The Bruins are one of the "Original Six" NHL teams, along with the Detroit Red Wings, Chicago Blackhawks, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, and Toronto Maple Leafs. They have won six Stanley Cup championships, tied for fourth-most of any team with the Blackhawks (trailing the Canadiens, Maple Leafs, and Red Wings, with 24, 13, and 11, respectively), and tied for second-most for an NHL team based in the United States. The Bruins have also won the Presidents' Trophy four times with their most recent win in 2022–23 featuring the Bruins with 135 points—the most in one season in NHL history.
The first facility to host the Bruins was the Boston Arena (now known as Matthews Arena), the world's oldest (built 1909–10) indoor ice hockey facility still in use for the sport at any level of competition.[3][4] Following the Bruins' departure from the Boston Arena, the team played its home games at the Boston Garden for 67 seasons, beginning in 1928 and concluding in 1995, when they moved to the TD Garden.
In 1924, the NHL made the decision to expand to the United States.[5] The previous year in 1923, sports promoter Thomas Duggan received options on three NHL franchises for the United States, and sold one to Boston grocery magnate Charles Adams.[6] The team was one of the NHL's first expansion teams, and the first NHL team to be based in the United States. Adams' first act as owner was to hire Art Ross, a former star player and innovator, as general manager.[7]
Ross came up with "Bruins" for a team nickname, a name for brown bears used in classic folk tales. The team's nickname also went along with the team's original uniform colors of brown and yellow, which came from Adams' grocery chain, First National Stores.[7][8]
On December 1, 1924, the Bruins won the first ever NHL game played in the United States, hosting the Montreal Maroons at Boston Arena, with Smokey Harris scoring the first-ever Bruins goal,[9] spurring the Bruins to a 2–1 win.[10] This would be one of the few high points of the season, as the Bruins lost their next 11 games and only managed a 6–24–0 record, finishing in last place in its first season.[11] The Bruins played three more seasons at the Arena, after which they became the main tenant of Boston Garden.[12]
The Bruins improved in their second season to a winning 17–15–4 record, which originally held the record for the biggest single-season improvement in NHL history, and is now third.[13] However, they missed out on the third and final playoff berth by one point to the expansion Pittsburgh Pirates.[14]
In their third season, Ross took advantage of the collapse of the Western Hockey League (WHL) to purchase several western stars, including the team's first great star, defensemanEddie Shore. With the Bruins, he would go on to become one of the greatest players in NHL history.[15] Boston qualified for the then-expanded playoffs by a comfortable margin. In their first-ever playoff run, the Bruins reached the Stanley Cup Finals where they lost to the Ottawa Senators in the first Stanley Cup Finals between exclusively NHL teams.[16] The Stanley Cup-winning game for the Senators would see Bruins' Billy Coutu attack the referee, earning him a ban from the NHL for life, the only in league history.[17]
The season after that, 1929–30, the Bruins posted the best-ever regular season winning percentage in the NHL (.875, a record which still stands) because of a 38–5–1 record,[19] and shattered numerous scoring records, but lost to the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Finals.
The 1930s Bruins teams included Shore, Thompson, Clapper, Babe Siebert and Cooney Weiland. The team led the league five times in the decade.[11] In 1939, the team captured its second Stanley Cup. That year, Thompson was traded for rookie goaltender Frank Brimsek. Brimsek had an award-winning season, capturing the Vezina and Calder Trophies,[20] becoming the first rookie named to the NHL first All-Star team, and earning the nickname "Mr. Zero".[21] The team skating in front of Brimsek included Bill Cowley, Shore, Clapper and "Sudden Death" Mel Hill (who scored three overtime goals in one playoff series), together with the "Kraut line" of centerMilt Schmidt, right wingerBobby Bauer and left winger Woody Dumart.
In the 1939–40 season, Shore was traded to the struggling New York Americans for his final NHL season. In 1941, the Bruins won their third Stanley Cup after losing only eight games and finishing first in the regular season.[11] It was their last Stanley Cup for 29 years. World War II affected the Bruins more than most teams; Brimsek and the "Krauts" all enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force following the 1941 Cup win, and lost the most productive years of their careers at war.[22] Cowley, assisted by veteran player Clapper and Busher Jackson, became the team's remaining star.
Original Six era (1942–1967)
The NHL had by 1942 been reduced, for the next 25 years, to the six teams that would come to be called the "Original Six".
In 1944, Bruins' Herb Cain set the then-NHL record for points in a season with 82.[23] However, the Bruins did not make the playoffs that season.
The stars returned from World War II for the 1945–46 season, and Clapper led the team back to the Stanley Cup Finals as player-coach. He retired as a player after the next season, becoming the first player to play twenty NHL seasons. Brimsek proved to be not as good as he was before the war, and after 1946 the Bruins lost in the first playoff round three consecutive years. After Brimsek was traded to the Blackhawks, the only remaining quality young player was forward Johnny Peirson.
During the 1948–49 season, the original form of the "spoked-B" logo, with a small number "24" to the left of the capital B signifying the calendar year in the 20th century in which the Bruins team first played, and a similarly small "49" to the right of the "B",[24] appeared on their home uniforms. The following season, the logo was modified into the basic "spoked-B" form that was to be used thereafter.
The 1950s began with Charles Adams' son Weston facing financial trouble. He was forced to accept a buyout offer from Walter A. Brown, the owner of the Boston Celtics and the Garden, in 1951.[25] Although there were some instances of success (such as making the Stanley Cup Finals in 1953, 1957, and 1958, only to lose to the Montreal Canadiens each time), the Bruins mustered only four winning seasons between 1947 and 1967. They missed the playoffs eight consecutive years (1960 to 1967).
On January 18, 1958, the first-ever black NHL player, Willie O'Ree, stepped onto the ice for the Bruins. He played in 45 games for the Bruins over the 1957–58 and 1960–61 seasons. The "Uke Line"—named for the Ukrainian heritage of Johnny Bucyk, Vic Stasiuk, and Bronco Horvath – came to Boston in 1957 and enjoyed four productive offensive seasons, heralding, along with scoring stalwarts Don McKenney and Fleming MacKell, the successful era of the late 1950s. There followed a long and difficult reconstruction period in the early to mid-1960s.
Expansion and the Big Bad Bruins (1967–1979)
Weston Adams repurchased the Bruins in 1964 after Brown's death. Adams signed future superstar defenseman Bobby Orr, who entered the league in 1966. Orr was that season's winner of the Calder Memorial Trophy for Rookie of the Year and named to the second NHL All-Star Team. Despite Orr's stellar rookie season, the Bruins would miss the playoffs.
The next season, Boston made the playoffs for the first of 29 consecutive seasons, an all-time record. The Bruins then obtained forwards Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield from Chicago in a deal celebrated as one of the most one-sided in hockey history. Hodge and Stanfield became key elements of the Bruins' success, and Esposito, who centered a line with Hodge and Wayne Cashman, became the league's top goal scorer and the first NHL player to break the 100-point mark, setting many goal- and point-scoring records. With other stars like forwards Bucyk, John McKenzie, Derek Sanderson, and Hodge, defenders like Dallas Smith and goaltender Gerry Cheevers, the "Big Bad Bruins" became one of the league's top teams from the late 1960s into the 1980s.
In 1970, a 29-year Stanley Cup drought came to an end in Boston, as the Bruins defeated the St. Louis Blues in four games in the 1970 Stanley Cup Finals. Orr scored the game-winning goal in overtime to clinch the Stanley Cup. The same season was Orr's most awarded—the third of eight consecutive years he won the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the top defenseman in the NHL—and he won the Art Ross Trophy, the Conn Smythe Trophy and the Hart Memorial Trophy, the only player to ever win four major awards in the same season.
While Sinden temporarily retired from ice hockey before the 1970–71 season to enter business (he was replaced by ex-Bruins and Canadiens defenseman Tom Johnson), the Bruins set dozens of offensive scoring records: they had seven of the league's top ten scorers—a feat not achieved before or since—set the record for wins in a season, and in a league that had never seen a 100-point scorer before the 1968–69 season, the Bruins had four that year. All four (Orr, Esposito, Bucyk and Hodge) were named First Team All-Stars. Boston were favored to repeat as Cup champions but lost to the Canadiens (and rookie goaltender Ken Dryden) in seven games.
While the Bruins were not quite as dominant the next season, Esposito and Orr were once again one-two in the scoring standings and Boston regained the Stanley Cup by defeating the New York Rangers in six games in the 1972 Stanley Cup Finals.
Terry O'Reilly was drafted by the Bruins 14th overall in the 1971 draft. He played his entire career with the Bruins from 1971 to 1985.
Don Cherry stepped behind the bench as the new coach in 1974–75. The Bruins stocked themselves with enforcers and grinders, and remained competitive under Cherry's reign, the so-called "Lunch Pail A.C"., behind players such as Gregg Sheppard, Terry O'Reilly, Stan Jonathan and Peter McNab. This would also turn out to be Orr's final full season in the league, before his knee injuries worsened, as well as the last time Orr and Esposito would finish 1–2 in regular season scoring. The Bruins placed second in the Adams Division, and lost to the Chicago Black Hawks in the first round of the 1975 playoffs, losing a best-of-three series, two games to one.
Continuing with Sinden's rebuilding of the team, the Bruins traded Esposito and Carol Vadnais for Brad Park, Jean Ratelle and Joe Zanussi to the Rangers. The Bruins made the semifinals again, losing to the Flyers, before losing Orr as a free agent to Chicago in the off-season.
Cheevers returned in 1977, and the Bruins got past the Flyers in the semifinals, but were swept by the Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Finals. The story repeated itself in 1978—with a balanced attack that saw Boston have 11 players with 20+ goal seasons, still the NHL record—as the Bruins made the Cup Finals once more, but lost in six games to Montreal. After that series, John Bucyk retired, holding virtually every Bruins' career longevity and scoring mark to that time.
The 1979 semifinals series against the Canadiens proved to be Cherry's undoing. In the deciding seventh game, the Bruins, up by a goal, were called for having too many men on the ice in the late stages of the third period. Montreal tied the game on the ensuing power play and won in overtime. Cherry was dismissed as head coach thereafter.
Ray Bourque era (1979–2000)
The 1979–80 season saw a new head coach Fred Creighton, and also included a trade of goaltender Ron Grahame to the Los Angeles Kings for a first-round pick which was used to select Ray Bourque, one of the greatest defensemen of all-time and the face of the Bruins for over two decades.[27] The Bruins made the playoffs every year through the 1980s behind stars such as Park, Bourque and Rick Middleton, and had the league's best record in 1982–83 behind a Vezina Trophy-winning season from ex-Flyers goaltender Pete Peeters, with 110 points, but fell short of making the Stanley Cup Finals.
Ray Bourque, shown in 1981 and before switching to his familiar No. 77, led the Bruins to two Stanley Cup Finals appearances in 1988 and 1990.
In the 1987–88 NHL season, the Bruins defeated their Original Six nemesis Montreal Canadiens in the playoffs. In 1991 and 1992, the Bruins suffered two consecutive conference finals losses to the eventual Cup champion, the Pittsburgh Penguins. Starting from the 1992–93 NHL season onwards, the Bruins had not gotten past the second round of the playoffs until winning the Stanley Cup after the 2011 season.
The 1992–93 season ended disappointingly. Despite finishing with the second-best regular season record after Pittsburgh, Boston was swept in the first round by the Buffalo Sabres. Bourque made the NHL All-Star First Team.
The 1995 season was the Bruins' last at the Boston Garden. The final official match played in the Garden was a 3–0 loss to the New Jersey Devils in the 1995 playoffs; the Bruins went on to play the final game at the old arena on September 28, 1995, in an exhibition matchup against the Canadiens. They subsequently moved into the FleetCenter, now known as the TD Garden. In the 1996 playoffs, the Bruins lost their first-round series to the Florida Panthers in five games.
In 1997, Boston missed the playoffs for the first time in 30 years (and for the first time in the expansion era), having set the North American major professional record for most consecutive seasons in the playoffs. The Bruins lost in the first round of the 1998 playoffs to the Washington Capitals in six games. In 1999, the Bruins defeated the Carolina Hurricanes in six games during the first round of the playoffs. Nevertheless, they would lose to the Sabres in six games in the second round of the playoffs.
The new millennium (2000–2015)
In the 1999–2000 season, the Bruins finished in last place in the Northeast Division and failed to qualify for the playoffs. During a game between the Bruins and the Vancouver Canucks on February 21, 2000, Marty McSorley was ejected for using his stick to hit Canucks forward Donald Brashear in the head, and subsequently suspended for what resulted in the rest of his career.
After a mediocre start, the Bruins fired coach Pat Burns in favor of Mike Keenan. Despite a 15-point improvement, the Bruins missed the playoffs in 2000–01, and Keenan was let go. Center Jason Allison led the Bruins in scoring. The following season, 2001–02, the Bruins won their first Northeast Division title since 1993 with a core built around Joe Thornton, Sergei Samsonov, Brian Rolston, Bill Guerin, Mike Knuble and Glen Murray. They lost in six games to the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs.
The 2002–03 season found the Bruins finishing seventh in the East, but lost to the eventual Stanley Cup champion New Jersey Devils in five games. In 2003–04, the Bruins won another division title and appeared to get past the first round for the first time in five years with a 3–1 series lead on the rival Canadiens. However, the Canadiens rallied back to win three consecutive games, upsetting the Bruins.
The Bruins acquired Zdeno Chara on July 1, 2006, naming him the new team captain.
The 2004–05 NHL season was wiped out by a lockout, and Bruins management eschewed younger free agents in favor of older veterans. The Bruins fired general manager Mike O'Connell in March and the Bruins missed the playoffs for the first time in five years.
Peter Chiarelli was hired as the new general manager of the team. Head coach Mike Sullivan was fired and Dave Lewis, former coach of the Detroit Red Wings, was hired to replace him. The Bruins signed star defenseman Zdeno Chara, and center Marc Savard. The 2006–07 season ended in the team finishing in last place in the division.
After a slow start to the 2008–09 season, the Bruins went on to have the best record in the Eastern Conference and qualified for the playoffs for the fifth time in nine years, facing the Canadiens in the playoffs for the fourth time during that span, defeating them in four games before losing in seven games to the Carolina Hurricanes in the conference semifinals.
On January 1, 2010, the Bruins won the 2010 Winter Classic over the Philadelphia Flyers in a 2–1 overtime decision at Fenway Park, thus becoming the first home team to win an outdoor classic game. They finished in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, and a 2010 NHL playoff opening round appearance against the Buffalo Sabres, which they won 4–2. Boston became only the third team in NHL history to lose a playoff series after leading 3–0 when they lost in game 7 to the Philadelphia Flyers.
In the 2011 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Bruins eliminated the Montreal Canadiens in seven games. On May 6, the Bruins swept the Philadelphia Flyers in four games to advance to the conference finals for the first time since 1992. Boston then defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in seven games and advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1990 to face the Vancouver Canucks, defeating them in seven games for the team's first Stanley Cup since 1972. The 2010–11 Bruins were the first team in NHL history to win a game 7 three times in the same playoff run.
Following their Stanley Cup win, the Bruins lost Mark Recchi to retirement and Michael Ryder and Tomas Kaberle to free agency. The Bruins went on to finish second in the Eastern Conference with 102 points, winning the Northeast Division title, but losing to the Washington Capitals in the first round of the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs in seven games.
During the off-season preceding the lockout, Tim Thomas made his decision to sit out the 2012–13 season; his rights were traded to the New York Islanders. The Bruins battled the Montreal Canadiens for leadership in the Northeast Division all season, before a loss to the Ottawa Senators in a make-up game following the Boston Marathon bombing on April 28 gave the Canadiens the division title.
The Bruins were the 2013 Eastern Conference champions, their second Conference title in three years.
In the opening round of the 2013 playoffs, the Bruins took on the Toronto Maple Leafs, defeating them in seven games. They went on to beat the New York Rangers in five games and the Pittsburgh Penguins in a four-game sweep to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals and the Chicago Blackhawks, falling in six games, with three going into overtime.
In the 2013–14 season, the Bruins won the Presidents' Trophy after finishing first in the newly formed Atlantic Division with a record of 54–19–9 for 117 points. Their regular season success, however, would not translate into another conference finals appearance. Despite winning their first-round series against the Detroit Red Wings, the team fell to the Canadiens in seven games in the Eastern Conference semifinals during the 2014 playoffs.
In the 2014–15 season, the Bruins finished with a record of 41–27–14 for 96 points, missing out on the playoffs by just two points after the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Ottawa Senators clinched the final two playoff spots in the East. The Bruins therefore became only the third team to miss the playoffs after winning the Presidents' Trophy in the previous season. The 96 points they earned that season broke the record for the most points earned by a team that did not make the playoffs.
Don Sweeney era (2015–present)
On April 15, 2015, Peter Chiarelli was fired by the Boston Bruins. On May 20, the Bruins named former player Don Sweeney as the team's new general manager for the 2015–16 season. One recent all-time franchise achievement the Bruins attained in the 2015–16 season is shared by only their greatest rival, the Canadiens – a total of 3,000 wins in the team's existence, achieved by the Bruins on January 8, 2016, in a 4–1 road victory against the New Jersey Devils.[30] The team was seen as a playoff contender throughout the regular season. However, a sub-.500 record on home ice and frequent road losses in the final two months of the regular season resulted in a three-way battle for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Bruins had a chance to clinch the final playoff berth with a win over the Ottawa Senators on the second-to-last day of the season, but they lost the game and that combined with a Flyers' win over the Penguins, knocked them out of playoff contention in favor of the Flyers. For the first time since the two seasons following the 2004–05 lockout, the Bruins did not qualify for the playoffs in two consecutive seasons.
Charlie McAvoy and other players warming up prior to a game in the 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs. The Bruins qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 2014.
During the last two months of the 2016–17 regular season, the Bruins fired head coach Claude Julien and promoted Bruce Cassidy to interim coach. Cassidy's very slight changes in coaching to emphasize the players' speed and hockey skills,[31] as opposed to Julien's, resulted in the Bruins achieving an 18–8–1 record through their remaining regular season games, finishing third in the Atlantic Division and qualifying for the playoffs for the first time since the 2013–14 season. In the first round of the playoffs, the Bruins lost to the Ottawa Senators in six games.
Cassidy returned as head coach for the 2017–18 season, leading the Bruins to the playoffs a consecutive season. They had a record of 50–20–12, including an 18-game point streak, which lasted from December 14, 2017, to January 25, 2018.[32] They finished one point behind the Tampa Bay Lightning for the top spot in the Atlantic Division. They defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round, 4–3, but ultimately lost to the Lightning in round two, 4–1. The season saw young players perform well, including Jake DeBrusk, Danton Heinen, Ryan Donato, and Charlie McAvoy. The Bruins also acquired veterans Rick Nash, Nick Holden, Brian Gionta, and Tommy Wingels through trades or through free-agent signings.
During the 2018–19 season the Bruins finished the regular season in second place in the division with a 49–24–9 overall record. During the trade deadline, the team acquired Charlie Coyle and Marcus Johansson. In the first round of the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs, as in the previous season, they faced the Maple Leafs, defeating them in seven games. In a six-game series, the Bruins defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets in the second round and advanced to the conference finals for the first time since 2013. The Bruins won the conference finals by sweeping out the Carolina Hurricanes in four games, thus winning the Prince of Wales Trophy and advancing to the 2019 Stanley Cup Finals for the third time in 10 years.[33] They faced the St. Louis Blues in a rematch of the 1970 Stanley Cup Finals. This time, however, the Blues would emerge victorious, winning in seven games.[34]
During the 2019–20 season, the Bruins consistently had the best record in the Atlantic Division and were near the top of the league. During the trade deadline, they acquired Ondrej Kase and Nick Ritchie, both from the Anaheim Ducks, in two separate trades.[35] On March 12, 2020, the NHL season was paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[36] At the time of the pause, the Bruins were first overall in the league, with 100 points. On May 26, Commissioner Gary Bettman announced that the 2019–20 regular season was completed and that the league would resume with the playoffs.[37] The Bruins were awarded the Presidents' Trophy for the second time in a decade, while David Pastrnak's 48 goals made him the first Bruin to win the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy, which he shared with Alexander Ovechkin.[38][39] During the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Bruins won the first round against the Carolina Hurricanes in five games, but lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the second round, also in five games. In the 2020–21 season, the Bruins made the 2021 playoffs, where they defeated the Washington Capitals in five games but lost to the New York Islanders in six games. In the next season, the Bruins clinched the 2022 playoffs as the first wild card team but were defeated by the Hurricanes in seven games. Following the season, head coach Cassidy was fired. They then hired Jim Montgomery, previously the head coach of the Dallas Stars, as their next head coach on July 3, 2022.
During the 2022–23 season, the Bruins broke NHL records and led the Atlantic Division for the entire season. First, they set an NHL record for longest home winning streak from the start of a season (14) from October 15 to December 3.[40][41] Then on March 2, 2023, the Bruins recorded their 100th standings point of the season in their 61st game, becoming the fastest team to 100 points in NHL history, and surpassing the record previously held by the 1976–77 Montreal Canadiens.[42][43][44] Nine days later, they set an all-time NHL record as the fastest team to achieve 50 wins, hitting the mark in 64 games compared to a previous record of 66 games held jointly by the 1995–96 Detroit Red Wings and 2018–19 Tampa Bay Lightning.[45] In that same game, the Bruins became the third-fastest team in history to clinch a playoff spot during the era of 82-game seasons, trailing only the 1995–96 Detroit Red Wings (59 games) and the 1998–99 Dallas Stars (63 games).[46] On April 9, 2023, the Bruins set the new all-time record for most games won in a season (63), when they defeated the Philadelphia Flyers. Two days later, the Bruins set the new all-time single-season points record (133), when they defeated the Washington Capitals, and they finished the season with 65 wins and 135 points.[47][48][49] The Bruins lost to the Florida Panthers in seven games in the opening round of the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs after giving up a 3–1 series lead.
In the 2023–24 season, the Bruins finished in second place in the Atlantic Division with 109 points. In the first round of the 2024 playoffs, the Bruins eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games, and in the second round, they were eliminated by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers again, this time in six games.
Team information
Logo and uniforms
Since 1948, the Bruins' logo is an eight-spoked, black and gold wheel with the letter "B" in the center, a nod to Boston's nickname of "The Hub".[50] The logo has been tweaked numerous times over the course of its history, reaching its current form in 2007. The general design, in use since 1949, features the circle and "B" in black with gold spokes; black borders and a gold outer circle were added in 1995 and serifs on the "B" were added in 2007. The block "B" logo itself preceded the "Spoked B" and is currently the logo used in their third jersey.[51][52]
The Bruins have also used an alternate logo featuring a walking bear surrounded by the full team name. The logo was first used from 1924 to 1932, and a modernized version was adopted as the team's secondary logo in 2007.[51]
The Bruins' colors were originally brown and gold. They wore brown uniforms in their maiden season, but switched to a white uniform with alternating brown and gold stripes the next season. The uniforms were paired with beige pants and either gold or white socks. After the 1932 season the walking bear logo was replaced with a simple block "B" logo.[51][53]
Starting with the 1935–36 season, the Bruins replaced brown with black, while also sporting gold socks full-time. The "B" logo moved to the sleeves while the uniform number occupied the front. Black pants also replaced the beige pants.[53][54]
For a majority of the 1940s, the Bruins sported gold numbers on the white uniform. From 1940 to 1944 they also wore a gold uniform with a script "Bruins" wordmark in front. To commemorate their 25th anniversary, the Bruins released a new white uniform featuring the first iteration of the "Spoked B" logo. The gold "B" on the logo was crudely drawn inside a black-spoked wheel, with "24" and "49" added to represent the foundation year and the franchise's 25th year respectively. They also debuted a black uniform with the block "B" logo in front.[51][53]
Beginning in 1949, the "B" on the "Spoked B" logo was changed to block lettering. They also brought back the black numbers. With a few cosmetic changes in the stripes and yoke along with the addition of the primitive bear head logo in 1977, the Bruins kept this overall design until 1995.[51][53]
In 1955, the Bruins brought the "Spoked B" logo over to the black uniform; they also released a gold jersey with the "Spoked B" in front. The black uniform crest would feature an inverse version of the "Spoked B", with the gold and black elements reversed, while the gold uniform featured the same logo but in a black circle. During this period, the gold jersey was used as the primary dark uniform while relegating the black uniform (updated with white numbers) into alternate status for several seasons. Also, for a few games between 1958 and 1965, the Bruins wore gold pants.[51][53]
In 1967, the Bruins retired the gold uniforms and reinstated the black uniforms with gold numbers. As with the white uniforms, they endured several cosmetic changes until 1995. The gold socks, which had numerous striping modifications since 1934, was briefly retired in favor of wearing white socks full-time. It was brought back for the 1969–70 season and would be paired with the regular black uniforms for the next 47 seasons.[51][53]
Starting with the 1995–96 season, the Bruins released a new uniform set, featuring the updated "Spoked B" logo. The primary uniforms featured a thick contrasting stripe that extended from sleeve to sleeve. In addition, a gold third jersey was released, featuring the infamous "Pooh Bear" logo (an homage to Winnie the Pooh). The gold thirds were used until 2006, after which the Bruins wore throwback black uniforms based on the 1970s design.[51][53]
Moving to the Reebok Edge template in 2007, the Bruins unveiled new uniforms with the current "Spoked B" logo. The overall design borrowed a few elements from the 1970s uniforms, and also unveiled a new rendition of the original walking bear logo on the shoulders. The following season, they released new black third jerseys with the aforementioned bear logo in front and the "Spoked B" logo on the shoulders.[51][53]
For the 2010 Winter Classic, the Bruins wore a brown and gold variation of the 1948–49 design. Then for the 2016 Winter Classic, the Bruins wore a black and gold variation of the original brown uniforms, a design they carried over the following season as an alternate.[51]
The Bruins kept much of the same design upon moving to Adidas' AdiZero template in 2017. However, the black uniforms were now paired with black socks, a feature previously reserved on the alternate black uniforms.[55][53]
For the 2019 Winter Classic, the Bruins wore white uniforms with brown and gold stripes and the "B" logo in front, paying homage to the mid-1930s uniforms.[56] The simple "B" logo also adorned their new black alternate uniform, which was unveiled in the 2019–20 season and paid homage to the team's 1950s uniforms.[52]
Prior to the 2020–21 season, Adidas released its "Reverse Retro" series of alternate uniforms, which were alternate color renditions of throwback uniform designs. The Bruins' version was taken from the team's 1977 to 1995 design, but with a gold base and black accents.[57] A second "Reverse Retro" uniform was released in the 2022–23 season, this time featuring a white version of the 1995–2006 "Pooh Bear" alternates.[58]
Boston's 2023 Winter Classic uniform mixed various styles from the team's uniform history. The black-based uniform featured gold stripes and vintage white letters. The "BOSTON" wordmark was inspired by the 1949 "Spoked B" logo, and the original bear head logo from 1977 to 1995 was positioned below.[59]
For the 2023–24 centennial season, the Bruins unveiled a new set of uniforms, along with a commemorative logo featuring the modern "Spoked B" logo minus the gold outer circle and black borders on the spokes and "B", closely resembling the original design worn from 1949 to 1995. The white uniform would feature the aforementioned logo, while the black uniform would feature an inverted version, with the "B" and circle in gold with black spokes. The gold used on the primary uniforms is a paler shade called "Centennial gold" rather than the traditional yellow gold; the yellow gold version remained in use for promotional purposes. In addition, the three gold stripes on each sleeve represented the six Stanley Cups the team has won, which are accented with thin black and thick white stripes. White numbers returned to the black uniform for the first time since the early 1960s and names featured no additional trim. An alternate beige uniform was also released. This design featured a modern take on the first "Spoked B" logo worn during the 1948–49 25th anniversary season, modified to include the foundation year "1924" along the horizontal spoke. The uniform heavily borrowed elements from the 1967–1974 uniforms which featured a gold yoke, but with brown and white trim. The brown-accented alternates were worn in all home games against Original Six teams, and a road game each at the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Montreal Canadiens.[60]
In a December 1, 2024, game against the Montreal Canadiens, the Bruins wore a commemorative uniform to honor the 100th anniversary of the franchise's first-ever game. The design featured the modernized version of the 1949–1995 "spoked B" logo worn during the centennial 2023–24 season but in the current yellow gold shade, and an inverted color version of the centennial "walking bear" patch along the right chest. The uniform was heavily based on the 1981–1995 uniforms, albeit with black tips on the gold socks. The collar featured the score of the team's first-ever game against the Montreal Maroons.[61]
Ownership
The team founder Charles Adams owned the team until 1936, at which point he transferred his stock to son Weston Adams, general manager and minority owner Art Ross and minority owner Ralph Burkard.[62] Weston Adams remained majority owner until 1951, when the Boston Garden-Arena Corporation purchased controlling interest in the team.[63] Under the Garden-Arena Corporation's management, Boston Celtics founder Walter A. Brown ran the team from 1951 until his death in 1964. After Brown's death, Weston Adams returned to the role of team president. In 1969, he was succeeded by his son, Weston Adams, Jr.[64]
On December 7, 1973, Storer Broadcasting, owner of WSBK-TV, and the Garden-Arena Corporation agreed to a merger which resulted in Storer acquiring a 100% interest in the Bruins. Adams remained as team president.[65] In August 1975, Storer Broadcasting then sold the team to an ownership group headed by Jeremy Jacobs. Jacobs had to promise to keep Bobby Orr as a condition of the purchase.[66] The Bruins and Orr reached a verbal agreement with Jacobs during the summer of 1975, including a controversial agreement for Orr to take an 18.5% share of the Bruins after his playing days were over. The agreement was to be checked out as to whether it would be legal for tax reasons and whether or not the league would approve it. However, Orr's agent, the later-notorious Alan Eagleson, rejected the deal.[67]
Jacobs represents the club on the NHL's board of governors, and serves on its executive committee, and he has chaired the finance committee. At the NHL board of governors meeting in June 2007, Jacobs was elected chairman of the board, replacing the Calgary Flames' Harley Hotchkiss, who stepped down after 12 years in the position. Jacobs has frequently been listed by the Sports Business Journal[68] as one of the most influential people in sports in its annual poll[69] and by The Hockey News.[70] His company owns TD Garden and he is partners with John Henry, owner of Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox, in the New England Sports Network (NESN).
After taking over as owner in 1975, the Bruins have been competitive (making the playoffs for 29 consecutive seasons from 1967–68 to 1995–96, 20 of which were with Jacobs as owner) but have won the Stanley Cup only once, in 2011 and only in his 36th year as owner. Under previous ownerships, the Bruins had won the Stanley Cup five times. Under Jacobs, the Bruins have reached the Stanley Cup Finals seven times (twice against the Bruins' arch-rival Montreal Canadiens in 1977 and 1978, twice against the Edmonton Oilers in 1988 and 1990, finally winning in 2011 against the Vancouver Canucks, and losing in 2013 and 2019 to the Chicago Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues). Jacobs' management of the team in the past earned him spots on ESPN.com's "Page 2" polls of "The Worst Owners in Sports",[71] and number 7 on their 2005 "Greediest Owners in sports" list.[72]Sports Illustrated has suggested longtime star defenseman Ray Bourque, who "often drawn the ire of the NHLPA for his willingness to re-sign with Boston with minimal negotiations over the years" instead of setting the "watermark for defenseman salaries", requested and received a trade in 2000 since the team's "hardline and spendthrift ways" meant he would have to make the move to get his elusive Stanley Cup (Bourque holds the record for most games played before winning the Cup).[73] Prior to the NHL Collective Bargaining Agreement signed in 2005, fans felt team management was not willing to spend to win the Stanley Cup.[74]
Since 2005, Jacobs' public image has improved as he invested in the team and rebuilding the front office to make the team more competitive. The Bruins were the second highest-ranked team in the NHL in the 2008–09 season and were the top-seeded team in the East. With a complete change in management, including now-former general manager Peter Chiarelli – who lost his position with the Bruins on April 15, 2015, with the May 20 hiring of Don Sweeney – long-time assistant general manager with the team. Sweeney and team president Cam Neely had continued working with the longest-term Bruins head coach ever, Claude Julien until his firing on February 7, 2017,[75] with Bruce Cassidy being hired as interim head coach with Julien's firing – Cassidy would become the permanent head coach of the Bruins as of April 26, 2017.[76] Neely has continued as team president since the Bruins' most recent Stanley Cup victory in 2011.
The current administrators in the Bruins front office are:
Blades the Bruin serves as the official mascot for the Boston Bruins.
Blades the Bruin is an anthropomorphic bear serves as the Bruins' team mascot. In January and February, Blades travels around the greater Boston area to raise money for the Bruins Foundation.[79] For a sizable amount of the team's more recent TV and online ads, a different anthropomorphic ursine character simply known as "The Bear" appears in official Bruins video advertising.[80]
Team songs
When Boston television station WSBK-TV began broadcasting Bruins games in 1967, The Ventures' instrumental rock version of the Nutcracker's overture, known as "Nutty", was selected as the opening piece of music for Bruins telecasts.[81] The song "Nutty" has been identified with the Bruins ever since.
On ice, "Paree", a 1920s hit tune written by Leo Robin and Jose Padilla, has been played as an organ instrumental for decades, typically as the players entered the arena just before the start of each period and, for many years, after each Bruins' goal. It was introduced by John Kiley, the organist for the Bruins from the 1950s through the 1980s.[82] In 1998, the John Kiley rendition of "Paree" was dropped as a goal song; "Kernkraft 400 (Sport Chant Stadium Remix)" by Zombie Nation is the current one.
Season-by-season record
This is a partial list of the last five seasons completed by the Bruins. For the full season-by-season history, see List of Boston Bruins seasons
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
There is evidence from contemporary newspaper accounts and photographs that Bruins manager Art Ross appointed captains on an annual basis in the 1930s and 1940s, and generally for a single season only.[86] These include Marty Barry in 1933–34,[87]Nels Stewart in 1934–35,[88]Eddie Shore in 1935–36,[89]Red Beattie in 1936–37, Bill Cowley in 1944–45[90][91] and Bobby Bauer in 1946–47.[92][93] These captaincies had not been acknowledged by the Bruins' organization for many years, which had declined comment on the question. On September 20, 2023, the team confirmed these captaincies, stating there have been 27 captains in franchise history.[94]
Following the team's failure to make the 2015 playoffs, Peter Chiarelli was fired as general manager on April 15, 2015, with Don Sweeney hired as Chiarelli's replacement on May 20, 2015.
The Bruins are the only Original Six team that have not retired the uniform number 1.
Hall of Famers
The Boston Bruins acknowledge an affiliation with 58 inductees to the Hockey Hall of Fame: 52 former players and 6 builders of the sport.[100] The six individuals recognized as builders by the Hall of Fame includes former Bruins executives, general managers, head coaches, and owners. In addition to players and builders, two broadcasters for the Bruins were also awarded the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award from the Hockey Hall of Fame.[101] In 1984, Fred Cusick, a play-by-play announcer, was awarded the Hall of Fame's inaugural Foster Hewitt Memorial Award. In 1987, Bob Wilson became the second Bruins' broadcaster to be awarded the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award.
These players rank in the top ten in franchise history for wins as of the end of the 2023−24 season. Figures are updated after each completed NHL season.[104]
* – current Bruins player
Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OT = Overtime losses; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average; * = current Bruins player
↑ Art Ross was the Bruins' first head coach and general manager. He was inducted in the players' category in 1945. Although Ross never played with the Bruins, and was not formally inducted in the builders category, the team continues to acknowledge an affiliation with the Hall of Famer.[100]
Raymond Jean Bourque is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He holds records for most career goals, assists, and points by a defenceman in the National Hockey League (NHL). He won the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the NHL's best defenceman five times, while finishing second for that trophy a further six times. He also twice finished second in the voting for the Hart Memorial Trophy, a rarity for a defenceman. He was named to the end-of-season All-Star teams 19 times, 13 on the first-team and six on the second-team.
Douglas Bradford Park is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. A defenceman, Park played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Rangers, Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings. Considered to be one of the best defencemen of his era, he was named to an All-Star team seven times. The most productive years of his career were overshadowed by superstar Bobby Orr, with whom he played with for a brief time. Unlike Orr's, however, his teams never hoisted the Stanley Cup. Park was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1988. In 2017, he was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.
John Paul "Chief" Bucyk is a Canadian former professional ice hockey left winger and member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Having played most of his career with the Boston Bruins, he has been associated in one capacity or another with the Bruins' organization since the late 1950s. Bucyk was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in 2017.
Francis Charles "Mr. Zero" Brimsek was an American professional ice hockey goaltender who played ten seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Boston Bruins and Chicago Black Hawks. He won the Calder Memorial Trophy as a rookie, and the Vezina Trophy twice, and he was named to the NHL All-Star team eight times. He was also a member of two Stanley Cup championships. At the time of his retirement in 1950, he held the records for most wins and shutouts recorded by an American goaltender; these records stood for 54 years and 61 years respectively. In 1966, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, the first American goalie to be inducted; and in 1973, he was part of the inaugural class of the United States Hockey Hall of Fame. In 1998, Brimsek was ranked number 67 on The Hockey News' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players, the highest ranked American goaltender.
Cecil Ralph "Tiny" Thompson was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. He played 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL), first for the Boston Bruins, and later for the Detroit Red Wings. A four-time Vezina Trophy winner, Thompson was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1959. He was a member of one Stanley Cup-winning team, as a rookie in the 1928–29 season with the Boston Bruins. At the start of the 1938–39 season, after ten full seasons with Boston, he was traded to the Detroit Red Wings, where he completed the season, and played another full one before retiring. During his NHL career, he recorded 81 shutouts, the sixth-highest of any goaltender. After retiring from playing, he coached lower-league teams before becoming a noted professional scout. Thompson helped popularize the technique of the "glove save" which was catching the puck with his hands as a method of making a save. A competent puckhandler, he was the first goaltender in the NHL to record an assist in 1936 by passing the puck with his stick to a fellow player.
The 1979–80 NHL season was the 63rd season of the National Hockey League. This season saw the addition of four teams from the disbanded World Hockey Association as expansion franchises. The Edmonton Oilers, Winnipeg Jets, New England Whalers, and Quebec Nordiques joined the NHL, bringing the total to 21 teams. The other two WHA teams were paid to fold.
The 1945–46 NHL season was the 29th season of the National Hockey League. The Montreal Canadiens won the Stanley Cup, defeating the Boston Bruins for the team's sixth championship.
The 1927–28 NHL season was the 11th season of the National Hockey League. Ten teams played 44 games each. This was the first full season that the Toronto club used the Toronto Maple Leafs name following ownership changes in February 1927. The New York Rangers won the Stanley Cup beating the Montreal Maroons, becoming the first NHL team based in the United States to win it.
The 1966–67 NHL season was the 50th season of the National Hockey League. This was the last season of only six teams in the NHL, as six more teams were added for the 1967–68 season. This season saw the debut of one of the greatest players in hockey history, defenceman Bobby Orr of the Boston Bruins. The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens four games to two in the 1967 Stanley Cup Finals to win their thirteenth Stanley Cup in franchise history; to date this is the Leafs' last Stanley Cup victory.
The 1935–36 NHL season was the 19th season of the National Hockey League (NHL). The St. Louis Eagles dropped out of the league, leaving eight teams. The Detroit Red Wings were the Stanley Cup winners as they beat the Toronto Maple Leafs three games to one in the Stanley Cup Finals.
The 1938–39 NHL season was the 22nd season of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Montreal Maroons suspended operations prior to the season. With seven teams left playing 48 games, the league reverted back to a one division format. The Boston Bruins were the Stanley Cup winners as they beat the Toronto Maple Leafs four games to one in the final series.
The 1969–70 NHL season was the 53rd season of the National Hockey League. For the third straight season, the St. Louis Blues reached the Stanley Cup Finals, and for the third straight year, the winners of the expansion West Division were swept four games to none. This time, however, it was at the hands of the Boston Bruins, as the defending champions Montreal Canadiens narrowly missed the playoffs, something that did not happen again for the next quarter century. With both the Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs missing the 1970 Stanley Cup playoffs, it was the first time in league history that no Canadian team in the NHL qualified for the playoffs. It was also the final season that teams wore their colored jerseys at home until the 2003–04 season.
The 1971–72 NHL season was the 55th season of the National Hockey League. Fourteen teams each played 78 games. The Boston Bruins beat the New York Rangers four games to two for their second Stanley Cup in three seasons in the finals.
The 1970–71 NHL season was the 54th season of the National Hockey League. Two new teams, the Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks made their debuts and were both put into the East Division. The Chicago Black Hawks were moved to the West Division, and the Oakland Seals were renamed the California Golden Seals. The Montreal Canadiens won the Stanley Cup by beating the Black Hawks in seven games in the finals.
The 1973–74 NHL season was the 57th season of the National Hockey League. The Philadelphia Flyers won the Stanley Cup championship, the team's first. The team was the first of the post-1967 teams to win the Cup.
The 1974–75 NHL season was the 58th season of the National Hockey League. Two new teams, the Washington Capitals and Kansas City Scouts, were added, increasing the number of teams to 18. To accommodate the new teams, the NHL re-organized its divisional structure and playoff format. The regular season was expanded to 80 games per team. The Philadelphia Flyers won the Stanley Cup for the second consecutive year.
The 1977–78 NHL season was the 61st season of the National Hockey League. The Montreal Canadiens won their third Stanley Cup in a row, defeating the Boston Bruins four games to two in the Stanley Cup Finals.
The 1978–79 NHL season was the 62nd season of the National Hockey League. The Montreal Canadiens beat the New York Rangers in the Stanley Cup finals four games to one for their fourth consecutive Cup; two "Original Six" teams would not meet again in the Finals for the next 34 years, when Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Boston Bruins in the 2013 Finals. The Bruins faced the Canadiens in the 1979 semifinals, marking the last appearance by three Original Six teams in the final four for the next 35 years, when the Blackhawks, Canadiens and Rangers reached the semifinals of the 2014 playoffs.
The 1987–88 Boston Bruins season was the Bruins' 64th season. The season involved participating in the Stanley Cup finals.
The history of the Boston Bruins professional ice hockey team dates back to 1924, making them the third-oldest active team in the National Hockey League (NHL), and the oldest surviving professional hockey franchise in the United States.
References
↑ "Club Directory". BostonBruins.com. NHL Enterprises, LP. Archived from the original on April 10, 2021. Retrieved February 19, 2017.
↑ Russo, Eric (June 21, 2017). "The Evolution of the Boston Bruins Sweaters". BostonBruins.com. NHL Enterprises, LP. Archived from the original on April 8, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2017. When the Bruins take the ice this fall they'll be doing so with a bit of a different look – although one only the savviest of fans may recognize. On Tuesday night, the National Hockey League and adidas debuted their partnership by unveiling the league's new ADIZERO jerseys in Las Vegas. The Black & Gold's new threads contain only subtle variations from the sweaters they have worn since 2007, when Reebok took over the NHL's uniform design.
↑ Marrazza, Dan (June 14, 2016). "How NHL Teams Got Their Names". National Hockey League. Archived from the original on January 19, 2018. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
↑ Pelletier, Joseph (June 2011). "Smokey Harris". bruinslegends.blogspot.com. Archived from the original on November 25, 2016.
↑ Klein, Jeff Z.; Reif, Karl-Eric (1987). The Klein & Reif Hockey Compendium. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart. p.63. ISBN978-0-7710-4529-5.
↑ Standings: NHL Public Relations Department (2008). Dave McCarthy; etal. (eds.). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2009. National Hockey League. p.146. ISBN978-1-894801-14-0.
↑ Coleman, Charles L. (1964). Trail of the Stanley Cup, Vol I. Sherbrooke, PQ: National Hockey League. p.709.
↑ Johnson, Richard; Codagnone, Brian (December 9, 2003). The Bruins in Black and White, 1924–1966. Arcadia Publishing. p.13. ISBN9780738534855.
↑ Morreale, Mike G. (January 8, 2016). "Bruins defeat Devils for 3,000th win in history". National Hockey League. Archived from the original on January 9, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2016. Center Ryan Spooner and defenseman Colin Miller each had a goal and an assist to help the Boston Bruins become the second team in NHL history to win 3,000 regular season games with a 4–1 win against the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on Friday.
↑ Reissis, Alexandros (June 15, 2017). "Boston Bruins: Why the Atlantic Division is there for the taking". yardbarker.com. Yardbarker. Archived from the original on August 4, 2017. Retrieved June 24, 2017. With the 2016–2017 NHL season finished, it is time to look ahead to next season...The Boston Bruins, who made the playoffs for the first time since 2014, will look to take another step forward under head coach Bruce Cassidy. Cassidy, who replaced Claude Julien, turned the Bruins into a team that used speed and skill, and it worked. Even though the B's lost in Round 1 against the Ottawa Senators in six games, this season was a sign of great things to come.
↑ "Bruins extend point streak to 18 with win over Senators, 3–2". nbcsports.com. NBC Sports. January 25, 2018. Archived from the original on May 13, 2018. Retrieved May 12, 2018. OTTAWA, Ontario – Jake DeBrusk wasn't even trying to score and ended up with the winner. DeBrusk beat Mike Condon with 8:41 left to lift the Boston Bruins over the Ottawa Senators 3–2 on Thursday night for their fifth consecutive win.
↑ "Bruins to Open Against Maroons". The Boston Globe. November 16, 1935. p.6. Archived from the original on February 15, 2023. Retrieved October 12, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Bauer Appointed Bruins Captain". The Globe and Mail. Toronto, ON. Associated Press. October 17, 1946. Archived from the original on January 17, 2022. Retrieved March 22, 2022.
↑ "Barry Captain of the Bruins". The Boston Globe. Boston, MA. Associated Press. November 7, 1933. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 22, 2022.
↑ Smith, Stephen (November 4, 2014). Puckstruck: Distracted, Delighted and Distressed by Canada's Hockey Obsession. Vancouver, BC: Greystone Books. ISBN978-1771640480.
↑ Vautour, Kevin (October 1, 1997). The Bruins Book, 1997 98: A Statistical & Photographic History of the Boston Bruins. ECW Press. ISBN1550223348.
↑ "Bauer Appointed Bruins Captain". The Globe and Mail. Toronto, ON. Associated Press. October 17, 1946. Archived from the original on January 17, 2022. Retrieved March 22, 2022.
↑ "NHL.com – stats". National Hockey League. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved April 23, 2016.
Bibliography
Donovan, Michael Leo (1997). The Name Game: Football, Baseball, Hockey & Basketball How Your Favorite Sports Teams Were Named. Toronto: Warwick Publishing. ISBN1-895629-74-8.
Simpson, Rob; Babineau, Steve (September 9, 2008). Black and Gold: Four Decades of the Boston Bruins in Photographs. Wiley Publishing. ISBN978-0-470-15473-1.
Booth, Clarke. Boston Bruins: Celebrating 75 Years. Tehabi Books. ISBN0-7607-1126-7
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2024–25 Boston Bruins season 
