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Revision as of 00:27, 2 April 2006
Template:NHL Team Infobox The Boston Bruins are a National Hockey League (NHL) team based in Boston, Massachusetts. Their logo is comprised of a black "B" in a black circle with gold spokes radiating from the center.
Facts
- Founded: 1924
- Team Colors: Black and gold
- Home Arena: TD Banknorth Garden (a.k.a. Fleet Center, 1995-2005)
- Former Home Arenas: Boston Arena (1924-1927); Boston Garden (1928-1995)
- Stanley Cup wins: 5 - 1929, 1939, 1941, 1970, 1972.
- Stanley Cup runner-up: 11 - 1930, 1943, 1946, 1953, 1957, 1958, 1974, 1977, 1978, 1988, 1990.
- President's Trophy wins: 1 - 1990. Also the NHL's regular season champion in 1930, 1931, 1933, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1971, 1972, 1974 and 1983.
- Main Rivals: Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, and Toronto Maple Leafs.
- One of the NHL's 'Original Six' franchises, along with the Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Franchise history
The Pre-War years
In 1924, at the convincing of Boston grocery magnate Charles Adams, the NHL decided to expand into the United States. As a long-time hockey hotbed, Boston was a natural for the NHL's first American team.
Adams hired Art Ross as general manager. Ross would stay with the team for 30 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," after the brown bear. The nickname also went along with the team's colors of brown and gold (brown became black in 1939), which came from Adams' grocery chain, Brookside Stores. The team finished dead last in its inaugural season, but rebounded to finish just a point out of the playoffs a year later.
In only their third season (1926-27), the team's fortune changed. Ross took advantage of the collapse of the Western Hockey League to purchase several western stars, including the team's first great star, defenseman Eddie Shore. The Bruins reached the Stanley Cup final despite finishing only one game above .500, but lost to the Ottawa Senators, but won their first Cup two years later by defeating the New York Rangers behind Shore, Harry Oliver, Dit Clapper, Dutch Gainor and superstar goaltender Tiny Thompson. That season was also the first in the legendary Boston Garden, which Adams had built after guaranteeing his backers $500,000 in gate receipts over the next five years. The season after that (1929-30), the Bruins posted the best-ever regular season winning percentage in the NHL (an astonishing .875), but would lose to the Montreal Canadiens in the finals.
Except for a couple seasons, the Bruins would remain excellent through the 1930s with superb players such as Shore, Thompson, Clapper, Babe Siebert, and Cooney Weiland, but failed to capture their second Cup until 1939. That year, in a move considered insane by hockey pundits, Ross dealt Thompson in favor of untried rookie goaltender Frank Brimsek. "Mr. Zero" Brimsek would electrify the league in his rookie season, and headlined by the "Kraut Line" (center Milt Schmidt, left winger Bobby Bauer, and right winger Woody Dumart), playmaking wizard Bill Cowley, Shore, Clapper, and unexpected hero "Sudden Death" Mel Hill (who scored three overtime goals in one playoff series), the Bruins won the Cup. Shore was dealt to the New York Americans for his final NHL season the next year, but the following season, the Bruins -- having led the league in a magnificent regular season, with only eight losses, won their third Stanley Cup with Weiland as their new coach, behind the brilliance of Cowley, the Krauts and Brimsek. It would be their last Stanley Cup for 26 years.
World War II and the "Original Six" Era
Unfortunately, World War II decimated the Bruins worse than most teams; Brimsek, Schmidt, Dumart and Bauer all enlisted after the 1941 season, and lost the most productive years of their careers at war. Cowley, assisted by elder statesmen Clapper and Busher Jackson, was the team's remaining star. Even though the NHL had by 1943 pared down to the six teams that would in a later era be -- erroneously -- called the "Original Six", talent was depleted enough that freak seasons could predominate, as in 1944, when Bruin Herb Cain would set the NHL record for points in a season with 82. The Bruins wouldn't make the playoffs that year, and Cain would be out of the NHL two years later.
The stars would return for the 1945-46 NHL season, and Clapper led the team all the way to the Cup finals as player-coach. He retired as a player after the next season, but stayed behind the bench two more years. Unfortunately, Brimsek was not as good as he was pre-war, and after 1946 the Bruins lost in the first playoff round three straight years, resulting in Clapper's ouster. An ominous bit of misfortune came with the banning of young star Don Gallinger for life on suspicion of gambling, and the only remaining quality young player who stayed with the team for any length was forward Johnny Peirson, who would later be the team's color commentator in the Seventies.
The 1950s would not be kind to the Bruins. Adams' son, Weston (who had been team president since 1936), faced financial trouble and was forced to accept a buyout offer from Walter A. Brown, the owner of the Boston Celtics and the Garden, in 1951. Although there were some flashes of success (such as making the Stanley Cup finals 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, but fan support remained high -- the Bruins consistently outdrew their corporate cousins even as they won eight straight world championships.
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 1958 signed Willie O'Ree the first black player in the NHL and in 1962 signed Tommy Williams from the gold medal winning American national men's hockey team at the 1960 Squaw Valley Winter Olympics who was at the time the only American player in the NHL.
Expansion and the Big, Bad Bruins
Weston Adams repurchased the Bruins in 1964 after Brown's death and set about rebuilding the team. Adams drafted young Bobby Orr who entered the league in 1966 and would be in the eyes of many the greatest defenseman of all time. They would then obtain Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield from the Chicago Blackhawks in one of the most one-sided deals in history. Hodge and Stanfield became useful players in Boston, but Esposito would blossom into the league's top goal scorer, being the first NHL player to break the one hundred point mark and setting many goal and point scoring records. With other stars like wingers Johnny Bucyk, John McKenzie, Hodge and Derek Sanderson, steady defenders like Dallas Smith and goaltender Gerry Cheevers, the "Big, Bad Bruins" became one of the league's top teams from the late 1960s through the 1970s, combining a rugged, barroom style of play with one of the greatest offensive juggernauts the NHL had ever seen.
In 1970, a 29-year Stanley Cup drought came to an end in Boston, as the Bruins swept the St. Louis Blues in four games in the finals. Bobby Orr scored the game-winning goal in overtime of Game Four. The famous image of Orr scoring, while being tripped up and flying through the air after "The Goal", his arms raised in victory, remains perhaps the best-known photograph in professional hockey to this present day.
1971 was in respects the high watermark of the Seventies for Boston. The Bruins' dominance was cataclysmic, shattering 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 season. All (Orr, Esposito, Bucyk and Hodge) were named First Team All-Stars, a feat matched in the expansion era only by the 1977 Canadiens. Boston looked poised to repeat as Cup champions, but ran into a roadblock in the playoffs. Up 5-1 at one point in Game Two of a quarter-final match against the Canadiens (and rookie goaltender Ken Dryden), the Bruins squandered it to lose 7-5. They 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), they returned to glory in the playoffs, defeating a strong challenge from the New York Rangers in six games in the Cup finals behind Orr's wizardry. The 1972 Cup win is Boston's most recent to date.
Boston continued to dominate through the 1970s (despite losing Cheevers, McKenzie, Sanderson and other stars to the renegade World Hockey Association), only to come up short in the playoffs. Although they had three 100-point scorers on the team (Esposito, Orr and Hodge), they would lose the 1974 finals to the rough Philadelphia Flyers.
The flamboyant Don Cherry stepped behind the bench as the new coach in 1974-75. The Bruins stocked themselves with enforcers and remained a threat under Cherry's reign, the so-called "Lunch Pail A.C.," behind players such as slick Gregg Sheppard, rugged Terry O'Reilly and high-scoring Peter McNab.
Orr, however, did not. He left the Bruins for the Chicago Blackhawks after the 1975-76 NHL season and retired after many knee operations in 1979. The Bruins excelled without him (picking up another great blueliner, Brad Park, from the Rangers (along with Jean Ratelle) in a blockbuster trade early in the season that would see Esposito join the New York squad) as they made the semi-finals again, losing to the Flyers.
Cheevers returned from the WHA in 1977, and the Bruins would get past the Flyers in the semi-finals, but would lose to the Canadiens in the race for the Cup. The story would repeat itself in 1978.
The 1979 semi-final series against the Canadiens 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.
The Eighties and Nineties
Coupled with front office dislike of Cherry's outspoken ways, the following season saw his replacement as coach by Fred Creighton in 1979, a newly-retired Cheevers the following year, and the coming of Ray Bourque. The defenseman -- one of the true greats of NHL history -- was an icon for the team for over two decades, although in the end it took a trade to the Colorado Avalanche for him to win the Stanley Cup.
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-winning season from ex-Flyer goaltender Pete Peeters -- but usually did not get very far. By the late 1980s, they were once again a force. In addition to Bourque, players like the indomitable Cam Neely, Keith Crowder, and Don Sweeney would lead the Bruins to another finals appearance in 1988 against the Edmonton Oilers. The Bruins lost in a four-game sweep, but created a memorable moment in Game 4, when the lights at the Boston Garden went out, due to a blown fuse, in the second period with the game tied. The rest of the game was cancelled and the series shifted to Edmonton.
Boston returned to the finals in 1990 (with Neely, Bourque, Craig Janney, and Bobby Carpenter leading the team in scoring, and Andy Moog and Rejean Lemelin splitting goaltending duties), but would again lose to the Oilers.
The 1990s were not kind to the Bruins. Despite picking up more talent like Adam Oates, Rick Tocchet, and Jozef Stumpel, they did not get past the second round of the playoffs after 1992 (their second consecutive conference final loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins). In 1997, they missed the playoffs for the first time in 30 years, having set the North American major professional record for most consecutive seasons in the playoffs.
The 1990s also saw the Bruins moving from the storied Boston Garden, to their new home, the FleetCenter, now known as the TD Banknorth Garden.
Their bitterest archrivals have historically been the Montreal Canadiens, but the Canadiens' lack of success in recent years has muted the century-old rivalry.
The 21st Century
The Bruins got off to a poor start in the new century. Despite a 15 point improvement from the previous season, the Bruins missed the playoffs in 2000-01. They finished with 88 points, which left them out of the playoff picture, in a tie with the 8th place Carolina Hurricanes, behind the coaching of both Pat Burns and Mike Keenan.
The following season (2001-02) saw the Bruins with a 13 point improvement, their first Northeast Division title since 1993 and a solid core built around Joe Thornton, Sergei Samsonov, Brian Rolston, Bill Guerin, and the newly acquired Glen Murray. Their regular season success didn't translate to postseason success, as they bowed out in six games to the underdog 8th-place Montreal Canadiens. Goaltending was the biggest flaw in the previous season, as Byron Dafoe struggled in the playoffs.
The 2002-03 season saw very little improvement between the pipes, as the Bruins entered the season with weak goaltending once again. They platooned between the inconsistent Steve Shields and the inexperienced John Grahame for most of the season, but a mid-season trade brought in veteran Jeff Hackett, who showed signs of improvement, but wasn't the answer to the Bruins problems. The Bruins managed to finish 7th and lose to the eventual Stanley Cup Champion New Jersey Devils in 5 games.
The 2003-04 season was sure to be an odd season, with two rookies playing key roles. The Bruins again failed to bring in a solid goaltender and began the season with yet another inconsistent goalie between the pipes, Felix Potvin. Potvin started out solid, but struggled soon enough, forcing the Bruins to put rookie Andrew Raycroft into the starting role. Raycroft proved superb and finally gave the Bruins an answer to their goaltending problems. Raycroft, as well as Thornton, Samsonov, Rolston, Murray, Mike Knuble, Nick Boynton, and rookie Patrice Bergeron carried the Bruins to another division title. The Bruins appeared destined to get out of the first round for the first time in five years, with a solid 3-1 series lead on the rival Montreal Canadiens. The Canadiens miraculously rallied back to win three straight games, upsetting the Bruins once again. The Bruins continue to search for the right coach, as they've gone through 5 coaches in 3 years.
The 2004-05 NHL season was wiped out by a lockout, and the Bruins appear to be in good position, with a lot of space in the salary cap that will be implemented in time for the 2005-06 NHL season. The salary cap space was used to bring in big name free agents such as Alexei Zhamnov, Brian Leetch and re-signing Glen Murray. Early in the 2005-2006 season, backup goaltender Hannu Toivonen has displayed his case, in relief of a struggling Raycroft, to be the Bruins number one goalie for years to come.
On November 30th, 2005, after struggling and underachieving immensely 2 months into the season, the Bruins traded their franchise player, Joe Thornton. In exchange, the Bruins received Marco Sturm, Brad Stuart and Wayne Primeau from the San Jose Sharks. After losing 10 of 11 games, the Bruins stormed back in the first game after the trade with a 3-0 victory over the 19-3 Ottawa Senators, as rookie goaltender Hannu Toivonen earned his first career NHL shutout victory. When Toivonen went down with an injury in early January, lightning struck twice, as journeyman goalie Tim Thomas started 16 straight games and brought the Bruins back into the playoff hunt.
On March 25, 2006, Bruins president, Harry Sidnen announced in a press confrence that Mike O'Connell has been fired as General Manager after a six year tenure. Jeff Gorten will take over Mike O'Connell's duties as General Manager.
Season-by-season record
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Season | GP | W | L | T | OTL | Pts | GF | GA | PIM | Finish | Playoffs |
| 1924-25 | 30 | 6 | 24 | 0 | -- | 12 | 49 | 119 | 264 | 6th (last) in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1925-26 | 36 | 17 | 15 | 4 | -- | 38 | 92 | 85 | 279 | 4th in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1926-27 | 44 | 21 | 20 | 3 | -- | 45 | 97 | 89 | 521 | 2nd in American | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1927-28 | 44 | 20 | 13 | 11 | -- | 51 | 77 | 70 | 558 | 1st in American | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1928-29 | 44 | 26 | 13 | 5 | -- | 57 | 89 | 52 | 472 | 1st in American | Won Stanley Cup |
| 1929-30 | 44 | 38 | 5 | 1 | -- | 77 | 179 | 98 | 449 | 1st in American | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1930-31 | 44 | 28 | 10 | 6 | -- | 62 | 143 | 90 | 403 | 1st in American | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1931-32 | 48 | 15 | 21 | 12 | -- | 42 | 122 | 117 | 373 | 4th (last) in American | Out of playoffs |
| 1932-33 | 48 | 25 | 15 | 8 | -- | 58 | 124 | 88 | 517 | 1st in American | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1933-34 | 48 | 18 | 25 | 5 | -- | 41 | 111 | 130 | 385 | 4th (last) in American | Out of playoffs |
| 1934-35 | 48 | 26 | 16 | 6 | -- | 58 | 129 | 112 | 368 | 1st in American | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1935-36 | 48 | 22 | 20 | 6 | -- | 50 | 92 | 83 | 397 | 2nd in American | Lost in quarter-finals |
| 1936-37 | 48 | 23 | 18 | 7 | -- | 53 | 120 | 110 | 303 | 2nd in American | Lost in quarter-finals |
| 1937-38 | 48 | 30 | 11 | 7 | -- | 67 | 142 | 89 | 284 | 1st in American | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1938-39 | 48 | 36 | 10 | 2 | -- | 74 | 156 | 76 | 251 | 1st in NHL | Won Stanley Cup |
| 1939-40 | 48 | 31 | 12 | 5 | -- | 67 | 170 | 98 | 330 | 1st in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1940-41 | 48 | 27 | 8 | 13 | -- | 67 | 168 | 102 | 246 | 1st in NHL | Won Stanley Cup |
| 1941-42 | 48 | 25 | 17 | 6 | -- | 56 | 160 | 118 | 349 | 3rd in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1942-43 | 50 | 24 | 17 | 9 | -- | 57 | 195 | 176 | 364 | 2nd in NHL | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1943-44 | 50 | 19 | 26 | 5 | -- | 43 | 223 | 268 | 207 | 5th in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1944-45 | 50 | 16 | 30 | 4 | -- | 36 | 179 | 219 | 275 | 4th in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1945-46 | 50 | 24 | 18 | 8 | -- | 56 | 167 | 156 | 273 | 2nd in NHL | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1946-47 | 60 | 26 | 23 | 11 | -- | 63 | 190 | 175 | 463 | 3rd in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1947-48 | 60 | 23 | 24 | 13 | -- | 59 | 167 | 168 | 515 | 3rd in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1948-49 | 60 | 29 | 23 | 8 | -- | 66 | 178 | 163 | 434 | 2nd in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1949-50 | 70 | 22 | 32 | 16 | -- | 60 | 198 | 228 | 449 | 5th in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1950-51 | 70 | 22 | 30 | 18 | -- | 62 | 178 | 197 | 656 | 4th in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1951-52 | 70 | 25 | 29 | 16 | -- | 66 | 162 | 176 | 601 | 4th in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1952-53 | 70 | 28 | 29 | 13 | -- | 69 | 152 | 172 | 528 | 3rd in NHL | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1953-54 | 70 | 32 | 28 | 10 | -- | 74 | 177 | 181 | 685 | 4th in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1954-55 | 70 | 23 | 26 | 21 | -- | 67 | 169 | 188 | 863 | 4th in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1955-56 | 70 | 23 | 34 | 13 | -- | 59 | 147 | 185 | 929 | 5th in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1956-57 | 70 | 34 | 24 | 12 | -- | 80 | 195 | 174 | 978 | 3rd in NHL | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1957-58 | 70 | 27 | 28 | 15 | -- | 69 | 199 | 194 | 849 | 4th in NHL | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1958-59 | 70 | 32 | 29 | 9 | -- | 73 | 205 | 215 | 838 | 2nd in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1959-60 | 70 | 28 | 34 | 8 | -- | 64 | 220 | 241 | 932 | 5th in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1960-61 | 70 | 15 | 42 | 13 | -- | 43 | 176 | 254 | 810 | 6th (last) in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1961-62 | 70 | 15 | 47 | 8 | -- | 38 | 177 | 306 | 712 | 6th (last) in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1962-63 | 70 | 14 | 39 | 17 | -- | 45 | 198 | 281 | 636 | 6th (last) in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1963-64 | 70 | 18 | 40 | 12 | -- | 48 | 170 | 212 | 858 | 6th (last) in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1964-65 | 70 | 21 | 43 | 6 | -- | 48 | 166 | 253 | 946 | 6th (last) in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1965-66 | 70 | 21 | 43 | 6 | -- | 48 | 174 | 275 | 787 | 5th in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1966-67 | 70 | 17 | 43 | 10 | -- | 44 | 182 | 253 | 764 | 6th (last) in NHL | Out of playoffs |
| 1967-68 | 74 | 37 | 27 | 10 | -- | 84 | 259 | 216 | 1043 | 3rd in Eastern | Lost in quarter-finals |
| 1968-69 | 76 | 42 | 18 | 16 | -- | 100 | 303 | 221 | 1297 | 2nd in Eastern | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1969-70 | 76 | 40 | 17 | 19 | -- | 99 | 277 | 216 | 1196 | 2nd in Eastern | Won Stanley Cup |
| 1970-71 | 78 | 57 | 14 | 7 | -- | 121 | 399 | 207 | 1154 | 1st in Eastern | Lost in quarter-finals |
| 1971-72 | 78 | 54 | 13 | 11 | -- | 119 | 330 | 204 | 1112 | 1st in Eastern | Won Stanley Cup |
| 1972-73 | 78 | 51 | 22 | 5 | -- | 107 | 330 | 235 | 1097 | 2nd in Eastern | Lost in quarter-finals |
| 1973-74 | 78 | 52 | 17 | 9 | -- | 113 | 349 | 221 | 968 | 1st in Eastern | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1974-75 | 80 | 40 | 26 | 14 | -- | 94 | 345 | 245 | 1153 | 2nd in Adams | Lost in preliminary round |
| 1975-76 | 80 | 48 | 15 | 17 | -- | 113 | 313 | 237 | 1195 | 1st in Adams | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1976-77 | 80 | 49 | 23 | 8 | -- | 106 | 312 | 240 | 1065 | 1st in Adams | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1977-78 | 80 | 51 | 18 | 11 | -- | 113 | 333 | 218 | 1237 | 1st in Adams | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1978-79 | 80 | 43 | 23 | 14 | -- | 100 | 316 | 270 | 1222 | 1st in Adams | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1979-80 | 80 | 46 | 21 | 13 | -- | 105 | 310 | 234 | 1460 | 2nd in Adams | Lost in quarter-finals |
| 1980-81 | 80 | 37 | 30 | 13 | -- | 87 | 316 | 272 | 1836 | 2nd in Adams | Lost in preliminary round |
| 1981-82 | 80 | 43 | 27 | 10 | -- | 96 | 323 | 285 | 1266 | 2nd in Adams | Lost in division finals |
| 1982-83 | 80 | 50 | 20 | 10 | -- | 110 | 327 | 228 | 1202 | 1st in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1983-84 | 80 | 49 | 25 | 6 | -- | 104 | 336 | 261 | 1606 | 1st in Adams | Lost in division semi-finals |
| 1984-85 | 80 | 36 | 34 | 10 | -- | 82 | 303 | 287 | 1825 | 4th in Adams | Lost in division semi-finals |
| 1985-86 | 80 | 37 | 31 | 12 | -- | 86 | 311 | 288 | 1919 | 3rd in Adams | Lost in division semi-finals |
| 1986-87 | 80 | 39 | 34 | 7 | -- | 85 | 301 | 276 | 1870 | 3rd in Adams | Lost in division semi-finals |
| 1987-88 | 80 | 44 | 30 | 6 | -- | 94 | 300 | 251 | 2443 | 2nd in Adams | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1988-89 | 80 | 37 | 29 | 14 | -- | 88 | 289 | 256 | 1929 | 2nd in Adams | Lost in division finals |
| 1989-90 | 80 | 46 | 25 | 9 | -- | 101 | 289 | 232 | 1458 | 1st in Adams | Lost in Stanley Cup finals |
| 1990-91 | 80 | 44 | 24 | 12 | -- | 100 | 299 | 264 | 1694 | 1st in NHL | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1991-92 | 80 | 36 | 32 | 12 | -- | 84 | 270 | 275 | 1752 | 2nd in Adams | Lost in semi-finals |
| 1992-93 | 84 | 51 | 26 | 7 | -- | 109 | 332 | 268 | 1552 | 1st in Adams | Lost in division semi-finals |
| 1993-94 | 84 | 42 | 29 | 13 | -- | 97 | 289 | 252 | 1442 | 2nd in Northeast | Lost in conference semi-finals |
| 1994-951 | 48 | 27 | 18 | 3 | -- | 57 | 150 | 127 | 793 | 3rd in Northeast | Lost in conference quarter-finals |
| 1995-96 | 82 | 40 | 31 | 11 | -- | 91 | 282 | 269 | 1039 | 2nd in Northeast | Lost in conference quarter-finals |
| 1996-97 | 82 | 26 | 47 | 9 | -- | 61 | 234 | 300 | 1369 | 6th (last) in Northeast | Out of playoffs |
| 1997-98 | 82 | 39 | 30 | 13 | -- | 91 | 221 | 194 | 1117 | 2nd in Northeast | Lost in conference quarter-finals |
| 1998-99 | 82 | 39 | 30 | 13 | -- | 91 | 214 | 181 | 1182 | 3rd in Northeast | Lost in conference semi-finals |
| 1999-00 | 82 | 24 | 33 | 19 | 6 | 73 | 210 | 248 | 865 | 5th (last) in Northeast | Out of playoffs |
| 2000-01 | 82 | 36 | 30 | 8 | 8 | 88 | 227 | 249 | 1325 | 4th in Northeast | Out of playoffs |
| 2001-02 | 82 | 43 | 24 | 6 | 9 | 101 | 236 | 201 | 1454 | 1st in Northeast | Lost in conference quarter-finals |
| 2002-03 | 82 | 36 | 31 | 11 | 4 | 87 | 245 | 237 | 1370 | 3rd in Northeast | Lost in conference quarter-finals |
| 2003-04 | 82 | 41 | 19 | 15 | 7 | 104 | 209 | 188 | 1208 | 1st in Northeast | Lost in conference quarter-finals |
| 2004-052 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2005-063 | 74 | 28 | 33 | -- | 13 | 69 | 211 | 239 | n/a | 5th in Northeast | -- |
- 1 Season was shortened due to the 1994-95 NHL lockout.
- 2 Season was cancelled due to the 2004-05 NHL lockout.
- 3 Current Standing as of April 1, 2006.
Notable players
Current squad
| Goaltenders | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Player | Catches | Acquired | Place of Birth | |
| 1 | 
|
Andrew Raycroft | L | 1998 | Belleville, Ontario |
| 30 | 
|
Tim Thomas | L | 2002 | Flint, Michigan |
| 33 | 
|
Hannu Toivonen (Injured Reserve) | L | 2002 | Kalvola, Finland |
| Defensemen | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Player | Shoots | Acquired | Place of Birth | ||
| 6 |
|
Brad Stuart | L | 2005 | Rocky Mountain House, Alberta | |
| 18 |
|
Ian Moran (Injured Reserve) | R | 2003 | Cleveland, Ohio | |
| 22 |
|
Brian Leetch - A | L | 2005 | Corpus Christi, Texas | |
| 25 |
|
Hal Gill - A | L | 1993 | Concord, Massachusetts | |
| 41 |
|
Andrew Alberts | L | 2001 | Minneapolis, Minnesota | |
| 44 |
|
Nick Boynton (Injured Reserve) | R | 1999 | Nobleton, Ontario | |
| 45 |
|
Mark Stuart | L | 2003 | Rochester, Minnesota | |
| 55 |
|
David Tanabe | R | 2005 | White Bear Lake, Minnesota | |
| 68 | 
|
Milan Jurcina | R | 2001 | Liptovsky Mikulas, Czechoslovakia | |
| 71 | 
|
Jiri Slegr (Injured Reserve) | L | 2004 | Jihlava, Czechoslovakia | |
| Forwards | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Player | Shoots | Position | Acquired | Place of Birth | |
| 10 | 
|
Alexei Zhamnov (Injured Reserve) | L | C | 2005 | Moscow, U.S.S.R. |
| 11 | 
|
P.J. Axelsson | L | LW/RW | 1995 | Kungalv, Sweden |
| 12 |
|
Tom Fitzgerald | R | C/W | 2004 | Billerica, Massachusetts |
| 16 | 
|
Marco Sturm | L | LW/RW | 2005 | Dingolfing, West Germany |
| 20 |
|
Wayne Primeau | L | C | 2005 | Scarborough, Ontario |
| 21 |
|
Brad Isbister (Injured Reserve) | R | LW/RW | 2005 | Edmonton, Alberta |
| 23 |
|
Josh Langfeld | R | RW/LW | 2006 | Coon Rapids, Minnesota |
| 26 |
|
Brad Boyes | R | C | 2004 | Mississauga, Ontario |
| 27 |
|
Glen Murray - A | R | RW | 2001 | Halifax, Nova Scotia |
| 28 |
|
Dan LaCouture | L | LW | 2005 | Hyannis, Massachusetts |
| 29 | 
|
Mariusz Czerkawski | L | RW | 2006 | Radomsko, Poland |
| 36 |
|
Marty Reasoner | L | C | 2006 | Honeoye Falls, New York |
| 37 |
|
Patrice Bergeron | R | C/W | 2003 | L'Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec |
| 39 |
|
Travis Green | R | C | 2004 | Castlegar, British Columbia |
| 43 |
|
Yan Stastny | L | C | 2006 | Quebec City, Quebec |
| 83 |
|
Pat Leahy | R | LW | 2003 | Brighton, Massachusetts |
| 83 |
|
Shawn McEachern | L | LW | 2003 | Waltham, Massachusetts |
Hall of Famers
Team captains
- no captain 1924-27
- Lionel Hitchman 1927-31
- George Owen 1931-32
- Dit Clapper 1932-38
- Cooney Weiland 1938-39
- Dit Clapper 1939-46
- Dit Clapper & John Crawford 1946-47
- John Crawford 1947-50
- Milt Schmidt 1950-54
- Milt Schmidt/Ed Sandford 1954-55
- Fernie Flaman 1955-61
- Don McKenney 1961-63
- Leo Boivin 1963-66
- John Bucyk 1966-67
- no captain 1967-73
- John Bucyk 1973-77
- Wayne Cashman 1977-83
- Terry O'Reilly 1983-85
- Ray Bourque/Rick Middleton 1985-88 (co-captains)
- Ray Bourque 1988-00
- Jason Allison 2000-01
- no captain 2001-02
- Joe Thornton 2002-05
- no captain 2005-present
Retired numbers
- 2 Eddie Shore, D, 1926-40
- 3 Lionel Hitchman, D, 1925-34
- 4 Bobby Orr, D, 1966-76
- 5 Aubrey "Dit" Clapper, D, 1927-47; Head Coach, 1945-49
- 7 Phil Esposito, C, 1967-75
- 8 Cam Neely, LW, 1986-96
- 9 Johnny Bucyk, LW, 1955-78
- 15 Milt Schmidt, C, 1936-55; Head Coach, 1954-66; General Manager, 1968-72
- 24 Terry O'Reilly, RW, 1972-85; Head Coach, 1986-89
- 77 Ray Bourque, D, 1979-2000
- 99 Wayne Gretzky (retired league-wide by the NHL)
Franchise scoring leaders
These are the top-ten point-scorers in the history of the Bruins. Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season. Note: GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points
| Player | POS | GP | G | A | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raymond Bourque | D | 1518 | 395 | 1111 | 1506 |
| Johnny Bucyk | LW | 1436 | 545 | 794 | 1339 |
| Phil Esposito | C | 625 | 459 | 553 | 1012 |
| Rick Middleton | RW | 881 | 402 | 496 | 898 |
| Bobby Orr | D | 631 | 264 | 624 | 888 |
| Wayne Cashman | LW | 1027 | 277 | 516 | 793 |
| Ken Hodge | RW | 652 | 289 | 385 | 674 |
| Terry O'Reilly | RW | 891 | 204 | 402 | 606 |
| Cam Neely | RW | 525 | 344 | 246 | 590 |
| Peter McNab | C | 595 | 263 | 324 | 587 |
See also
- List of Stanley Cup champions
- Head Coaches of the Boston Bruins
- List of Boston Bruins players
- List of NHL players
- Bruins-Canadiens Rivalry
External link
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