It is safe to say that the Boston Bruins are a winning-hockey machine.
As of this writing (Tuesday, January 10), the Bruins are first in the Atlantic Division and the entire NHL with 68 points, thanks to a 32-4–4 record. The closest teams behind them, the Carolina Hurricanes (57 points) and Toronto Maple Leafs (57 points), are nine points away from them.
The Bruins have been doing everything right this season. No team can be perfect, but when looking at this team, it is hard to find any kind of flaw.
For starters, they know how to put the puck in the net. The Bruins lead the league in goals scored with 154 in 40 games (3.85 goals per game).
Offensively, this team is led by David Pastrnak. Pastrnak has 58 points on 32 goals and 26 assists while also leading the team with 24 points on the power play and 203 shots on goal.
Following Pastrnak are the likes of Brad Marchand (37 points), Patrice Bergeron (33 points), David Krejci (31 points), the injured Jake DeBrusk (30 points), Taylor Hall (29 points), and Hampus Lindholm (28 points). Clearly, this team has a lot of depth.
As you can imagine, this team’s power play is also solid. The Bruins are third in the league with the man advantage as they have converted close to 30 percent (28.2) of their opportunities.
The Bruins also lead the league in goals against. The team has given up just 85 goals (2.13 goals against per game).
This is mainly due to the play of All-Star goaltender Linus Ullmark. Ullmark, 29, is 22-1-0-1 with a 1.87 goals-against average, a .938 save percentage, and two shutouts.
The Bruins have also been great at killing off penalties this season. They lead the league this season as they have killed off 85.8 percent of the penalties they have taken so far.
Lastly, a lot of credit needs to go to head coach Jim Montgomery. Montgomery has been masterful behind the bench in his first team with the organization and has got the team to buy into what he is preaching.
There may be a lot of hockey left to be played, but there is no doubt that the Bruins will be serious contenders for the Stanley Cup come April.
