BT's 2008/09 NHL Season Preview: Boston Bruins

As if you haven't noticed by now, I have a soft-spot in my heart for former London Knights that make it (not necessarily big) in the NHL.

Aside from Rick Nash, Dennis Wideman is my favorite Knight currently in the NHL. Just so you know I'm an equal opportunist, John Erskine would probably be third.

Although most remember Wideman from his St Louis days when he tripped himself up in the shootout, he's really developed into a strong power play guy—of his 36 points last season, 20 of them came on the man advantage. He had a strong year last year in respect to plus-minus as well, posting a plus-11, and he could really start to develop into a good NHL defenseman in even-strength situations too.

The undisputed leader of the Bruins' defense (and the team as a whole) though is Zdeno Chara. It takes a large, aggressive man to use Bryan McCabe as a rag doll, and Chara is that man. The NBA-sized centre posted his first ever 50-point season (51) last year, and has really developed into one of the more recognizable defenders in the NHL due to his style of play as well as his size.

Although his size can sometimes hinder him with the more fleet-footed NHLers, Chara will continue to be dominant this season, most likely posting another 50-point year.

In the gritty veteran department, the Bruins have Aaron Ward who's coming off of a solid season, while Andrew Ference can offer a physical depth option, and Mark Stuart is developing into a solid, dependable shut-down defenseman.

Andrew Alberts will be intriguing to watch, as he relies mainly on his physical tools rather than his offensive game, and it'll be interesting to see if he comes back fully healthy after struggling with a bit of head trouble last season.

There's some good young depth in the system with Matt Lashoff and Matt Hunwick, but both may need a little more time before they're prepared to face the NHL full-time.

So what's it all mean?

The Bruins are going to need to get consistent goaltending to be a threat in the Northeast.

If it were just Tim Thomas or just Manny Fernandez, then I'd be a little worried. However, with the tandem system working in their favor, the Bruins should be okay.

Granted, the Bruins were a bit of an enigma last season—they were the only playoff team to allow more goals than they scored—but their offense will be better and as a whole I think they'll be tighter defensively.

Second will be a dogfight: I think the Bruins and Sens will be fighting it out throughout the entire season, and the Sabres will offer a hell of a fight too.

I think the Bruins muscle their way in, though.

Second in the Northeast

Bryan Thiel is a Senior Writer and NHL Community Leader for Bleacher Report. If you want to get in contact with Bryan, you can do so through his profile. You can also read all of his previous work in his archives.

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