Boston Bruins: 2011-2012

[Steve_v3 289]

Had a very cool weekend, courtesy of my lovely bride, who didn't like going to the fights when we first met because a hockey game might break out. Over time, however, it's become one of her favorite sports, so I was really impressed when she told me she noticed that the B's would be in L.A. and Anaheim during the girls' Spring Break. We fit in visiting the grandparents with watching the Bruins SoCal Annihilation Tour.

Sounds like a great time!!

I hope Ottawa can hold onto the 7 spot. The way Buffalo has looked lately I don't think they would be a good match up.

[Jason Harris 31]

Time to vote for the Seventh Player Award. Now, for you young'uns, the Award has become bastardized to the point that people are voting for the best player, but that's not the purpose. It's for the player who greatly exceeded your expectations. If you expected Gretzky to have 200 points and he had 200, then he didn't exceed your expectations.

Some contenders:

Seguin: Leads the team in scoring and will likely triple his production from last year. However, he was the second pick in the draft.

Marchand: WIll probably exceed last year's production by 20%, but showed signs of this in last year's playoffs.

Caron: Will probably double last year's production, but in twice as many games. Would probably have been a stronger contender if he had played with this intensity earlier in the season.

Pouliot: His numbers are similar to the past two seasons, but he came here with the reputation that he was on his last chance.

McQuade: His offensive productivity will be less, but he seems to have been better defensively and has taken on the role of second enforcer.

Corvo: Just kidding. Wanted to make sure you were paying attention.....

And my winner is.....Pouliot. I like him out there. He has great hands and his motor is generally running high. His problem is that sometimes the motor is out of control, but I never expected him to contribute as well as he has.

[chippa13 1844]

If he came back to the B's earlier, I would nominate Rolston. He has really gotten that third line rolling. The problem I have with Pouliot is that he has run so hot and cold throughout the year. I was trying to think of this a couple of nights ago and there just isn't that clear favorite like in other years.

I think you pretty much nailed the contenders:

Seguin: huge jump in production should get him the award but as you mentioned, fans sometimes go with their hearts instead of minds.

Marchand: probably will win it because the fans just love the guy, part of the increase is because he had to earn his way up the depth chart last season but spent this entire season in a more offensive role, absolutely earned the award last year.

Caron: I just don't think there is a big enough body of work.

Pouliot: as I said earlier, inconsistency takes him out of the equation for me.

McQuade: interesting choice and was probably a runner up last year.

Corvo: might be the first guy to get it for being taken out of the lineup. No coincidence that the B's recent improvements coincide with his health scratches.

Bergeron: dark horse simply because Edwards has been pushing him so much for the Selke this year, an award he probably should have been up for over the last several seasons. Fans may decide to reward him with this just because he can't play a shift without Edwards harping on his two-way game.

[Steve_v3 289]

Bergeron: dark horse simply because Edwards has been pushing him so much for the Selke this year, an award he probably should have been up for over the last several seasons. Fans may decide to reward him with this just because he can't play a shift without Edwards harping on his two-way game.

I never really noticed Jack say anything about him & the Selke...

I would agree about Marchand winning it though.

[mojo122 535]

I'd actually give my vote to Chris Kelly.

[chippa13 1844]

Kelly and Peverley were both so good once they settled in and in the playoffs last year that it is hard for me to see Kelly as exceeding expectations.

[bruins89 1]

Kelly and Peverley were both so good once they settled in and in the playoffs last year that it is hard for me to see Kelly as exceeding expectations.

kelly has set career highs in goals (+4 off previous), 1 off career in points and a career high +32. He is one of the smartest players in the NHL. rarely do i ever say to myself, what was he thinking. he is truly an underappreciated player and i am rooting for him to hit the 20 mark.

i am not so sure marchand will win it after scoring 21 last year and 11 in 25 in the playoffs. 0 chance pouliot wins it. i hope kelly wins it i think he deserves it the most. people who say dont resign him are absolutely crazy

[Chadd 916]

I'd actually give my vote to Chris Kelly.

Very similar to Callahan

[Jason Harris 31]

I thought of Kelly when I was making my list, but to my mind he's meeting expectations. But that kind of illustrates an important point of the award; it's for the player who best exceeds expectations, but what if our expectations are too high?

I was surprised that Kelly set a career high in goals this year, so my expectations were probably too high for him; concurrently, I've been pleasantly surprised by Pouliot's efforts this year, but he's right in line with his recent production, so obviously I thought too little of him. And I'll admit that one could easily argue that Pouliot doesn't deserve the award, because there's no doubt he's scored some pretty goals this year, showcasing his skills, but his production doesn't always match the skills.

[chippa13 1844]

Pouliot has been maddening to me. He has those flashes of skill where he makes guys look stupid and then he has games where he seems to be going through the motions.

[mojo122 535]

Pouliot has been a hugh disappointment. Your analysis of his play this year is right on the mark. I expected Seguin to have a good year offensively, but his 2-way play is what has impressed me. Bergeron has been solid, but any Bruins' fan has come to expect that from him.

[Chadd 916]

The five and game on Chimera makes no sense at all to me. That hit was the perfect example of someone turning into a hit, if ever there was one. Chimera barely ran into him, let alone checked him.

[Gr8erade 1]

The five and game on Chimera makes no sense at all to me. That hit was the perfect example of someone turning into a hit, if ever there was one. Chimera barely ran into him, let alone checked him.

The call was charging, not boarding. Mcquaid didn't do himself any favors, but in the game I was watching, charging was the right call. If you put Jack Edwards on mute, it wouldn't seem like such an overreaction.

As for 7th Player, I'd say Kelly. He brings more than points to the team. He plays in all situations, he's had to adjust to multiple wings, he's been durable, he's a leader on the team and even if he's more or less putting up his usual amount of points, I don't think most people truly appreciated the guy for what he brings to the team until this year. And in my opinion, being +32 with 37 points is pretty hard to do.

[bruins89 1]

And in my opinion, being +32 with 37 points is pretty hard to do.

great point

[Law Goalie 147]

I'm still furious at the Sens for giving up Kelly: damn you, Peter Chiarelli... Imagine how good Ottawa would be with him as #3 centre and Chara on the top pair with Karlsson.

[Jason Harris 31]

Pouliot has been a hugh disappointment.

How can Pouliot be a disappointment? They signed him on a flyer at $1.1M. Only Seguin, McQuaid and Thornton make less, and Seguin and McQuaid are on their rookie contracts.

[noodle3872 40]

I gotta agree; Pouliot having 14G and 16A in 69 games is bloody good for a guy that was expected to be 3rd or 4th liner.

[bruins89 1]

I gotta agree; Pouliot having 14G and 16A in 69 games is bloody good for a guy that was expected to be 3rd or 4th liner.

pouliot was drafted 4th overall in his draft year

[bruins89 1]

theres 0 chance of pouliot winning it, i think it goes kelly/seguin 45% each, then marchand 10%. again i think it goes to kelly, seguin was drafted #2 overall he is expected to do this well. kelly is the type of player you hate playing against, he will battle like no other and rarely makes a mistake. there are no easy shifts against him and his +32 is a tribute to that because he often plays vs other teams top lines. kelly is also having a career year. i just think the guy is a true professional who will do wahtever is asked of him and excel at it.

[Chadd 916]

The call was charging, not boarding. Mcquaid didn't do himself any favors, but in the game I was watching, charging was the right call. If you put Jack Edwards on mute, it wouldn't seem like such an overreaction.

I still don't agree with the call. The point of charging is when you take more than three strides to deliver a hit. Chimera was simply skating to create pressure on the forecheck and MdQuaid stopped and turned at the worst possible time. I feel for McQuaid, and don't want to see anyone injured, but this is one of those cases of someone making a really dumb play and getting hurt because of it.

[mojo122 535]

How can Pouliot be a disappointment? They signed him on a flyer at $1.1M. Only Seguin, McQuaid and Thornton make less, and Seguin and McQuaid are on their rookie contracts.

Too many games with little to no effort.

[Gr8erade 1]

I still don't agree with the call. The point of charging is when you take more than three strides to deliver a hit. Chimera was simply skating to create pressure on the forecheck and MdQuaid stopped and turned at the worst possible time. I feel for McQuaid, and don't want to see anyone injured, but this is one of those cases of someone making a really dumb play and getting hurt because of it.

Pressure on the forecheck, or to pressure McQuaid through the back wall?

Charging is a result of the distance travelled and causing a violent collision. In my view, that was a simple dump and change play. Chimera came off the bench and hauled ass down the ice taking aim at McQuaid as he went around the net. Distance from the bench to the the end board? A long way. Even if he stopped skating short of the goal line, he had still generated top speed and had left himself nowhere to go but straight at McQuaid.

Take a look at how long it takes another capital to appear in the picture after the play. If Chimera were actually attempting to make a play on the puck, where was he going to pass the puck to? The refs saw it as I did. Chimera went a long, long way at full speed to make a hit. McQuaid didn't help himself any by turning around, however, on a routine play, that's a dump and change by the Caps and he would have time to go back, turn around and look up ice. He didn't have time to do that because Chimera came running at him from the distance of his own bench. McQuaid didn't expect that. And with that distance travelled and the violence of the collision and the resulting injury, 5 and a game seemed okay to me.

End result was that both players didn't finish the game. One because he made himself vulnerable, the other because he was reckless.

[chippa13 1844]

Pressuring the puck on a dump and change is the right play. Chimera isn't trying to win possession, he is trying to slow Boston's exit and the best way he had to do that was to put a hit on McQuaid so he couldn't make a quick play up ice. I really didn't see anything wrong with what Chimera did.

As for Kelly and the 7th player award. I understand that the guy has been solid all year, the thing is that he has played how I expected him to play after watching how he played with the Bruins last year, especially in the playoffs. Maybe I set the bar too high for him this year but he has come as advertised in my book.

[Gr8erade 1]

Pressuring the puck on a dump and change is the right play. Chimera isn't trying to win possession, he is trying to slow Boston's exit and the best way he had to do that was to put a hit on McQuaid so he couldn't make a quick play up ice. I really didn't see anything wrong with what Chimera did.

As for Kelly and the 7th player award. I understand that the guy has been solid all year, the thing is that he has played how I expected him to play after watching how he played with the Bruins last year, especially in the playoffs. Maybe I set the bar too high for him this year but he has come as advertised in my book.

Well, as I said, I think he came a long way, generating a lot of speed to make that hit, hence charging was the right call. And since there was an obvious injury on the play, I don't have a problem with 5 and the game either. I don't think it warrants supplemental discipline, but then again I've seen supplemental discipline dished out when it shouldn't have been and I've seen it not been given when it should have been, at least in my opinion, so who knows.

Kelly may be playing as advertised, but I don't think there's a better candidate than him for the award this year. I think the argument that he's managed to play solid all year despite having to play on every line but the 4th one isn't one to be overlooked. He even centered Krecji and Lucic for a couple of games. If it is simply a popularity contest, then Marchand might get it. But if it goes to the mostly unheralded, but solid contributor night in and night out, Kelly, to me, fills that bill.

[Jason Harris 31]

bruins89, we all know Pouliot was the 4th pick in his draft. We've heard that dozens of times from Jack when the B's would play the Habs, which is why most of you probably had the same reaction as I did when they signed him, "Why would they sign Pouliot??!!" But the teams that have to be disappointed in his productivity as the 4th pick in the draft are the Wild and Canadiens. The Bruins signed him as a journeyman at the low end of the pay scale and obviously had little expectations for him. Indeed, my memory is he sat two of the first three games before finally wining his spot in the lineup, so it's fair to say his pedigree no longer factored into the equation.

But unlike mojo and chippa, I disagree about too many nights with little to no effort. I see many nights with little to no production, but I don't see many nights with little to no effort. I think he's been one of the best forecheckers on the team. But I have begun to believe that he's a first round talent with a sixth round constitution, meaning he's played much better when he's been buried on the third line versus when they've moved him up due to injuries. It's similar to pitchers who've come to the Sox in midseason trades: a lot of them turn out to be much better pitching for small market teams.

That said, I'll buy the argument that many of you are making about Kelly. He's had a solid year -- pretty much in line with my expectations or even the team's in giving him one of the 'A's' -- but maybe my expectations for him made me overlook the fact that he'd be a worthy winner of the award.