The past few months have been anything but kind to fans of Boston sports. The Red Sox were unceremoniously booted from the playoffs (and, adding insult to injury, Boston’s bitter rivals, the New York Yankees, were dubbed World Champions). The Boston University Terriers men’s ice hockey team kicked off their title defense with a resounding thud. The New England Patriots were thoroughly dismantled in the postseason. The Bruins looked strong in the early goings — until a 10-game winless streak knocked them out of playoff position (temporarily). The Celtics also started the 2009-10 campaign with a bang, but had fizzled out before the All-Star break. Yup, things were looking pretty dreary in Beantown.
Then, things started looking up. The Bruins put together a four-game winning streak heading into the Olympic Break (and in the process, have catapulted themselves back into playoff position). The Celtics opened up the second half with a ‘W’ on the road (a 95-92 victory over the floundering Sacramento Kings). And, perhaps best of all, the Terriers have gone 9-3-0 since an extended holiday break.
So, what can Boston fans expect, looking forward? Are these “turnarounds” for real?
The Boston Bruins: Remains to be seen. The Bruins beat two very good teams (the Buffalo Sabres and the Tampa Bay Lightning) en route to a four-game unbeaten streak. Tuukka Rask has been solid between the pipes, and the B’s are finally starting to get healthy — making a run down the stretch a distinct possibility. With injured players returning, getting back into the “swing of things,” and re-establishing team chemistry, expect the B’s offense to improve. I can’t help but to worry about the goaltending situation, though. Coming off of a career year, Tim Thomas has struggled to find consistency this season. Thomas’ inconsistency could spell disaster for the B’s if Rask sputters coming out of the Olympic Break. Now, every game — every point — matters.
While the Bruins have the talent to make a postseason run, shoddy goaltending could cost them big time.
The Boston Celtics: Probably not for real. The C’s are getting old — I know it, you know it, the Celtics beat writers know it, and I think Doc Rivers is starting to realize it. The Big 3 won their championship in 2007-08; and now, they’re starting to feel the effects of more than a decade of heavy playing time. Boston has struggled to assert itself defensively, struggled to score down the stretch, and struggled to keep up with the younger, elite teams in the East. The C’s have lost their “killer” instinct — the ability to close games out after taking a first-half lead. Consistency, injuries and age might plague them down the stretch.
Sure, the C’s will make the playoffs, but don’t expect them to knock off Orlando, Cleveland or even Atlanta. There’s a changing of the guard in the East, and the C’s find themselves on the outside looking in. With star point guard Rajon Rondo locked up for a while, expect Boston to begin rebuilding soon.
The Boston University Terriers: For real. Call me biased, but I think that head coach Jack Parker has his team ready to play. After a four-point sweep of the University of Maine (who were, by the way, fresh off of a two-game sweep of first-place University of New Hampshire), the Terriers head into Providence, R.I. with a boatload of confidence. BU probably needs to eke out another sweep this weekend before a pre-Spring Break home-and-home series against Huntington Ave. rival Northeastern. With resurgent goaltender Kieran Millan patrolling the crease and a (potentially) explosive offense, the only thing the Terriers need to maintain is intensity (which has, at times, been a problem for BU).
If the Terriers can maintain a top four position in the Hockey East standings, look for them to make some noise in the tournament. If it comes down to a BU/BC championship (which it might) the Terriers will be eager to atone for last week’s disappointing Beanpot loss. While I don’t think that BU has the firepower to make a run in the NCAAs again this year, they might turn some heads.
Yes, it might be a long, lonely winter in Boston. But, cheer up, spring training is just around the corner!
I beg to differ about your assessment of the Bruins, Brian. There is no reason to be concerned about their goaltending, and no reason to think that Rask can’t continue to play well and lead this team. The Bruins as a team are like 4th in goals against of all the NHL teams. Goaltending is the LEAST of the Bruins problems. Rask has the best GAA and is tied for 3rd best save percentage in the league, and Thomas, although not as strong as last year is still putting up good numbers (except wins and losses). the lack of scoring is the main problem for the Bruins and hopefully they will get a goal scorer or they will be eliminated in the first round of the playoffs once again. The Bruins also need to cut down on the number of turnovers in the defensive zone that are leading to quality scoring chances for the other team. Unfortunately we will have to wait another year for the Bruins go get a lot better with all of their draft choices, and hopefully they will contend for a Stanley Cup within the next couple of years.