Kalman: Bruins' Run Of Success Has Included Increased Physicality, Disdain For Opponents
WILMINGTON (CBS) -- Three times in the past five games a Bruins player has been forced to fight after delivering a clean hit to an opponent.
Although those foolish exercises generally threaten to discourage the clean hits that make hockey unique and also put players at risk for injury, those three specific incidents sent an important message to the Bruins – they're getting under the opposition's skin again.
Last season on the way to their first season without a playoff berth in eight years, the Bruins were pushovers. While they started this season 0-3-0 and were playing .500 hockey for most of the first couple months, the Bruins' meekness carried over. No one was challenging them to retaliatory fights because there was nothing to retaliate for.
But during their current 11-1-3 stretch that has pulled them within one point of the first-place Montreal Canadiens in the Atlantic Division, the Bruins' ferocity has returned.
"I think it's helped a lot," defenseman Kevan Miller said after practice Monday at Ristuccia Arena. "It's funny you say that. I was actually talking to my dad, even in the Pittsburgh game, both the games, I don't think they played that great and we played pretty well against them, but I don't think it was a season-defining game. He goes 'man, you were hitting them every time they had the puck.' So they didn't have time. I think that was big for us."
The Bruins figured to be less despised this season with the departure of Milan Lucic, a player 29 other fan bases and locker rooms disdain. They retained Brad Marchand and imported Matt Beleskey and Zac Rinaldo. But in an effort to add more skill and play with more pace the Bruins also integrated players like Ryan Spooner and Jimmy Hayes, two players who most nights can play with eggs in their uniforms without cracking a shell. With Chris Kelly injured, the Bruins' bottom six lost even more brute force. However, it's turned out the Bruins have just enough physical players to be intimidating, including returning players Adam McQuaid, Kevan Miller and Dennis Seidenberg, rookie Frank Vatrano and waiver-wire acquisition Landon Ferraro up front, and hip-check enthusiast Colin Miller on the back-end.
Physicality is so engrained in the Bruins' tradition and their fan base's mentality that if they somehow managed to win 20 in a row but did it without hitting anyone, they'd be sued for fraud. That's why coach Claude Julien is pleased that along with his team's more potent offense and stingier defense, the Bruins are doling out more punishment during their run of success. The key, though, has been the Bruins ability to tone down the rough stuff when necessary.
"We're achieving a lot of different things. There's some games, there's no doubt there's probably a little less physicality than others," Julien said. "But you know what I've liked, we've adapted to the games and done kind of done the right things to find ways to win."
Hopefully for the Bruins they'll be able to keep up their hard-hitting and avoid injury. It'll help if they can avoid getting dinged by linesmen the way Rinaldo was injured against Edmonton last week. The forward revealed Monday he missed the past three games with an upper-body strain suffered at the hands of linesman David Brisebois after a needless fight with Edmonton's Matt Hendricks.
The Bruins want to be hated, but not that much. Maybe they could even get the officials to appreciate their physical play more and grant them more power plays. The Bruins this season have continued their trend of recent seasons, as they've had the second-fewest power-play opportunities this season.
None of the Bruins or Julien wanted to touch the discussion about their lack of man advantages. But they were willing to talk about the upcoming showdown with the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday at TD Garden in the last game before the Christmas break. With players like Kyle Brodziak, David Backes and Troy Brouwer up front, the Blues play the heavy, playoff-style hockey the Bruins are still learning how to play with their current group.
"I think there's still more room [for more hitting]," Kevan Miller said. "I think we can find it. There's times where we're really on it, where it's guys one after another, and there's times where we get away from it. I think that can be throughout stages of the game or just how different teams play. But I think we can definitely find another level for that."
That next level of physicality might come with more retaliatory fights and bodily harm, but it should also produce more victories and lessons for what it's going to be like on the ice if the Bruins return to the playoffs.
Matt Kalman covers the Bruins for CBSBoston.com and also contributes to NHL.com and several other media outlets. Follow him on Twitter @TheBruinsBlog.