Why the party-crashing Boston Bruins might be the real deal

Oct 21, 2026, 10:41 AM ET|Comments (0)

from Daily Faceoff, by Anthony Trudeau,

For most of the past two decades, the Boston Bruins being one of the Eastern Conference’s top teams was not news.

Led by Hall-of-Fame captains Zdeno Chara and Patrice Bergeron and a seemingly endless procession of Vezina-caliber goaltenders, the Bruins missed the playoffs only twice between 2008 and 2024, reaching the Stanley Cup Final three times and piling up six division titles. The Black and Gold were so dominant that ‘only’ lifting the grail once this century is more often viewed with wistful disappointment than pride in that 2011 triumph.

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