Question for Boston Bruins fans:
Does new GM Don Sweeney deserve a honeymoon period where we lay off the major criticism for a while?
For me? No. He doesn’t. In fact, I already have him on the hot seat. Doug Hamilton, gone and not replaced. Not even close. Milan Lucic, gone and not quite replaced. We’ve got some new forwards to try and fill his skates, but does anyone really believe we won’t look at that trade and wonder what could have been? And what did we get in return? Three first round picks (yay!), none of whom passed the conditioning test on the opening day of training camp (boo!). Also, Zac Rinaldo… because what the team that can’t score or play defense really needs is a goon.
Remember the start of the baseball season when Red Sox Manager John Farrell tried to tell us that the Sox had five aces when everyone with even the smallest brain could see that we actually had five fifth starters? Was I the only one who kept thinking of that statement as I watched the Bruins roll out six sixth defensemen last night? When Torey Krug is getting 20+ minutes of ice time, something is seriously wrong. Now I know we’ve lost two legitimate top pairing guys to injuries, but the depth is clearly terrible. Isn’t it then the GM’s job to build up that depth and replace the missing pieces? How did Sweeney react to the Siedenberg and Chara injuries? Well, he didn’t. He failed to supply a roster that could compete in an NHL game.
I suspect we’re going to see a lot of games like last night’s over the course of this season. Even after Chara and Siedenberg (I’m spelling that wrong, aren’t I) come back. I suspect Tuukka Rask is going to set a new league record for most shots against in a season. Is he good enough to be the only line of defense on the ice? Not nearly. No one is.
I know last night was only game #1 of the Sweeney regime, but given the performance so far, I can’t imagine his job isn’t in jeopardy already.
Inside the Red Head's Head 