The team was gelling, the three new faces in the lineup were working seamlessly alongside their new linemates, and they conquered the top teams out West in their barns.
But what happened before and after that road trip need not be overlooked: Three straight losses and a four-game winless streak. Had Tuukka Rask not stood on his head in the third period and overtime in Tuesday night’s shootout win over Columbus, it could very easily have been a five-game winless streak.
The dynamic duo that is the Boston netminding out-of-this-world pair of Rask and Tim Thomas has saved this Bruins team over and over again this season.
With 13 games remaining until the Bruins begin their highly anticipated postseason swing, they are looking more and more like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, rather than a team who just two weeks ago was listed No. 1 on TSN’s NHL Power Rankings.
The reason? You’ll have to ask the players.
"I think we got away from our system a little bit in the past couple games and we allowed too many shots and too many scoring chances," said Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron. "I think it’s about going back to what’s been the story of our success all year. Playing hard."
The bottom line is that the Bruins have gotten away from the style of play that has branded their team. They aren't physical, they are not scoring with the same frequency that they were during their recent seven-game winning streak, and they have continued to be unsuccessful on the power play.
But the team needs to get their mojo back, and ASAP. The next 13 games are going to fly by and before you know it, one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference will be waiting on their doorstep.
"We are still not out of the woods yet," said Claude Julien, acknowledging his squad barely escaped with two points in Columbus. "We’re not skating. We’re taking that extra second with the puck, and that’s costing us. Most of all, I think it's a lack of confidence. We got a little better as the night went on, but …"
But …
I'm sure most Bruins fans would love to finish Julien's sentence, but, we won't. We'll let the team figure out how to get that confidence back in the next four weeks before entering the playoffs. Before they only get one chance to get it right. Before they realize that one loss means they're one step closer to golf season.
A loss is all that Bruins fans remember from the 2009-10 season. One giant loss on Friday, May 14, 2010.
Here’s hoping the Bruins figure out what's ailing them, correct the problems, and begin the postseason on a high note, primed for a long quest for the Stanley Cup.
