NHL Rumors: Will Cam Neely Replace Claude Julien As Boston Bruins Head Coach?

The Boston Bruins are struggling, underachieving, and head coach Claude Julien might not be around to see if they become the team experts believed they would be before the season: A Stanley Cup contender.

The Bruins expected to contend for the Stanley Cup title in 2010, but underachieved mightily, barely making the playoffs as the sixth seed.

Following the 2010 NHL playoffs which ended in heartbreak, the Bruins made quality offseason moves, acquiring Nathan Horton from Florida, and drafting forward Tyler Seguin with number two overall selection in the 2010 NHL entry draft.

But 2011 has been a disappointment so far, and Bruins' president Cam Neely has not liked the Bruins' performance the past few weeks.

With the Bruins playing at a much lesser level than they're capable of, would Neely consider replacing current head coach Claude Julien?

Julien, who was hired as coach in 2007, has been criticized often during his tenure in Boston, and has been accused of playing a style of hockey that is not entertaining for fans and players.

Neely admitted the team's inconsistency is quite frustrating.In a NESN.com article written by Mike Cole from December 22, 2010, Neely addressed Julien's defensive minded approach.

Neely said, "That goes with the way we play, as a team that is very responsible defensively," he said when asked about the offensive struggles. "When you're that responsible defensively, it's difficult at times to turn it on and say, 'We're going to score a goal.'"

In the same article, Neely was asked about Julien's job security, and whether or not a coaching change needs to be made.

"Yeah," he responded while quickly adding, "Everyone's accountable. We're all accountable here. We've got expectations, we all want to meet, from the top on down to the players. ... We feel like we have a better club with more skill, but we're ultimately held accountable at the end of the day for how the team performs."

There are a few reasons Neely needs to convince the Bruins owners to fire general manager Peter Chiarelli and head coach Claude Julien. 

First, Chiarelli has been unable to find a puck moving defenseman, something that is noticeably missing when watching the Bruins. Without a defenseman who can move the puck and get the offense moving forward quickly, their offense will struggle.

The Bruins are also a "soft" team at times. This is annoying for Bruins fans since they have a number of very physical players. 

Neely as a player for the Bruins was a very physical player, and also scored many goals. He played with a certain toughness that the Bruins are clearly lacking.

During practice today, the Bruins were very physical, and several players got quite aggressive with each other, more so than most practices.

In a Comcast Sportsnet New England interview from December 22, 2010, Bruins veteran Shawn Thornton described Wednesday's practice as very intense, and wished the Bruins played with the same intensity v. Washington.

Another knock on Julien is he shows little emotion, and is unable to get his players to play with enough passion and energy.

If there's one person who can find every ounce of passion with these players, it's Neely. He would not be afraid to make any player accountable, and he also would know how to keep his players focused to avoid lengthy periods of inconsistency.

After an exciting 2010 playoffs, and a positive first few weeks of this season, the Bruins are fading back to fourth place in Boston sports popularity.

With the Red Sox bold offseason acquisitions, the Celtics having an elite team, and the Patriots looking like Super Bowl favorites, the Bruins are in dire need of some relevancy.

Replacing Claude Julien with Cam Neely would inject some debate and discussion about the Bruins in Boston, and would make the fans more excited about the Bruins chances in 2011.

Cam Neely needs to take charge of the Boston Bruins, before the team slips into a state of mediocrity it will never be able to climb out of.