–91 & 1993–94
- Zdeno Chara: 2008–09
King Clancy Memorial Trophy
- Ray Bourque: 1991–92
- Dave Poulin: 1992–93
- Patrice Bergeron: 2012–13
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
- Bobby Bauer: 1939–40, 1940–41, 1946–47
- Don McKenny: 1959–60
- John Bucyk: 1970–71, 1973–74
- Jean Ratelle: 1975-76
- Rick Middleton: 1981–82 (traded from the New York Rangers during the 1975-76 season)
Lester B. Pearson Award
- Phil Esposito: 1970–71, 1972–73
- Bobby Orr: 1974–75
Lester Patrick Trophy
- Charles F. Adams: 1966–67
- Walter A. Brown: 1967–68
- Eddie Shore: 1969–70
- Cooney Weiland: 1971–72
- John Bucyk: 1976–77
- Phil Esposito: 1977–78
- Bobby Orr: 1978–79
- Milt Schmidt: 1995–96
- Harry Sinden: 1998–99
- Willie O'Ree: 2002–03
- Ray Bourque: 2002–03
- Cam Neely: 2009–10
Mark Messier Leadership Award
- Zdeno Chara: 2010–11
NHL Foundation Player Award &Patrice Bergeron: 2013-14
NHL Leading Scorer (prior to awarding of Art Ross Trophy)
- Herb Cain: 1943–44
- Bill Cowley: 1940–41
- Milt Schmidt: 1939–40
- Cooney Weiland: 1929–30
Vezina Trophy
- Tiny Thompson: 1929–30, 1932–33, 1935–36, 1937–38
- Frank Brimsek: 1938–39, 1941–42
- Pete Peeters: 1982–83
- Tim Thomas: 2008–09, 2010–11
- Tuukka Rask: 2013-14
William M. Jennings Trophy
- Andy Moog and Rejean Lemelin: 1989–90
- Tim Thomas and Manny Fernandez: 2008–09
Team Awards[]
The Boston Bruins have several team awards that are traditionally awarded at the last home game of the regular season.
Elizabeth C. Dufresne Trophy
- Best player in home games
Seventh Player Award
- Player performing most beyond expectations
Eddie Shore Award
- Player with most hustle and determination
John P. Bucyk Award
- Community service
Bruins Radio Network Three-Star Awards
- Most three-star selections
Franchise Individual Records[]
- Most goals in a season: Phil Esposito, 76 (1970–71)
- Most assists in a season: Bobby Orr, 102 (1970–71)
- Most points in a season: Phil Esposito, 152 (1970–71)
- Most penalty minutes in a season: Jay Miller, 304 (1987–88)
- Lowest goals against average in a season: Frank Brimsek, 1.56, (1938–39)
- Most points per game in a season: Bill Cowley, 1.97 (1943–44)
- Most points in a season, defenseman: Bobby Orr, 139 (1970–71)
- Most points in a season, rookie: Joe Juneau, 102 (1992–93)
- Most wins in a season: Pete Peeters, 40 (1982–83)
- Most shutouts in a season: Hal Winkler, 15 (1927–28)
- Consecutive games streak: John Bucyk, 418 (January 23, 1969 – March 2, 1975)
- Longest point scoring streak: Bronco Horvath, 22 games, (1959–60)
- Highest save percentage in a season: Tim Thomas, .938 (2010–11)
- Longest winning streak by a goaltender, one season: Gilles Gilbert, 17 (1975–76)
Leaders[]
Team Presidents[]
- Charles F. Adams, November 1, 1924 – 1936
- Weston W. Adams, Sr., 1936–1951
- Walter A. Brown, 1951 – September 1964
- Weston W. Adams, Sr., September 1964 – March 30, 1969
- Weston W. Adams, Jr., March 31, 1969 – September 30, 1975
- Paul A. Mooney, October 1, 1975 – March 24, 1987
- William D. Hassett, Jr., March 24, 1987 – December 1, 1988
- Harry Sinden, December 1, 1988 – August 9, 2006
- Cam Neely, June 16, 2010 – present
Team Captains[]
- Sprague Cleghorn, 1925–28
- Lionel Hitchman, 1928–31
- George Owen, 1931–32
- Dit Clapper, 1932–38
- Cooney Weiland, 1938–39
- Dit Clapper, 1939–46
- John Crawford, 1946–50
- Milt Schmidt, 1950–54
- Ed Sandford, 1954–55
- Fernie Flaman, 1955–61
- Don McKenney, 1961–63
- Leo Boivin, 1963–66
- John Bucyk, 1966–67; 1973–77
- Wayne Cashman, 1977–83
- Terry O'Reilly, 1983–85
- Ray Bourque and Rick Middleton, 1985–88 (co-captains)
- Ray Bourque, 1988–2000
- Jason Allison, 2000–01
- Joe Thornton, 2002–05
- Zdeno Chara, 2006–present
General Managers[]
The current general manager is Peter Chiarelli. He was hired on May 26, 2006, as the General Manager of the Boston Bruins.
He was signed to a four-year contract. He was previously the assistant general manager for the Ottawa Senators. The Senators were given a conditional draft pick for relinquishing Chiarelli.
On June 19, 2009, he received a four-year contract extension through 2013–14.
Media[]
NESN
- Jack Edwards: TV play-by-play
- Andy Brickley: TV color analyst
- Jamie Erdahl: Rinkside reporter
98.5 The Sports Hub
- Dave Goucher: Radio play-by-play
- Bob Beers: Radio color analyst
Other Media Platforms[]
The widespread growth of mobile devices and social media caused the Boston Bruins to expand its team update information into other platforms.
Some off-air news updates via social media take place on both Facebook and Twitter.
Rebroadcasts of portions of games and other special programmes may additionally air on the team's official YouTube channel "BostonBruinsTV."
Additionally, the team maintains a team-related mobile app for BlackBerry, iPhone and Android smartphones on which fans can check game schedules as well as directly order game tickets.