It's clear the Bruins have lost at least part of their identity this season. It's clear they've had a hard time finding themselves and their game.
They also don't really fight anymore, and I wonder if it's all related.
Fighting is down across the NHL, and the B's have been all too willing to go with the flow. I don't think that's a good thing.
According to the folks at hockeyfights.com, the Bruins rank 14th in the NHL with 26 fights. And for those of us who have watched most of them, calling some of these altercations actual "fights" is being kind. It's safe to say the B's are at a soft 26.
Anyway, that's way down from last year, when the B's had 46 fighting majors. And that's down from the year before, when the B's had 32 fights over 48 games (a pace of 55 over an 82-game schedule). And that was down from the 61 they put up in 2011-12.
I'm not good at numbers, but I'm sensing a trend. It's gotten so bad that Montreal fights more than the Bruins. The Canadiens have 27 fighting majors on the year and possess one of the better enforcers in the game in Brandon Prust. Think of that for a second. The freaking, flopping, flying Frenchmen are now better with their gloves off than the B's. How did this happen?
Do you know who the B's "enforcer" is this year? Try Greg Campbell, with five fighting majors (tied for 41st in the league). Yikes. We all admire Campbell for his willingness, but he may be one of the worst pugilists in the league. Hockeyfights.com has his "record" this year at 1-3-1. They had him 1-4 in five fights last year. It's hard to kickstart your team with a bout if you top fighter is constantly getting his butt kicked.
Boston Bruins
The year the B's won the Cup in 2010-11, they had 71 fights, second-most in the league. They had four guys with more fights than Campbell does this year (Shawn Thornton, 14; Adam McQuaid, 12; Campbell, 11; Milan Lucic, 7). It was rare for them to go more than two games without dropping the gloves. It was a part of their game and it was part of their identity.
Now it's an afterthought.
Before we bemoan the loss of Thornton, let's note he has only six fights for the Florida Panthers this season, tied for 40th in the NHL. So this is obviously a league-wide issue. The hockeyfights.com people have this season as having the fewest fights-per-game across the league in more than a decade. According to these guys, we're on pace for the fewest fights-per-game since 1968-69.
Is this what's best for the league? Tough call. I think the NHL is in a good place right now. Yes, there are some lulls in the regular season and some bad teams. Goal scoring remains down. But in terms of cranking out a consistently entertaining and well-paced product, I'm not sure the league has ever been better. It terms of competitiveness, it blows away the NBA. In terms of action and flow, it's far superior to baseball. For my money, the NHL has the second-best product in North America, and it hasn't needed the fight game to get there.
But the NHL should be careful not to go too far with its gloves-on approach, because fighting is more important than the league power-brokers may realize. It's certainly been more important to the Bruins than their approach this season would suggest.
I'm not just talking entertainment value. I'm talking about the accountability and the attitude of the sport. Hockey is the only sport in the world where if you run your mouth, you have to answer for it. Where if you run an opponent, you have to answer for it. It's the only league in the world I know of where you can truly defend your teammates. I want the Bruins to be that team.
Please note: I don't think it makes the league any safer. Just more honest. There is no false bravado and no fake tough guys. It's refreshing. It's one of the things that sets the league apart.
It also has a competitive purpose as a momentum changer. If anyone doubts that, just go back and see what Steven Stamkos' dust-up with Brad Marchand two weeks ago did for the Lightning. It should tell you how much the fighting game has gotten away from the B's that the Stamkos fight is now the norm. In other words, fights have become momentum builders for the opponent, not the B's.
True, the Stamkos fight was a special case. It featured an elite offensive talent deciding to drop the gloves, and no matter what transpired next (which, to be honest, can barely be called a fight), Tampa was going to get a lift out of it.
What we're talking about here is the designated tough guy doing the designated-tough-guy thing. That has a place, too. Even though it was his role and often predictable, the B's used to get big lifts off Thornton fights. In the past, the B's had seminal games dominated by fights (games against Dallas and Montreal come to mind), and those nights helped define them. They brought them together.
It says here the B's should buck the league trend and do what they can to maintain at least some of that identity. It may be too late this year (I think we've all seen enough of Campbell getting pasted), but if there is going to be an offseason overhaul of the team, the fight game should at least be a part of the discussion.
At the very least, can we try and not get beat up by Montreal, please?
E-mail Felger at mfelger@comcastsportsnet.com. Listen to Felger and Mazz daily from 2-6 p.m., on 98.5 FM. The simulcast runs daily here on Comcast SportsNet.