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Did anyone see Julien or his coaches yelling at Bourque last night after his bad passes, two bonehead penalties, terrible handling of the puck on the powerless play, constent bad positional play ?

I remember Seguin getting reduced minutes for bad plays and getting yelled at on the bench. Same for Kessel and Marchand- Why is it that Bourque isn't getting the same treatment as other rookies in the past ?

How many more games should Chris get to straighten his non-excistent play ?

PS. Somewhere in Forida, after dominating several games of shuffle board, someone has a burning in it's ears...

In response to SanDogBrewin's comment:

Last night was Chris' worst game to date.

In response to SanDogBrewin's comment:

The Bruins are actively looking to make a trade.  So , I would assume that he has until the trading deadline (or until a deal is struck).

I think people should get past this assumption, that Bourque is around for the name on the back of his sweater. He is earning his spot. And anyone who's watched Julien these past years knows he would never give a player ice time he didint earn or deserve (coaches yell at players - the one give-away came at the end of a 2 minute shift, when his power play unit was caught out there for way too long). Bourque requires a little more patience (the same patience afforded players whose last names aren't Bourque)

I see good things in his game - a smart, speedy, fearless (and obviously versatile, playing the point on the PP) player worthy of the extra responsibilities Julien is giving him and certainly a player hinting at more promise than his right wing partner Rich Peverley. (see: reincarnation of PJ Axelsson)

Look, the Bruins have 31 games in 53 days (or something like that) coming up. There are going to be injuries and call-ups, pick-ups and/or trades. The Bruins are going to need all the depth they can get and my hunch is that Bourque's value to Coach Julien and the Bruins is going to become more and more apparent.

Besides The Bruins are winning and look, frankly...amazing doing it, strong, more machine-like than any edition of the Bruins I've ever seen. And If we know anything we know that Julien doesn't fix what isn't broken.

I agree with gord11, ya last night was a bit of a rough game, but if you really think about it, he was playing against a team thats pretty much cloned tjemselves to the Bs team, hard to play against ottawa. Did anyone notice charas giveaways ? or seids playing like he has an injury ?

In response to gord11's comment:

 

I think people should get past this assumption, that Bourque is around for the name on the back of his sweater. He is earning his spot. And anyone who's watched Julien these past years knows he would never give a player ice time he didint earn or deserve (coaches yell at players - the one give-away came at the end of a 2 minute shift, when his power play unit was caught out there for way too long). Bourque requires a little more patience (the same patience afforded players whose last names aren't Bourque)

The entire point of SanDogs post was that Bourque has been on the recieving end of more patience than CJ has ever given a rookie player, not by us on here at BDC. Anyone who watched the rookie seasons of Seguin and Marchand (when he was first called up) knows this.

I see good things in his game - a smart, speedy, fearless (and obviously versatile, playing the point on the PP) player worthy of the extra responsibilities Julien is giving him and certainly a player hinting at more promise than his right wing partner Rich Peverley. (see: reincarnation of PJ Axelsson)

He does have some promise to his game-he would not be in the NHL without some-his positives, while workable in the AHL, have not worked so far with the B's. Again, look at the original post. The numbers do not back up a "player worthy of extra responsibilities, and certainly not at the expense of the likes of Seguin (you know, the B's leading scorer last season). There is a huge difference between promise and outcome.

Look, the Bruins have 31 games in 53 days (or something like that) coming up. There are going to be injuries and call-ups, pick-ups and/or trades. The Bruins are going to need all the depth they can get and my hunch is that Bourque's value to Coach Julien and the Bruins is going to become more and more apparent.

I hope you are right. Right now his only real value is that he works for minimum wage.

Besides The Bruins are winning and look, frankly...amazing doing it, strong, more machine-like than any edition of the Bruins I've ever seen. And If we know anything we know that Julien doesn't fix what isn't broken.

 

But PC does....especially if he smells a cup and can further improve the club. Ex....picking up Kelly and Peverley in 2011.

 

 

Just some counterpoints to think about.

 

The Bruins record has a lot to do with patience & rookie players...a losing streak will force PC/Julien's hand pretty quickly.

Why do people consider Bourque a rookie. He's 27 years of age. He's rookie season was 5 years ago. He's having his best season ever.

Sorry.  I disagree.  I am not getting past the idea of his getting a long leash because his last name is Bourque.  Look at how Seguin was treated as a rookie.  He made a mistake he sat.  Bourque makes mistakes and doesn't get benched and he's not a rookie.  There are guys in Providence worth a look.

A player who has promise?  No. He doesn't, if you think he does you're kidding yourself.

 

I'll repeat Klaas' point because it's worth repeating because no matter how many times it's repeated, people still don't get it.

BOURQUE IS NOT A ROOKIE.

Seguin was getting benched because he wasn't hustling. Say what you want about Bourque's skills but the kid is a lot of hustle and heart. Probably his only plus skills.

In response to gord11's comment:

During Hamill's call up last year the Bruins were winning as well, lost 4 games out of 16, so that argument is a wash as well. I'm not seeing the smart, speedy, fearless (and obviously versatile, playing the point on the PP that your talking about. I did see it in Providence though, that earned him the call up, but it is not their at all at the NHL level.

It is preferential treatment all the way!

Am I the only one who thinks by and large, for what he's being asked to do, Bourque's not playing too bad?

In response to gord11's comment:

Wow, what a huge crock of crap. He's earning his spot is he? Apparently he only turned the puck over once after "a 2 minute shift"? I don't even know where to begin since there's so much wrong about your post. It's obvious that you're lying to yourself and trying to get others to believe the lies too. I suggest you start watching games with your eyes open. Then you might not miss so much.

In response to red75's comment:

No Red, there are some other folks who are wrong too.

In response to dezaruchi's comment:

I never said he was great, just not too bad. Serviceable for the time being.

I don't think he's been a trainwreck.  The Bruins ought to be able to get a lot more out of that roster spot, though. 

 

In response to red75's comment:

 

Am I the only one who thinks by and large, for what he's being asked to do, Bourque's not playing too bad?

 

No Red, there are some other folks who are wrong too.

 

 

I never said he was great, just not too bad. Serviceable for the time being.

 

 

Just busting your chops. :)

 

Bourque doesn't have NHL smarts as his play, throughout the game, showed. He made a great save because he was out of position, then he throws it away rather than keep control of the puck. Thornton is dead weight and now Bourque's performance is eroding Claude's reputation for smarts.

In response to nrguy's comment:

You have no idea of what you're talking about.  None.

He wasn't benched because he wasn't hustling, he was benched because of missed defensive assignments and for not showing up to a team meeting.

I will grant you that Bourque has hustle, but nothing else.

 

Again, there are a few guys in Providence that are worth a look.  True Bourque is serviceable, but just barely, a coule of stupid penalties in a close game can cost the team.

Trent Whitfield is serviceable as well as Caron.  I sure don't expect them to do anything more than Bourque, but I don't think they would do less.

 

Lat night provided an excellent example - from the Senators - of what some AHL guys who are playing like they have no tomorrow can do (because most them don't).  I can tell you Suave, Whitfield, Tardif, Spooner, Knight (injuries aside, but those type guys in Providence) would be very motivated if they got the call to go up top.

In response to DrCC's comment:

Much sharper and compact assessment.

 

From Jacobs to Julien, why would any of them agree to hurt the team to appease a former player?

The whole theory makes no sense.

"But NAS, how can you explain xyz?"

I'm not inside the organization, so I can't.  Whatever the reason is that he has his roster spot and playing time, I can assure you it has nothing to do with his father.

Someone urinated in dez's cornflakes again.  Must have been Guy Lapointe.

I don't know about "preferential treatment" but they are handling Bourque differently than Hamill.

The scoring numbers are almost beside the point because Hamill played all over the place and not in a stable spot in the lineup.  Sometimes he was a fourth liner, sometimes he got a shot to play with better players.  Hamill made a number of plays that were memorable enough that I can still picture them - really nice, dogged work on the forecheck and then a real play-maker's pass for one of his assists.  Driving the net and creating the distraction for a goal on another shift.  Filling the lane out of nowhere to break up sustained pressure in the D zone.  The problem was that they didn't happen often enough and they mostly happened at the beginning of his call-up.  He got moved around, lost some zip, stopped producing good plays, and then was gone for good.  He had 2 points after 3 games.  He was +6 after 5 games.  You can hate +/- as much as you want, but not even a fire hydrant racks up +6 in 5 games - too much of a defensive liability. Then he was 0-fer 13 games and on the ice for four goals against and only one for.  His ice time also reflects the decline in his play - he was just under 10min when he put up 2 in 3, then they expanded his icetime to between 12 and 18 minutes and he crashed.  They dialed him back to under 9 min/game and he didn't find his former glory.

Bourque's a minus 4 despite playing in a stable spot in the lineup with two very capable defensive players.  The good news is he's even over his last 11 games, and has all four of his points in his last 10.  If you told me he'd have 32 points (4 for every 10 games) at the end of a regular season, I'd probably think that's okay.  It's better than what Caron delivered last year in terms of production - he was also even but paced out to about 28 points over a full schedule.

The difference in handling is that Bourque was overmatched out of the gate but got fed ice, where Hamill started fast, faded, then lost ice.  Bourque's started to play better even if he has games like last night where he struggles.  It hasn't been pretty, but Caron wasn't pretty and other than Spooner, who might be better served in Providence for the year as their top offensive player, who else do the Bruins call up?  Tardif is a non-rookie, older than Bourque, and MacDermid isn't a third liner on his best day.  That leaves Camper or Cunningham who, let's be honest, are just Bourque with different jerseys.  And in Providence, Bourque showed he was a better player.  Sauve is always injured.  So...who?

If what you really want is a trade, great.  Sure.  But the team is 13-2-1-1, so there's no urgency to making that deal.  You aren't in a position where you need to push or overpay for a guy to replace Bourque.  Or push to get an aging former star you can plug into a third line role and pay through the nose for the privilege.  You have a veteran pro who isn't going to get better if he just learns some hard lessons reinforced with ice time or benchings - he knows how to be a pro, he just needs to execute and use what skills he has well.  You might as well ride him in the roll you hope he can fill as long as you're winning then make whatever move you think you need to make for a gunner when the time is right.

I think Bourque plays hard and has above average skills. He just isn't big or strong enough for those skills to pay off, and that ain't ever changing. I'm not sure what further evaluation could possibly be needed- it's genetics. That line needs an impact player because the other two are complimentary role types who will benefit from a more dynamic partner. Bourque will never be that. I thought PC's interview on NESN last night sounded like he was focused on making some move before the deadline. Could be they're letting 48 ride it out until then while the record has been so positive. Hoping they see the bigger picture -

 

In response to JWensink's comment:

 

I think Bourque plays hard and has above average skills. He just isn't big or strong enough for those skills to pay off, and that ain't ever changing. I'm not sure what further evaluation could possibly be needed- it's genetics. That line needs an impact player because the other two are complimentary role types who will benefit from a more dynamic partner. Bourque will never be that. I thought PC's interview on NESN last night sounded like he was focused on making some move before the deadline. Could be they're letting 48 ride it out until then while the record has been so positive. Hoping they see the bigger picture -

 

 

 

No.  He does not.  He has below average skills.  He has trouble making and receiving passes.  He has speed and hustle and that's all he has.  He doesn't have size and and he doesn't have a big shot.

 

Agree with what book said, Hamill made a few sweet passes and spent a lot of time doing a disappearing act.

In response to BadHabitude's comment:

His passing has been pretty darn good on the powerplay.

His stats would be better if Empty Net Only Kelly could do something out there offensively.