Bruins "Getting To Know You" Road Trip
BOSTON (CBS) - The Boston Bruins plan on using the remainder of their six-game road trip to get to know the new guys, both on and off the ice.
On Friday the Bruins pulled off a pair of trades, netting them defenseman Tomas Kaberle from Toronto and forward Rich Peverley from Atlanta (Boris Valabik was also included but assigned to Providence). Earlier in the week, they acquired Chris Kelly from Ottawa. Now they just need to get acquainted.
"It is a pretty ideal situation, the fact that they'll be spending a lot of time together will be great," coach Claude Julian said of the teams current eight-day road trip through Canada. "Bonding with teammates is always something important and they're going to get that opportunity on this road trip."
"It's going to be good to get on the road and get to know some of the guys," Peverley said from practice over the weekend. "Maybe go out to some dinners with some guys. Any time you do that, it's good to start some new friendships and move on past Atlanta."
Kaberle and Kelly made their Bruins debut Friday night in a 4-2 win over the Ottawa Senators. Peverley is expected to make do the same Tuesday night against the Calgary Flames, and it should be a less hectic debut that Kaberle's. The defenseman practiced with the Maple Leafs Friday morning only to find out he was traded, jumped on a plane to join his new team and played that night. He arrived 20 minutes before the game started, but still managed to wow his new coach.
"The way he played was pretty impressive in my eyes, how he handled the whole thing," Julien said of his newly acquired All Star. "We could see right from the first power play on, how well and how quickly he moved the puck, how smart he was. It's definitely going to be an upgrade."
As for Peverley, he comes from a system in Atlanta that is very similar to the Bruins. Head coach Craig Ramsey was Julien's assistant head coach from 2007-2010. Peverley does not expect too much of a transition on the ice, but wants to make sure he gets used to playing with his new teammates.
"The mindset is to fit in, be part of a good team," Peverley said. "I want to be able to fit in wherever I can and play a role that's going to help this team win. That's ultimately the goal for everyone on this team. You want to go as far as you can in the playoffs. Whatever way I can help I want to do that."
Julian expects Peverley to take over for Blake Wheeler and play on the line with Michael Ryder and Chris Kelly.
With the blockbuster deal that brought in Kaberle and two other trades that will help improve other areas of need, there is now more pressure on the Bruins to win this year. That is not something that worries this squad though.
"We've been close the last two years," forward Milan Lucic said. "As players, management, and organization we want to take that step to the next level. Peter (Chiarelli) did what he needed to do to try to take us to that next level right now. The most important thing is to build that chemistry, playing with that team confidence. We have 23 games left here to figure it out, and I feel confident in the team that we have and that we can make that next step."
