The Boston Bruins have been the best team in hockey this season, racking up records as they rolled to a historically dominant season.
That much doesn't matter in the Stanley Cup playoffs, however. As it does in most sports, postseason hockey often comes back to individual talent as things reset once the playoffs roll around. That's where the good news comes for Bruins fans, as they've got talent up and down the roster.
The Bruins came away from ESPN's expert player rankings looking even more like a favorite to win the Stanley Cup, as they led the way with six players in the top-50 rankings. Here's a look at the players who made the cut and where they ranked:
5. G Linus Ullmark
6. RW David Pastrnak
13. D Charlie McAvoy
15. LW Brad Marchand
22. D Hampus Lindholm
30. C Patrice Bergeron
That's right, the Bruins can make a full lineup out of just players who are considered the 30 best in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Lightning and Oilers can also claim to have six players on the list, though Boston doesn't have anyone below Bergeron at 30, while Tampa Bay boasts one and Edmonton boasts four.
Boston's high-end talent has been on display all season, with no player exemplifying it more than Linus Ullmark. Here is Ryan S. Clark's excerpt on the Vezina Trophy favorite.
Seven. That's how many combined regulation and overtime losses Ullmark had in what was one of the strongest individual campaigns in the NHL. Ullmark's second season with the Bruins showed his importance to a team that's trying to parlay a historic regular season into one that could end with a Stanley Cup.
Ullmark went 0-2 with a 4.17 goals-against average and a .860 save percentage in last year's playoffs. But if Ullmark can carry his regular-season exploits into this postseason? It could result in the Bruins' seventh Stanley Cup in team history.
Black and Gold fans certainly wouldn't be mad at that outcome.
