By: Joe Ballway, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer

With 2009 drawing to a close, the time has come to reflect on what has been a roller-coaster decade in the Hub of Hockey. In honor of the successful, and even the embattled, Bruins teams of the past ten years, I decided to rank each one from worst to best:
10) 2004-2005 (Lockout)

Hey, a bad season is better than no season, right?
9) 2005-2006 (29-37-16, 74 points, 5th in Northeast, 13th in Eastern Conference)

Ah, the twilight of the Mike O’Connell era. It’s difficult to determine which of the first two post-lockout seasons was worse, but this one seemed all the more putrid because of the expectations heading into it. The Bruins were supposed to build off their successful ‘03-04 campaign: 104 points, a division title, and a Calder-worthy performance from Andrew Raycroft. O’Connell pegged the B’s as surefire contenders, delivering a confident endorsement prior to training camp:
“This team, the way it’s set up with the rule changes, I think that we have to be considered one of the favorites for the Stanley Cup.”
The Bruins proceeded to burst out of the gate like that kid at practice who hops onto the ice with his skate guards still on, [...]

By: Joe Ballway, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
Blah.
That’s the best phrase to describe the Bruins’ effort last night. One game after clawing back to force overtime against the Blackhawks–one of the league’s best–they delivered an absolute stinker, losing 2-0 to the lowly Leafs.
That’s right, the same team that gave up 12 goals to the Bruins in their first two meetings this season. The same team that, heading into the game, had allowed the most goals in the NHL.
And as for the Bruins getting back into that “one of the league’s best” category–after a four-game losing streak, it’s starting to look like some of the early-season problems are reemerging. The night-and-day difference between the last two games sums up what has plagued the players and driven fans insane: flashes of last year’s brilliance–as demonstrated by Friday night’s impressive display of resilience–but no consistent finish, few timely plays and little sense of urgency.
The offense continues its torturous path of unpredictability. With Milan Lucic on the shelf, Marc Savard simply doesn’t have anyone to dish the puck to. His revolving door of wingers in the past few weeks, from Blake Wheeler and Byron Bitz to Marco Sturm and Michael Ryder, has produced virtually nothing; [...]

By: Joe Ballway, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
Good as new after an offseason of shoulder surgery, extensive rehabilitation, and equally tedious contract negotiations, Phil Kessel will reportedly take the ice when his miserable Leafs host the Lightning tonight. Needless to say, should the Bruins’ offense continue to flounder against the Wings, Kessel’s performance will be closely monitored by a growing number of concerned Black ‘N’ Gold enthusiasts.
Kessel’s scoring touch has eluded his former teammates thus far, as the Bruins rank just 22nd in the NHL with 31 goals in 13 games. Last season, the Bruins finished second overall in scoring behind a well-balanced, consistent attack. They certainly haven’t been helped by the absences of Marc Savard and Milan Lucic–injuries that appear to finally be catching up to a beleaguered offensive unit. That being said, the upcoming weeks could serve as a strong determinant of just how much Kessel’s services are missed.
Boston’s struggles have been highlighted in the past three games, a span in which the Bruins have gone 1-2 while managing just three goals. They returned to the .500 mark after being shut out 1-0 by the Rangers on Sunday afternoon, continuing their bizarre, frustrating trend of alternating wins and losses each [...]

By: Joe Ballway, YawkeyTalkies Correspondent
Down 3-1 to the Senators with under two minutes to play, the Bruins’ fifth loss of the season was inevitable. In fact–loyal fan that I am–I turned off the TV and chucked the remote, feeling I had better things to do on a Saturday night than watch the clock run out on yet another setback in a season marred with perplexing inconsistency. I whined to my sister via text that the Bruins, now a sub-.500 team, were nearly halfway to their loss total from all of last season. After all, they hadn’t shown much fight through their first nine games, so what was there to indicate the possibility of a last-minute comeback?
Of course, being a mercurial, pessimistic Boston sports fan, I disregarded the Bruins’ uncanny ability to claw back into games–a quality that carried this team through so many brilliant stretches last season, but seemed to be absent thus far in the 2009-10 campaign. Some of that magic must still be lingering, though, as I received a text barely a minute later: Mark Recchi goal, 3-2 Ottawa with a minute left. Feeling slightly ashamed, I tuned back in to see if there was a faint glimmer [...]

By Joe Ballway, YawkeyTalkies Correspondent
The hockey gods haven’t been kind to the Bruins over the past week, piling a couple of costly injuries on top of the team’s early-season struggles. First liners Marc Savard (broken foot) and Milan Lucic (broken finger) are both expected to miss 4-6 weeks with injuries–a huge blow to an offense seeking balance and consistency. Throw in Phil Kessel’s departure, and the Bruins are missing their entire top line from last season for at least a month–surely not the scenario Bruins fans envisioned heading into the season.
It’s hard to tell what impact these losses will have. After a wave of confidence despite their missing offense on Wednesday when the Bruins turned out a 3-2 victory against the Nashville Predators, the Bruins suffered a tough break tonight, when they lost in a shootout to the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3. Derek Morris scored off a power play in the first and Matt Hunwick had two goals in the 2nd period. The Flyers however came back after being down 2-1, and after a scoreless overtime, managed to get the only goal in shootouts. However Tuukka Rask did have a superb game, with 36 saves, including one on a breakaway that [...]

By: Jess Lander, YawkeyTalkies Editor
Thursday night, Bruins fans went to bed a little uneasy.
Saturday, the Bruins said to fans, “Just kidding. We had you worried for a second though didn’t we?”
Their 4-1 loss to Washington on Thursday has been quickly forgotten with their 7-2 pounding on Carolina Saturday night. The difference between the two was a matter of black and white; Red Sox pre-2004, and Red Sox two World Series later.
Maybe it was revenge. Facing the team that halted their road to the Cup last season, the B’s had some payback to dish out. Dish they did, making a statement that says, “Not this year.”
But hopefully, beyond revenge, Saturday night was a preview of who the Bruins really are this season, not the team on Thursday that looked to still be stuck in preseason mode.
The win is a big confidence boost to fans, especially for those wondering if the B’s can be the scoring powerhouse they were last season, now without Phil Kessel. But, it doesn’t look like that’s going to be a problem. The B’s proved that their ability to score can run deep: seven different players scored the seven goals.
Defensively, the B’s didn’t allow a goal until [...]