Boston Bruins: 5 Reasons Bruins Fans Should Be Thankful This NHL Season

Boston Bruins fans have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving holiday.

The Bruins are the defending champions for the first time in almost 40 years and are currently on top of the Northeast division due to a 10-game winning streak.

While there are a lot of reasons to be thankful for the present, there are many reasons to be thankful looking into the future.

Let's look at five things Bruins fans should most thankful for.

Management Is Willing to Spend and Win

The Jacobs family has given general manager Peter Chiarelli the money to properly build the Bruins into a Stanley Cup contending team.

Ownership realized the team was good enough to win if they spent close to the salary cap, and for this Bruins fans must be thankful.

Spending money is one thing, spending it wisely is another.

Chiarelli has handed out many very good contracts that have brought new players into the team as well as kept important ones around.

Chiarelli has drafted guys like Tyler Seguin and Brad Marchand, while trading for players such as Zdeno Chara, Dennis Seidenberg, Nathan Horton, Rich Peverley, Chris Kelly and others.

The Bruins Have Great Resiliency

For a team to get beaten in a playoff series when leading 3-0 and then recover and win the Stanley Cup the next season is a true display of resiliency.

The current Bruins squad is one of the most resilient teams in Boston sports history.

Not only did they come back strong from the 2009-10 playoff debacle, they recovered from 2-0 deficits in the first round against the Montreal Canadiens and the Stanley Cup Finals versus the Vancouver Canucks last postseason.

Tyler Seguin and Brad Marchand

Tyler Seguin and Brad Marchand are the Bruins' most talented young stars and will lead the team into a very bright future.

The two are already very talented NHL players, but both have much room for improvement.

Seguin and Marchand also raise each other's games with a little goal-scoring rivalry, which is awesome for Bruins fans.

Seeing these two young stars lead Boston this season and for many to come will be awesome to watch.

Bruins Have the NHL's Best Goaltending

Good goaltending is the best thing an NHL team can have—especially in the playoffs—and the Bruins have the best goalie in the league with a tremendous backup.

Tim Thomas has followed up his historic season of a year ago when he won the Vezina and Conn Smythe trophies, with a good start to this season.

Thomas' excellent play in the 2011 playoffs was phenomenal and was the primary reason the Bruins became champions.

Backup goalie Tuukka Rask is also a very talented player and is the future between the pipes for the Bruins.

Boston Is the Defending Stanley Cup Champions

Bruins fans should be quite thankful that their team are the defending Stanley Cup champions, because it has been a while since the city has enjoyed a real hockey celebration.

The Bruins played an amazing 2011 NHL playoffs and beat some fabulous opponents, providing many amazing moments along the way.

The Bruins' roster is good enough to win the Cup again a few times in the next decade, so for the first time in a while there is a ton of optimism surrounding the team.

Simply said, Bruins fans have a lot to be thankful for. 

For updates on all NHL/Bruins news throughout the season, follow Nick Goss on Twitter. Follow @NicholasGoss35

Nicholas Goss is a Boston Bruins featured columnist for Bleacher Report and was the organization's on-site reporter for the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals in Boston.