( Above Photo Credit:  TSN .ca )

By: Mark Allred                      Follow Me On Twitter @BlackAndGold277

The National Hockey League kicked its 101st year last night with a few contests to begin the 2017-18 campaign but for us die-hard fans of the Boston Bruins, tonights game one matchup against last seasons Western Conference Champions Nashville Predators from TD Garden couldn’t have come quick enough. For me, the last three seasons have been pretty much a roller-coaster ride leading up to failed seasons expect the first-round Stanley Cup Playoffs appearance during the spring of this year the effort of the 2016-17 campaign brought big hopes leading up to tonight’s start with an interesting lineup.

I have to say that I’m a little more excited for the start of the new season because of the changes that have been made over the summer offseason. New bench boss Bruce Cassidy is set to take on his first start to a regular season with the Bruins and the promotions of Kevin Dean from the American Hockey Leagues Providence Bruins tells me that this organization is set to have a little more youth inserted into its lineup even tho I didn’t believe it would happen.

With the return of veteran players like David Backes, Patrice Bergeron, Zdeno Chara, David Krejci, Brad Marchand, and Tuukka Rask to the lineup with the addition of developing youth with exciting names like Anders Bjork and Jake DeBrusk, this B’s team has a chance to be a faster more committed team to make positive strides towards the future. I honestly love the progression of recently drafted players and their climb through the developmental leagues aspiring for NHL jobs. A nice mix of experience and the willingness to soak information in, I believe this Boston Bruins team is on the right track of building the franchise up for another Stanley Cup run that might be in the 2-3 year window if members of management and ownership can buy into the transition that this team is about to experience.

Like I said, I’m super pumped for this season and can’t wait to see what kind of team hits the Garden ice tonight as its going to be an interesting year of Boston hockey and I’m happy to be aboard and look forward to the interaction again on the many platforms of social media.

With that being said, I’d like to usher in the new Bruins regular season with a very well done video by friend and aspiring journalist Jacob Pelletier. Please like, share, and subscribe to his YouTube channel as he’s ramping up to have some every exciting projects in the future.

And Finally……………….LET’S GO BRUINS!!!!!!!!!