By Amy Tolman | Follow me on Twitter @Amy7594
Welcome to part two of my feature story of the top 20 all-star Boston Bruins from 2000 – 2020. This has been a fun and remarkable trip down memory lane! I wish that half of these if not all of them was still a member of the Bruins. Please remember these are not in ranking order; this is just a list of the top 20 that I feel are important. Let’s continue…
Shawn Thornton
As the caption on the picture says, “Boston Bruins enforcer…” is exactly what Shawn Thornton was for the B’s. Thornton, like McQuaid, did take too kindly to his teammates getting hit in an unsportsmanlike way by their opponents. Even as an afterthought, if the incident happened in a previous game and nothing is done, things will get taken care of at the next meeting of the two teams. A good example of this is the following YouTube clip of Thornton fighting Matt Cooke shortly after the last game between the B’s and Pittsburgh, where Matt Cooke gave Marc Savard a hit that ended his career.
Charlie McAvoy
Charlie McAvoy has got to be one of the best defencemen to pair up with Chara. They both share about the same time on ice and have quite a rhythm together. McAvoy will be 23 in December and still has a lot left in him to give to the Bruins D. Although he has had his share of injuries, this past season, he had 2 goals and 8 assist in 23 games. However, I feel he will be ready to go when the 2020-2021 season starts.
Zdeno Chara
BIG Z! The man who is known for having the fastest slap shot on net.
The 6-foot-9 defenseman has played for the B’s and has been their captain since 2006. Chara is not liked by Montreal Canadian fans because of a hit on Max Pacioretty. He gets booed every time he touches the puck when the B’s play in Montreal. The question currently for Chara being 43 years old is will he return for another season with the Bruins? Or will he decide to retire? The answer is no; a recent report says that he by no means plans on retiring and hoping to come with a deal with the Bruins soon.
Jake DeBrusk
Jake has been on Krejci’s line for three years now and just recently came to an agreement with the Bruins for another two years. It’s nice to finally see Krejci have a teammate that is consistent because after Lucic was traded, they kept switching people around on him. DeBrusk is a great scorer, and we should all look forward to seeing more of him on the ice.
Tuukka Rask
I think the way it was left to the public about why Rask left the bubble during the playoffs was mishandled. Yes, he is entitled to his privacy, but a mere quick statement about his daughter would have made it easier for the Bruins’ Fans to swallow. Instead, it looked like he bailed on his team because his family was more important. It didn’t sit well with me personally with just that news because everyone else was away from their families too, but now knowing that she was sick makes it a different story.
Moving on from that, Tuukka is a great Goalie! He has some incredible saves during his career. This clip is from November of last year.
David Krejci
Along with Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci has got to be one of the most consistent players for the Boston Bruins. He plays almost every game, and he is not afraid to let the newbies score their first goal. I’ve also seen him pass the puck to another teammate to an empty netter so they could get a hat trick. Krejci is not a fighter, but there have been times with someone has gotten under his skin, and he goes. This clip is from February of this year.
Brad Marchand |Patrice Bergeron | David Pastrnak
I was going to do these three separate, but I decided to group them together because, well, how can you not? Each man is incredible and unique, but together they are unstoppable. Bergeron, Pastrnak, and Marchand have been called the ‘perfect line.” The charisma that the three of them have together is just incredible!
Brad Marchand, aka “The Little Ball of Hate.” There is never telling what Marchand is going to do during a game. From licking people to imitating a professional fighter, he is definitely a one of a kind player, and I am certainly glad that he is on our team. He is not afraid to fight either, but he has calmed down with that in the last couple of seasons.
David Pastrnak, aka “Pasta,” is the B’s number one goal scorer, and it was hurtful to the team when he had to sit out during some of the games during this year’s playoffs. I can’t say any more about how great he is; take a look at this clip of his infamous Dunkin’s commercial! And I cannot forget to mention that he is a classy dresser!
AND FINALLY!!! Patrice BERRRGGERON like it is announced at TD Garden. Bergeron is a team leader. If Chara retires, Bergeron would be the next captain even though that is my opinion, I’ve read otherwise that people think differently, but he shows his leadership on the ice and is always ready to set someone up for a shot at the goal.
I end with this picture of Bergy and me; the last thing I asked him before we left was to promise that he’d always be a Bruins, and he said he would!
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