Boston Bruins Fans Have No Need To Panic

After snapping a three-game losing streak on Saturday, the Boston Bruins lost their third game this month to the New York Rangers, 4-3, at Madison Square Garden.

Manny Fernandez was between the pipes  for the B's—and the struggles for the net-minder continued, stopping just 26-of-30 shots he faced. Fernandez has now lost his last five games, and six out of his last seven games started.

Despite the loss, the Bruins have looked the best they have all year. Well, for 2009 anyways. For the first four games this month, the B’s have definitely re-established their aggressive play. They have out-hit their opponents every game thus far in March, by a total of 144-92.

Even with a 1-3 record, we have been catching a glimpse of the dominating team that we were so accustomed to seeing in the first half of the season. The Bruins have definitely been playing with a bit more desperation as well, averaging 32 shots-on-goal per game, while allowing just 27.

Peter Chiarelli made two fantastic moves at the trade deadline by acquiring forward Mark Recchi and defenseman Steve Montador. No blockbusters, just two solid moves without trading away any of Boston’s starting players—critical to the chemistry that the team has worked on all season long.

Recchi brings a tremendous amount to the lineup and locker room. The 41-year old veteran has been in this situation before and he knows how to win.

His left-handed shot is a key component to their power-play—and with a couple of practices with the team, he has been gelling on the third line with Patrice Bergeron and Chuck Kobasew. While only standing 6’0”, he plays like he’s about 6’4” in front of the net.

Montador was a huge addition to the Bruins blue-line. He adds a great deal of depth to the defensive core, as well as a tremendous amount of toughness and grit to the team.

Now while the Bruins have been in somewhat of a funk lately, I’m not one to push the panic button just yet. Let’s take a quick trip down memory lane and compare this years' Bruins, to the 2007-08 Stanley Cup, and President's Trophy winners, the Detroit Red Wings

October, 2008

The Boston Bruins kicked off the 2008-09 season going 2-2-3 in their first seven games, while being outscored 23-20 in that span.

The next 29 games: 25-3-1 and outscoring their opponents by a staggering 116-58. The Bruins ended the calendar year with an NHL-high, 60-points, while posting a 23-2-1 record in November and December combined.

MONTH	2007-08 RED WINGS	2008-09 BOSTON BRUINS	TOTAL POINTS
OCTOBER	10-2-1	5-3-3	21-13
NOVEMBER	7-4-1	11-1-1	15-23
DECEMBER	12-2-1	12-1-0	25-24
JANUARY	9-2-1	8-3-2	19-18
FEBRUARY	4-8-2	6-4-3	10-13
MARCH (FIRST 4)	4-0-0	1-3-0	8-2
TOTALS	46-18-6	43-15-9	98-95

Just proof that it is virtually impossible to continue playing at such a dominating level for all 82 games.

The Bruins have been on top, looking down, with not too much to lose all year. Just as they start to ease off the gas pedal a bit, other teams  who are fighting for a playoff spot have turned it on. Now it’s just a matter of time before the Bruins get back to their winning ways and continue on to their playoff run.

Just 15 games remain in the regular season for the B’s. A playoff spot is a lock, the first spot in the East is near certain, and the President's Trophy would just be the icing on the cake.

The Black and Gold (95) still have an eight-point cushion over the second place New Jersey Devils (87) in the East, and a one-point lead, overall, in the NHL (San Jose and Detroit are both at 94).

(other potential/probable awards this year)

Willam M. Jennings: Tim Thomas/Manny Fernandez

James Norris Memorial Trophy: Zdeno Chara

Jack Adams Award: Coach Claude Julien

Vezina Trophy: Tim Thomas

The original article was written by Mark on the Boston Bruins Examiner page.