While the Hub can rely on such stars as Tim Thomas, Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci to bring it on a nightly basis, it’s impossible to completely rely upon this core group alone to take the B’s deep into a Cup run.
Bruins fans can only imagine that if Nathan Horton keeps playing the way he has been as of late, than this team will be extremely tough to beat come playoff time. Horton was brought to Boston to do one thing: score goals. While he started off hot, he fell into a bit of a slump and the rest of the team followed. Horton is being heavily relied upon to bury goals and create offense alongside David Krejci and Milan Lucic on the B’s top string, and it appears as though the winger is finding his stride at the right time. If he can keep a scoring touch come April, than Horton can be the go-to postseason forward the B’s have been missing for years and years.
One of the NHL trade deadline’s biggest names, Tomas Kaberle, has given the Bruins the spark they needed on the power play. Without Marc Savard, the B’s looked flat on the man-advantage and were in desperate need of a ring leader. Enter Kaberle, who has a Tom Brady-cool demeanor about him when handling the puck — on the man-up or not. Kaberle’s vision, playmaking skills and offensive awareness finally make this Bruins team a serious threat on the power play. As hockey fans have seen in the past, a good power play can make or break playoff teams of any caliber.
Another player to step up his game has been energy-line phenom Greg Campbell. Soupy won’t light the lamp nearly as much as Horton will, but his passionate play and leadership on the fourth line has proven to be an irreplaceable commodity. Not many teams out there are as deep as this Bruins bunch and Soupy has made the fourth line that much better in the last month alone. While he may not be the most popular choice as a Bruins X factor, it’s hard to imagine this team’s success without his grit, feisty play and penalty killing ability in the mix.
Which player will be the Bruins’ postseason X factor?online surveys
