With a 4-2 win against the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday, the Boston Bruins won their sixth game in a row, giving them 10 wins in their last 11 games and improving their record to a shocking 38-5-4.
Take a second to soak this in: if the Bruins maintain this pace, they’d author arguably the greatest regular season in NHL history.
With 80 points in 47 games played, the 2022-23 Bruins are the fastest team ever to reach that mark and currently boast a points percentage of .851. That puts Boston on pace for 66 wins and 140 points, which would break the wins record (62) held by the 1995-96 Detroit Red Wings and 2018-19 Tampa Bay Lightning, and the points record (132) held by the 1976-77 Montreal Canadiens, who accomplished the feat in 80 games.
Only the 1976-77 (.825) and 1977-78 (.806) Canadiens maintained points percentages above 80 for a full season. Crucially, those teams were iterations of a dynastic Habs run where they won four straight Stanley Cups and 10 of 15 championships from 1965 to 1979.
This provides context in two directions. First, the Bruins are also flirting with putting together the greatest regular-season run we’ve ever seen, barring some nitpicking about ties versus “loser points.” Second, and most crucially, they’ll find themselves in a different place in history if they win or lose a Stanley Cup.
Here’s a breakdown of where this Bruins team stands and the hurdles they must clear to rub elbows with the greats by actually winning it all.
Why the 2022-23 Bruins are so dominant
Here is where the Bruins rank in several key categories league wide:
GF/GP: T1 (3.81)
GA/GP: 1 (2.02)
PP%: 2 (27.2)
PK%: 1 (86.8)
When it comes to what makes this Bruins team special, some factors are familiar. David Pastrnak ranks far ahead of other Bruins in scoring — second overall in goals (40) and third overall in points (69) — but Boston is enjoying tremendous two-way play from the usual suspects, including Brad Marchand (45 points), returning familiar face David Krejci (39) and Patrice Bergeron (38). In recent years, opponents have learned to fear Boston’s potent power play and that’s carried over to this season, while their penalty kill is as good as ever.
That said, there are certainly some key differences that set this team apart. A few highlights include:
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A coaching change, and maybe an upgrade?: You can debate the upgrade…