Bruins

COMMENT

If the 2024-25 NHL regular season ended today, the Boston Bruins could be within the playoffs.

As of Sunday evening, Boston currently occupies the primary wild card spot within the Eastern Conference – Saturday's 3-1 win over the Avalanche moved the Bruins to 5-1-1 of their last seven games.

But despite this recent resurgence, Joe Sacco's side have little room for error because of months of mediocre play.

Even with their current playoff positionMoneyPuck won Boston with only a 38.9 percent likelihood to play postseason hockey on Causeway Street in April.

A crowded playoff field within the Eastern Conference – coupled with the indisputable fact that a lot of these teams have already got multiple games against Boston – means the Bruins are operating on shaky ground.

Even after an encouraging 6-2 win over the Lightning on Jan. 14, Boston's inconsistent performance amid a discouraging playoff matchup led Cam Neely to comprehend that a franchise once set for a deep run is perhaps waiting for trades “Two paths” to think about Deadline – Accepting a reality during which Boston chooses to retool for playoff hockey in 2025 somewhat than to arm yourself.

It was an acceptance of the situation the Bruins have found themselves in over the primary 4 months of the season — and a challenge to a locker room that would look very different in just a few weeks as Boston's playoff hopes fade.

It was a message that defender Nikita Zadorov heard loud and clear.

“We were desperate,” Zadorov said of Boston’s mentality Saturday against Colorado. “We know that our desperation level must be higher than other teams because of our position in the table. There are plenty of teams in the East pushing for a playoff spot.

“We also understand the message from management. We have 12,13 games to play until March 7th [trade deadline]? And we still have six games left [4 Nations Face-Off] break? I think we have to position ourselves well in the overall standings to get the green light.”

Even if Boston stabilizes its play and more starters either return from injury or start squandering opportunities, the Bruins have put themselves able where each of their remaining 31 games would require tough execution and lots of looks on the league lead.

It's a departure from recent seasons, during which the Bruins comfortably earned a spot in the highest three of the Atlantic Division because of some strong starts.

But it's also an prolonged wave of adversity that — while largely self-inflicted — may gain advantage a Bruins team that has heard loads of rumors a couple of possible rebuild in the approaching months.

“There is a belief in this room that knows no bounds,” Jeremy Swayman — who now has a .918 save percentage in his last 10 games — said of his teammates. “No matter what we have been through, I know that we have always believed in each other and know that each of us can achieve something at different times.

“In every game, even when it didn’t go our way, the boys improved and really developed their game in the right direction. I think that’s a huge testament to our group and what kind of people we have here that don’t let the adversity of results dictate how we play and how we approach the game every day.”

While Boston appears to have bounced back from an unsightly six-game loss earlier this month, this roster – at the least as currently constructed – doesn't encourage much confidence for an extended playoff run.

The Bruins rank twenty fifth within the NHL in goals per game (2.73) and twentieth within the NHL in goals allowed per game (3.10). Brutal special teams play has further hampered Boston, with the Bruins rating thirty first within the NHL on the facility play (13.4 percent) and twenty fifth on the penalty kill (76.0 percent).

As of Sunday evening, the Bruins are one in all only two teams currently within the playoffs with a negative goal difference.

The Calgary Flames are clinging to the ultimate wildcard spot within the Western Conference with a goal difference of -8. The Bruins? An ugly goal difference of -20 – tied for the third-worst performance in all the Eastern Conference.

Even with the returns of Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm from injury – coupled with the strong play of Swayman and David Pastrnak (22 points in his last 12 games) – the Bruins have several holes of their depth chart that must be addressed.

The odds aren't exactly favorable to the Bruins' playoff hopes straight away.

But contrary to Neely's threatening comments, Zadorov and his teammates pay no attention with regards to their slim playoff possibilities.

“I mean, you have to face reality every now and then, right? You can't put it in your back pocket all the time and say, 'Oh, let's just focus on day by day,'” Zadorov said of playing with pressure every night. “I mean, you still look at the big picture. I don't plan on missing the playoffs. That's why I'm here.

“I’m here to play in the playoffs. I want to see Boston Garden full of life. I think that's definitely an extra motivation for us. I mean, you guys are doing a good job of writing us off, so I think that's additional motivation for this group as well. Because we have many characters. We have a lot of people who want to compete and play on the big stages. I think that’s our attitude every day.”

The query got here twenty minutes into Mauricio Pochettino's introductory press conference as coach of the United States men's national team; it was the primary query of the event in his native Spanish.

“It gives me a break,” joked Pochettino concerning the probability to practice his English.

“What challenge made you decide to accept the job in the USA?” asked the journalist.

The query went to the foundation of an issue that hung over all the event in a glitzy high-rise in New York City's Hudson Yards neighborhood. Why would a manager with such a giant status consider this his next move?

The 52-year-old former Tottenham, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea coach first spoke concerning the feeling he had when meeting with US Soccer executives after which concerning the great potential of the game within the USA before moving on to the true task at hand: taking the USMNT to a brand new level.

“It's a challenge that takes us out of our comfort zone,” Pochettino said in Spanish, smiling. “For us, the easiest thing is to tackle things that we already know and that we already have a clear vision and an idea (of how to achieve them). But this is about tackling something that you don't know so well; getting out of your comfort zone so you can challenge yourself.”

“It’s not just about the challenge of achieving things together, but also about challenging yourself.”

Whether consciously or not, Pochettino launched into a parallel path along with his latest team. For several cycles, the thought of ​​”getting out of the comfort zone to grow” has been a part of the USMNT's path to improvement. The idea dates back to the Jürgen Klinsmann era, but was also often discussed by former coach Gregg Berhalter.

But it's about greater than just going to Europe and playing for the most important clubs there. It's about finding the appropriate challenges that make you grow. Get higher.

That Pochettino sees this job as a challenge for his own development was perhaps crucial takeaway from Friday's press conference. The US needed a brand new voice to push them to take the subsequent step, beyond their potential and towards results. They will now begin that journey with a coach who has a greater status than anyone else within the room, but who’s in search of the identical sort of development.

Pochettino appeared charming, excited and motivated on the press conference. He talked about how comfortable he was to be with the USA, the respect of being the primary Spanish-speaking Latin American coach in this system's history, and his reference to US women's coach Emma Hayes and the potential impact the USWNT's success story could have on the lads's program.

He recounted how he learned the English expression “over the moon” during his first days as manager of Southampton within the Premier League and said he and his family were overjoyed to have taken on this latest job.

His switching between English and Spanish was a historic moment in itself, symbolizing that this commitment offers the U.S. Soccer Federation an unprecedented opportunity to succeed in the country's huge – and growing – Latino population.

However, Pochettino was clear that reaching his fans – each latest and old – got here right down to one thing: winning.

Throughout the morning, Pochettino returned several times to a straightforward concept that he believes can take the team forward: belief. He said the word “belief” a dozen times over the course of the hour-long event. For a coach known for uplifting a dressing room, it suggested he’ll put mentality and psychology as much on the forefront as tactics.

“'Believe' is a very powerful word for me,” said Pochettino. “You can have enormous talent and be clever, but in football you have to believe. Believe that anything is possible. If we all believe in it together, we will definitely achieve it.”

He later reiterated this concept along with his give attention to the World Cup, which the United States will host along with Mexico and Canada in two years.

“We really have to believe in big things,” said Pochettino. “We have to believe that we can win not just a game, but the World Cup. … We want players who show up at the training camp from day one and think big. Only then can we implement this philosophy or this idea to perform and put our talent at the service of the team. That will be our big challenge.”

Restoring that faith might be at the highest of his to-do list as coach of the USMNT.

The U.S. clearly lacked confidence within the September transfer window, which Pochettino said was comprehensible given their results on the Copa América. Their performances in a loss to Canada and a draw with New Zealand only exacerbated the issues throughout the group. Pochettino didn't seem too concerned concerning the group's overall culture, nonetheless, and alluded to the thought of ​​tapping into the “winning mentality” that permeates American sport and taking inspiration from the winning culture that the U.S. women have long displayed.

“We are here because we want to win,” said Pochettino.

Of course, ideas about easy methods to play the sport were also discussed.

“We are in the United States,” Pochettino said. “I think we want to convince our fans and aesthetics are really important. We want to play beautiful, good, exciting and attacking football. And then of course we want to have possession, because we are also coaches who have the philosophy of having the ball. We have to run, we have to move, we have to give our teammate options and good angles. … And when we don't have the ball, we have to run, we have to be aggressive, we have to be competitive.”

“The potential is there. The talent is there. It's just about giving them the best platform to flourish.”

While Pochettino acknowledged that these are his team's trademarks, he said he desired to get a feel for his players before deciding how the U.S. team would play.

That process will begin in the subsequent few days when Pochettino inevitably sits down and meets with members of the player pool, most notably star winger Christian Pulisic. Pochettino said he wants to listen to from each team member to get feedback on how they see things. He will then bring the group together for the primary time next month for friendlies in Austin, Texas and Guadalajara, Mexico.

The technique of getting a deal done was lengthy, taking greater than two months from the beginning of recruitment to his official presentation. Pochettino admitted it was difficult to attend. He was able to get to work.

Now the clock is ticking. The USA has lower than two years until the World Cup and still has quite a bit to climb to be ready, but they’ve a coach few would have thought would lead this group into this tournament.

A coach who will now attempt to instill confidence on this team.