TORONTO – Believe it or not, even the Bruins veterans and core group guys think they have just as much to prove as the four young puck whippersnappers that made their NHL debuts on Thursday night in Columbus.
The reasoning for it may be different, of course.
Brandon Carlo, Rob O’Gara, Austin Czarnik and Danton Heinen want to prove they belong in the big-boy league and lock down their grasp on a steady gig in the NHL. Carlo and O’Gara played significant roles for the Black and Gold in the comeback win over the Blue Jackets, while Czarnik and Heinen were a little more inauspicious with their debuts.
Now, that first time on the ice in front of friends and family is out of the way, along with the feeling of at-times paralyzing, overwhelming nerves.
“You sort of say [to yourself] ‘I’ve been here before and I can do this’, and it’s just another game. Treating it that way helped as the game was going on,” said O’Gara. “In the third period, we started getting into sort of a groove and we were getting into a rhythm with the shifts. Now, it’s another step. I said the same thing in Providence that everybody is stronger and a little quicker and you really learn it on that first shift.
“You’ve got to adjust and play to that level. Every shift you’re learning and absorbing, and that’s what I need to do. I have to get better with every rep, every step and every shift. That’s what I plan on doing.”
For the core veteran Bruins players, this season is about leading the way and setting the example for the youngsters as they break through the system. It’s also about re-proving themselves after two years of regular-season futility.
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That sentiment had Brad Marchand amped and excited to play against the Blue Jackets. He responded by taking ownership of the game in the final 40 minutes with a dominant display that was equal parts harassing puck hunter, crafty veteran and dazzling display of skill, like when he dangled all over poor Finnish rookie defenseman Markus Nutivaara for his final goal of the night in the five-point, five-star performance.
In short it was an elite hockey player at the height of his powers and it was somebody looking to further cement his standing as one of the team’s long-term building blocks.
“Even after they got up 3-1, there wasn’t any sense of panic on the bench. We knew we had time left, and we still hadn’t played our best hockey yet. You can just kind of feel that the guys were confident we could come back, and luckily it worked out. It doesn’t always work out that way,” said Marchand. “At times for sure there were feelings [of defeat] last year, but it wasn’t always like that. But this year with the young energy and some new faces and we’re learning each other and we all have something to prove to one another.
“We all belong here. We all deserve to be here and there’s a feeling that we all have to pull our weight and you don’t want to disappoint the new guys and the young guys. You’ve got to show them the way and the new guys want to prove the point of why they’re here and why they deserve to stay here. All of those feelings help push guys to that next level and those feelings definitely help our team.”
The exuberance and energy from a wave of talented young players pushing their way into the lineup and the feeling of prideful ownership from the B’s veterans made Thursday feel a lot different than so many half-hearted nights with guys going through the motions last season.
It doesn’t mean the Bruins are ready to follow through with Jeremy Jacobs’ desire for a “deep playoff run”, and it doesn’t mean the D-man situation has suddenly stabilized with so many unproven entities on their back end.
It also doesn’t heal whatever is nagging at Patrice Bergeron as the Bruins continue to find the answers without him.
But it does mean the Bruins might be a fun to watch again and ready to surprise people a little bit after last season’s late collapse was all too predictable. It would be foolish to underestimate the influence of David Backes, who comes over from the St. Louis Blues with impressive credentials as their captain and with an approach to the game that inspires courage and energizes teammates to sacrifice for the greater good.
It also doesn’t hurt to have the intense, driven Backes still lusting for his first chance at a Stanley Cup amid a group of players that have already been to the mountaintop.
“He definitely has a room presence. He didn’t come from a team being their captain by mistake,” said Claude Julien. “He’s got a great presence and he’s got a great personality that blends in well with the players. He hasn’t sat back and said, 'Well, I’ve got to make myself comfortable before I start speaking.’ He’s felt comfortable from the get-go and he’s been a great addition to our core group.”
Rather than fall back into slumped shoulders and drooped heads with things looking grim after digging a two-goal hole vs. Columbus, the Bruins did something special and noteworthy that has Marchand leading the NHL in scoring just a couple of days into the season.
It was excitement and game-breaking derring-do instead of the Bruins getting totally overwhelmed by the gravity of the situation as they did so many times last season.
Does anybody doubt that last year’s group would have fallen apart in the opener down by a couple of goals given the way they started last season, or their performance in the Winter Classic, or the pathetic performance against Ottawa in the final game of the season with the playoffs on the line, or their empty display when Milan Lucic returned to the Garden?
Last season's Black and Gold was consistently overwhelmed by the key moment and seemingly afraid of the big, meaningful games and it showed in horrifying fashion.
Something felt different about Thursday night when Marchand, Backes and David Pastrnak picked the B’s up off the mat. Instead of giving in, they totally blasted the Blue Jackets clear off the ice like so much cannon fodder for that godforsaken and fully operational Civil War replica in the corner of the Nationwide Arena. The Bruins showed a little backbone, a little feistiness and, most important of all, showed they weren’t afraid of the moment when it called to them.
That could portend some very encouraging things if the B’s can also improve on a few roster imperfections and continue to show heart when the spotlight gets bright.