Boston Bruins

Daniel Collins

Written by: Daniel Collins

Last Updated:

Read Time: 3 minutes

The Boston Bruins are a professional hockey team competing in the National Hockey League (NHL). Founded in 1924, they are the third-oldest active NHL team and one of the “Original Six” teams in the league. The Bruins have played 6,570 regular season games in franchise history; earning a record of 3,208-2,387-791-184. On top of that, they have played 651 playoff games; earning a record of 321-324-6 in postseason play. They have won the Stanley Cup six times in franchise history (1929, 1939, 1941, 1970, 1972, and 2011). The Bruins have appeared in an additional 14 Stanley Cup Finals, but lost. The team has won the President’s Trophy (best regular season record) three times since the award’s inception in 1986, most recently in 2020.

Many great players, coaches, and executives have been a part of the Boston Bruins organization. 52 former players are enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame. Additionally, seven more Bruins are in the Hall of Fame under the “Builders” category. Legendary Bruins players include, but are not limited to: Bobby Orr, Ray Bourque, Eddie Shore, Gerry Cheevers, Tiny Thompson, Cam Neely, Milt Schmidt, Phil Esposito, Johnny Bucyk, and Adam Oates among many others. Ray Bourque is the franchise’s all time leader in points with 1,506. Bourque is also the franchise’s all time leader in assists with 1,111. The franchise’s all time leader in goals is Johnny Bucyk with 545.

The Bruins have had 27 different coaches in franchise history, a number of them former players. Notable former coaches include: Art Ross, Milt Schmidt, Harry Sinden, Tom Johnson, Don Cherry, Gerry Cheevers, Mike Milbury, Pat Burns, and Claude Julien.

The Boston Bruins have been a successful team for much of their history. While some eras have been more successful than others, they consistently have put a winning hockey team on the ice. The Bruins are tied with the Chicago Blackhawks for the fourth most Stanley Cup championships in NHL history with six. They also have the fourth most Stanley Cup Finals appearances in league history with 20.

The most recognizable era of the Boston Bruins came in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s with Bobby Orr and the Big Bad Bruins. In 1966 the Boston Bruins signed a young defenseman by the name of Bobby Orr. Orr would rise to prominence with the Bruins and go on to become, in the eyes of many, the greatest defenseman in NHL history. The Bruins would surround Orr with other star players such as Johnny Bucyk, Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge, Derek Sanderson, and others. They would go on to win the Stanley Cup in 1970 and again in 1972. This era of Bruins teams were not only known for winning, but also their physical style of play on the ice. They earned the name “Big Bad Bruins” because they always stood up for one another and refused to be pushed around by their opponents. These Bruins teams were very skilled, but also very tough. They were never afraid to hit and fight. The “Big Bad Bruins” created the blueprint for the “Broad Street Bullies” Philadelphia Flyers teams of the mid 1970’s that also used toughness and intimidation to beat their opponents. While this era came to an end in the mid 1970’s with the demise of Bobby Orr due to knee injuries, certain aspects and attitudes created then have lived on with the team to this day.

Current Management and Coaches

Owner: Delaware North Companies (Jeremy Jacobs, Chairman; Charlie Jacobs, CEO)

President: Cam Neely

General Manager: Don Sweeney

Head Coach: Bruce Cassidy

Assistant Coaches: Kevin Dean, Jay Pandolfo, and Joe Sacco

Current Roster

Forwards: Patrice Bergeron (Alternate Captain), Anders Bjork, Charlie Coyle, Jake DeBrusk, Trent Frederic, Ondrej Kase, David Krejci (Alternate Captain), Karson Kuhlman, Sean Kuraly, Par Lindholm, Brad Marchand, Joakim Nordstrom, David Pastrnak, Nick Ritchie, Zach Senyshyn, Jack Studnicka, Chris Wagner

Defensemen: Brandon Carlo, Zdeno Chara (Captain), Connor Clifton, Matt Grzelcyk, Torey Krug, Jeremy Lauzon, Charlie McAvoy, Kevan Miller, John Moore, Urho Vaakanainen, Jakub Zboril

Goaltenders: Jaroslav Halak, Maxime Lagace, Tuukka Rask, Dan Vladar