In the time that the Sabres have been on the outside looking in each April, the Bruins have played in 22 playoff series, including the Stanley Cup Final in 2013 and \u201819, totaling 131 postseason games and, what the heck, let\u2019s go all the way here, 69 wins and 62 losses. <\/p>\n
Numbers worth remembering the next time Gary from Arlington calls your favorite radio talk show in a huff, grousing and spewing that the Bruins just can\u2019t win, and their draft record stinks. Sabres fans only wish they could beef about 69 wins and 62 losses. <\/p>\n
And the draft, well, forever a mixed bag. The Sabres hit big, and should have, with Dahlin and Power designated best in show of their respective draft classes. They also drew a dazzling pair of back-to-back No. 2s in Sam Reinhart (2014) and Jack Eichel (\u201815), only to deal both out too early, part of the continuing toll of the mind-numbing losing and frustration.<\/p>\n
Of those 20 Round 1 picks, a list that includes current Bruin<\/a> Nikita Zadorov at No. 16 in 2013 and Casey Mittelstadt at No. 8 in 2017, the only players beyond Dahlin and Power holding significant roles on the Sabres roster today are Jack Quinn, Noah Ostlund, and Zach Benson. Like nearly every part of the franchise since 2011, it could have been a whole lot better.<\/p>\n A curious, if not comical twist to this season\u2019s turnaround<\/a>, which began after another two months of nothing but the same old, same old, is that it cost general manager Kevyn Adams his job. A former Bruins prospect (drafted 25th overall in 1993), Adams the last couple of years finally came up with the right player mosaic, and then got turfed in December just as the Sabres clicked off three victories of what turned into a 10-game winning streak.<\/p>\n Adams has not commented publicly since the day Pegula fired him and named another former Bruins prospect, Jarmo Kekalainen, as his successor. Kekalainen, with years of experience in his former role as Blue Jackets GM, in his four months on the job has changed next to nothing. He\u2019s had the luxury of only having to water the shrubs, a load of them procured and planted by Adams.<\/p>\n Upon taking over, Kekalainen made clear to the players that, in so many words, he\u2019d find new homes for anyone who cared to leave. He\u2019d been on the job since June of last year as Adams\u2019 No. 1 advisor, and told the players as new GM he believed in them, felt they could win, but it was also beyond time for all of them to prove that. If they didn\u2019t feel up to the task, fine, raise a hand and wait by the Uber stand<\/a>.<\/p>\n The turnaround has been awe-inspiring, reminiscent of the 2018-19, magic-making Blues, who changed coaches (Craig Berube in for Mike Yeo) after winning only seven of their opening 19 games and went on to win the only Cup title in franchise history. They rolled up a 38-19-6 (.661) mark in their 63 regular season games under Berube, then knocked out the Jets, Stars, Sharks, and Bruins for the Cup<\/a>.<\/p>\n From Dec. 1 through the remainder of the regular season, Lindy Ruff\u2019s Sabres led the league in points (85) and points percentage (.746) with a record of 40-12-5. The Hurricanes and Avalanche tied at No. 2 with identical marks of 37-15-5.<\/p>\n The message Kekalainen delivered was a key part of the kickstart. But as GM, he also overhauled the front office staff, with the help of Pete Guelli, who is the president of business operations for both the Sabres and Bills and convinced Pegula it was worth spending at the top of the administration. Kekalainen added Marc Bergevin (former Canadiens GM) as his lead advisor, Josh Flynn (formerly of the Blue Jackets) to handle the salary cap, and Stacy Roest (ex- of the Lightning) as a pro scout. <\/p>\n Pegula took ownership of the besotted franchise during the 2010-11 season. Only now, it looks like, his team is down to serious business.<\/p>\n FEELING A DRAFT<\/p>\n Little luck needed in lottery<\/p>\n A potential Game 7 of the Bruins-Sabres series would be played on May 3 in Buffalo. Regardless of outcome, Bruins fans will have their attention locked laser-like two days later when the draft lottery \u2014 the bounce of the whirring ping-pong balls \u2014 will be held at NHL Network studios in Secaucus, N.J.<\/p>\n Similar to a year ago, when they entered the lottery with the No. 5 pick in their pocket, the Bruins will be all about No. 5 again, hoping this time their misfortune of a year ago befalls the Maple Leafs. <\/p>\n Headed into last May\u2019s draw, the Bruins were hopeful that the two lottery pulls would leapfrog them into the No. 1 or 2 spot. Instead, they slipped two notches back to No. 7, ultimately where they selected James Hagens in the June draft<\/a> staged in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n The downtrodden Maple Leafs (78 points) came out of this regular season in possession of the No. 5 pick. If they maintain that spot, or jiggle higher, it will be to the Bruins\u2019 chagrin. Per conditions of the trade last March that sent Brandon Carlo to Toronto, the pick goes to the Bruins only if it\u2019s out of the top five.<\/p>\n The Bruins would love to see essentially a replay of last season, when a pair of darkhorses bolted from deep in the pack and into the top five. The Islanders (ranked 10th) filched the No. 1 spot, where they ultimately landed franchise defenseman Matthew Schaefer. The bottom-feeding Sharks were bumped down to the No. 2 hole by the Islanders. Then Utah, ranked 14th, moved up 10 slots (the maximum jump allowed) to fourth. The Bruins slipped a peg on each pull.<\/p>\n It will take only one club to come up from underneath, disrupting the top five, for the Bruins to take possession of the Maple Leafs\u2019 pick at No. 6 or below. A pair of disruptions would have them once again on the board at No. 7 when Round 1 of the draft is staged in Buffalo on June 26.<\/p>\n Per Elite Prospects, some likely names to go in the Nos. 6-7 neighborhood:<\/p>\n \u25aa Carson Carels \u2014 Left-shot defenseman (6 feet 2 inches\/194 pounds) with WHL Prince George. Finished season with 20 goals and 73 points. Prince George was Zdeno Chara\u2019s first team upon landing in North America from Slovakia in 1996.<\/p>\n \u25aa Xavier Villeneuve \u2014 Left-shot defenseman (5-11\/160) with QMJHL Blainville-Boisbriand. Totaled 38 points in 37 games.<\/p>\n \u25aa Caleb Malhotra \u2014 Center (6-2\/183) with OHL Brantford. Collected 29 goals and 84 points. Son of ex-NHLer Manny Malhotra and nephew of former NBA star Steve Nash.<\/p>\n \u25aa Ethan Belchetz \u2014 Left wing (6-5\/227) with OHL Windsor. Rolled up 34 goals and 59 points in 57 games. Biggest body available at the top end of the draft ratings.<\/p>\n Keep in mind, if the Maple Leafs maintain that No. 5 spot, the Bruins won\u2019t pick up their \u201cCarlo\u201d first-rounder until the 2028 draft. Toronto surrendered its 2027 first-rounder to the Flyers at the same March \u201825 trade deadline when acquiring Scott Laughton for what they hoped would be a long playoff run. Only a year later, the Maple Leafs wheeled Laughton to the Kings for a third-round pick, adding to the list of front office roster faux pas that led to Brad Treliving\u2019s dismissal as general manager on March 30. <\/p>\n ETC.<\/p>\n The Bruins 4-0 win over the Devils last Tuesday<\/a> in the season closer made Marco Sturm only the 19th first-year head coach in NHL history to reach the 100-point plateau (45-26-10 record for an even 100).<\/p>\n Tom Johnson, the Canadiens\u2019 Hall of Fame defenseman, holds the all-time mark for a rookie NHL bench boss, having the good fortune of inheriting the powerhouse Bruins upon Harry Sinden abruptly leaving in the wake of the 1970 Cup win. Their roster dotted with Hall of Famers Phil Esposito, Bobby Orr, John Bucyk, and Gerry Cheevers, the \u201870-71 Bruins<\/a> rolled to a 57-14-7 finish good for 121 points.<\/p>\n The closest anyone has come to equaling TJ\u2019s total: Todd McLellan, who took over the Sharks bench for the start of 2008-09 and finished that season 53-18-11 for 117 points.<\/p>\n Two other Bruins coaches, Mike Milbury and Mike Sullivan, also crested 100 points in their maiden seasons. Milbury, in 1989-90, directed the team to 101 points. Sullivan, who years later coached the Penguins to consecutive Stanley Cup wins, led the Bruins to 104 points in 2003-04.<\/p>\n Similar to Sturm, Sullivan coached the Bruins in the loser point era, beginning 1999-2000, when overtime losses added a point in the standings.<\/p>\n Of the three prior rookie Boston coaches to debut with 100 points, only Milbury led the Bruins to the Cup Final that same season<\/a>. The Bruins were bounced by the Oilers that spring, 4-1. <\/p>\n Amid rumors that New Jersey might recruit alum Jamie Langenbrunner out of the Bruins front office to be its new general manager, the Devils named Sunny Mehta their new clerk of the works Thursday. The hire came fewer than 10 days after dismissing ex-Bruin Tom Fitzgerald<\/a> from the job.<\/p>\n Mehta, 48, grew up in New Jersey and only got his start in team management 12 years ago when the Devils hired him as an analytics cruncher. He earned a masters in data science at City University of New York and was among those at the vanguard brought in by NHL teams to drill down on player performance metrics \u2014 now standard practice across the Original 32.<\/p>\n At a time when the NHL, along with all pro sports, delves deeper into gambling, Mehta has a bit of a feel for that subject, too. He has co-authored two books on poker strategy: \u201cProfessional No-Limit Hold \u2018em: Volume 1\u201d and \u201cSmall Stakes No-Limit Hold \u2018Em.\u201d<\/p>\n Mehta once was a professional musician, following his undergraduate days at the University of Miami\u2019s Frost School of Music. As for on-ice experience, he played hockey at Ramapo High in Franklin Lakes, N.J., from 1992-96, with the Devils winning the first of their three Stanley Cups (1995, 2000, \u201903) during that time.<\/p>\n As any analytics guy would know, Mehta would do well to crunch the numbers in hopes of finding another Martin Brodeur to man the net. Fitzgerald thought he had that fatal flaw fixed when he acquired Jacob Markstrom, but the leaking continued and so did the losing that ultimately cost him the job.<\/p>\n Bruce Cassidy, who\u2019ll be spending extra weeks sunning on the Cape this summer after getting the abrupt heave-ho from behind the Vegas bench<\/a>, is rumored to be among the candidates for the open Maple Leafs job. Ownership first has to decide on Treliving\u2019s replacement. Among the rumored GM candidates: Peter Chiareili, setting up the possibility the team will be directed by both a former Bruins GM and a former coach \u2026 Treliving last week was named one of Team Canada\u2019s managers, along with Jason Spezza (assistant GM\/Pittsburgh), for next month\u2019s IIHF World Championship in Switzerland. Jeremy Swayman backed Team USA to gold in last spring\u2019s Worlds \u2026 Schaefer, a prohibitive Calder favorite for NHL Rookie of the Year, finished his first Islanders season<\/a> with 59 points (23 goals, 36 assists), ranking him No. 11 all-time for points by a rookie blue liner. Larry Murphy owns the all-time mark (76 points), starting his esteemed NHL career on the mighty 1980-81 Kings squad led by \u201cTriple Crown\u201d brothers Marcel Dionne, Dave Taylor, and Charlie Simmer. That legendary trio combined for 161 goals and 352 points that season \u2026 Ruff, who went on to subsequent coaching gigs with the Stars and Devils, was also behind the Sabres bench for their last postseason series in 2011, losing to the Flyers in seven games in Round 1. While the Sturm will be in the thick of the battle for the first time as an NHL coach, Ruff, 66, on Sunday will coach his 133rd playoff game. He has a lifetime mark of 71-61, one of those losses in Game 6 of the 1999 Stanley Cup Final, with Ken Hitchcock\u2019s Stars clinching the titke at 14:51 of the third overtime on a goal by Brett Hull<\/a>, his left skate indisputably in the blue paint, knocked past Dominik Hasek. The night ended with an irate Ruff back out at the Sabres bench, amid the Stars celebration, asking commissioner Gary Bettman why there hadn\u2019t been a video review, something that today would be mandatory \u2026 A 23-year-old Langenbrunner, today GM Don Sweeney\u2019s righthand man with the Bruins, was among the Stars who hoisted the Cup high that night in \u201899 at Marine Midland Arena. Langenbrunner put his name on the Cup a second time in 2003 with the Devils, coached that season by Pat Burns \u2026 Who\u2019s your bet for banner captain for Game 3 on Thursday night at the Garden? Probably too early for a big gun like Chara, who will be only three days removed from running his third Boston Marathon<\/a>. If not Z, why not bring in Danny Paille? He was on the Bruins roster when the two sides last met in the playoffs (2010) and he also was a member of the 2011 Cup-winning squad. Paille began his NHL life as a first-round pick (No. 20) of the Sabres in 2002.<\/p>\n![\"James](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/LOIYBTPPANDA7IFLL6X4CLZYHQ.jpg\")
James Hagens was the No. 7 overall draft pick last year, then went to Boston College before signing with the Bruins and debuting in the NHL.Ken McGagh for The Boston Globe<\/p>\n![\"Former](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/CWNJFVCMBQI6JPXQNQS4H6ETM4.jpg\")
Former Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli could resurface in the same role for the Maple Leafs.Matthew J. Lee<\/p>\n