Boston Bruins Power Rankings - 2011-12
| Power Ranking | ||||
| WEEK | RECORD | RANK | COMMENT | |
| Week 28 | 49-29-4 | 8 | Interesting how quietly under the national radar the defending Cup champs enter the playoffs. Which, given the Tim Thomas-White House fiasco earlier this season, is just fine with them. Without much fanfare outside of New England, the Bruins have got their A-game together for the playoffs, and it wouldn't surprise me one bit if they got all the way back to the dance. | |
| Week 27 | 47-28-4 | 7 | The Bruins are 7-1-1 in their past nine games, including a huge win over the Rangers that should prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that they are back and ready to rumble. | |
| Week 26 | 44-28-3 | 7 | The defending Cup champs have won four of five and appear to be back on track. | |
| Week 25 | 41-27-3 | 12 | It's hard to know what to make of the Bruins, even after watching them in person in their 6-2 loss against Florida on Thursday but noting a hard-fought 3-2 shootout win over red-hot Philadelphia on Saturday for their first win in five. They aren't the Bruins of last spring or even of earlier this season, but the reality is they don't need to be. Not yet. | |
| Week 24 | 40-25-3 | 8 | Tim Thomas has given up 16 goals in his last five starts. The defending Cup champs need their reigning Conn Smythe and Vezina Trophy winner to step it up. | |
| Week 23 | 38-23-3 | 9 | The Bruins can't quite seem to get things going, as they are 2-3-1 in their past six. They're not playing horribly, just not real well. Never mind the top spot in the conference; the Bruins are now looking over their shoulders at the rejuvenated Ottawa Senators. | |
| Week 22 | 37-20-3 | 5 | GM Peter Chiarelli made three depth moves in trading for Brian Rolston, Mike Mottau and Greg Zanon. Nothing earth-shattering, but it's necessary to add bodies if the Bruins want to survive another Cup run. | |
| Week 21 | 35-20-2 | 8 | The Bruins are going sideways, having lost three of four, including being shut out in Minnesota on Hockey Day in America. They haven't won two in a row in more than a month. Good thing Tim Thomas' off-ice dabbling in politics and theology isn't hurting the club's on-ice performance. | |
| Week 20 | 34-17-2 | 5 | The B's have fallen seven points behind the Rangers for the Eastern Conference lead. What better way to cut into that than with a home victory Tuesday night against the Blueshirts? | |
| Week 19 | 33-16-2 | 6 | The Bruins have gone a little sideways with just five wins in their past 11 games, although they did maul Washington on Sunday by a 4-1 count. Still, the B's have the second East seed, not to mention the Northeast Division title, pretty much wrapped up. And you know GM Peter Chiarelli will tinker before the trade deadline. | |
| Week 18 | 31-14-2 | 3 | The Bs lost three of their last five games before the break. A three-game home stand awaits Tim Thomas. How will the fans react? | |
| Week 17 | 31-13-2 | 2 | Degrees of greatness atop the conference as the Bruins moved back into the top spot overall with a wild shootout win over Philadelphia, a day after losing in overtime to the Rangers. | |
| Week 16 | 28-12-1 | 1 | Putting the B's back up where they belong. No team is deeper and more explosive right now in the NHL. First in goals for and goals against. Ridiculous. And GM Peter Chiarelli told me Thursday that he's looking to add a depth player up front and on defense. Scary. | |
| Week 15 | 26-11-1 | 3 | It's degrees of greatness when you're talking about the top three teams in the rankings. The Bruins are 9-2-0 in their past 11 and continue to lead the league in goals allowed per game and in goal-differential, with an impressive plus-68. | |
| Week 14 | 24-10-1 | 1 | Tyler Seguin is a whopping plus-27 on the season, tops in the NHL. Unreal. | |
| Week 13 | 23-9-1 | 1 | By any measuring stick, the Bruins are the best team in the NHL. They have won 20 of their past 23 games and completed the pre-Christmas schedule with an 8-0 pounding of the Florida Panthers. The B's lead the league in goals per game and goals allowed per game and are miles ahead with a plus-56 goal differential. Enough said. | |
| Week 12 | 21-9-1 | 2 | A perfect 3-0-0 week included a crushing 6-0 win on the road over Philadelphia on Saturday. The B's are still first in the NHL in 5-on-5 goals for/against ratio at 1.86. | |
| Week 11 | 18-9-1 | 5 | The Bruins arrested a mini two-game slide with a win over Columbus on Saturday. They're 15-2-1 in their past 18 and boast the best goals allowed per game numbers in the conference, second in the league. The good vibes in Boston were tempered by the news that captain Zdeno Chara is expected to miss games this week with a lower-body injury suffered against Columbus. | |
| Week 10 | 16-7-1 | 1 | A home-and-home sweep of the Maple Leafs keeps the November mojo going into December. Second in goals for in the NHL; first in goals against. Right now the Bruins are unbeatable. | |
| Week 9 | 14-7-1 | 1 | The Bruins were edged in a shootout by Detroit to end their 10-game winning streak Friday but were back at it Saturday with a win over Winnipeg. The B's have not lost in regulation in a month and lead the league with a plus-28 goal differential. Hangover? What hangover? | |
| Week 8 | 11-7-0 | 2 | Make it eight wins a row ahead of Monday night's big clash in Montreal. The Canadiens are the last team to beat the defending Cup champs -- doing it twice in a home-and-home sweep in late October. The B's lead NHL in five-on-five goals for/against ratio at 1.81. | |
| Week 7 | 8-7-0 | 7 | Is there a more dangerous team right now than the Bruins (they have scored a whopping 30 times during their current five-game winning streak)? Is there a more dangerous player than Tyler Seguin (he has 11 goals and 20 points and is on a seven-game points streak)? | |
| Week 6 | 5-7-0 | 14 | Tyler Seguin's time has arrived. Hold on to your seats, you're in for a show this season. | |
| Week 5 | 3-7-0 | 29 | The Bruins have lost three in a row and were swept by the Habs as the gruesome start for the defending champs continues. The B's are a desultory 2-5 at home and rank 25th in goals per game. | |
| Week 4 | 3-5-0 | 20 | The Bruins followed up their best game of the season, a romp over Toronto, with a tough loss to San Jose. The Cup hangover can't keep these guys down forever. | |
| Week 3 | 2-3-0 | 22 | A big shootout win for the Bruins as the champs try to disprove the early evidence that they are suffering from a Stanley Cup hangover. Overall offense is lacking and the power play (1-for-20) is junk. | |
| Week 2 | 1-1-0 | 11 | The Cup champs got Cup-caliber goaltending from Tim Thomas against Tampa Bay on Saturday night. He was downright terrific. | |
| Week 1 | 0-0-0 | 1 | Hey, give the Bruins their due. They'll raise their first Stanley Cup banner since 1972 on Thursday night. Let them enjoy one more day in the Power Rankings sun. | |
