What Is The New Identity Of The Bruins?

What Is The New Identity Of The Bruins?

You know, I know when you retired and we had a a great feature on you on Nessen, but just like Brad and even Big Z were talking about when they retire, they they transition a little bit more into being more present at home, you know, being a dad and you’ve got two young kids and and you know, just being able to do that. So, I don’t know how much you’re watching hockey after you after you retired, but do you ever sit down and catch some games or is it only if something big is going on? No, I I sure do. Yeah, I I enjoy watching it. Um, yeah, I was a I mean, hockey fan first before player. Um, so I I still enjoy watching the game. Um, you know, it’s it’s kind of it’s kind of interesting. This will probably segue for you, but found myself, you know, rooting for the Panthers and the Toronto Maple Leafs, which is like totally counter to my soul to be honest with you. But, um, you know, it just it’s just it’s cool to see guys you played with still going at it. obviously and um you know Bruins fan first but uh still pulling for your buddies and you know I definitely you know watch the games and and follow along as much as I can. All right, so yeah, great segue. It’s like you’re in TV or something. Uh yeah, with with Brad, you know, obviously the Bruins are are in this, you know, retool as as they as they put it and uh all the moves that were made at deadline and all of those familiar faces, the some of the uh really core players of the Bruins uh no longer wearing a bees sweater. Let’s start with Brad Marshand. Uh what was your reaction uh when he was was not only traded, Kevin, but to your point, traded to the Florida Panthers? Yeah, it was a uh I mean if I was a betting man, I would have said no chance. Uh but you know this is hockey. It’s a business. Um this is um as clear as it can be regarding that. And you know I think um I was uh as everybody else was pretty pretty bummed when that happened, but I understand it. And um you know obviously I think they did the right thing by sending him to a team that you know is competing for a Stanley Cup and and I think that was a good conversation between Brad and and swings and them and so good on them to do that and I think that it’s much appreciated from Brad that that he ended up there and obviously I’m I’m super happy for him just being his good buddy and so you you know being back and forth with him about that was pretty funny. uh asking him all these questions about, you know, what how was it stepping in the room the first time, you know, and and uh but but awesome to see him win. Um gosh, I mean, he was playoff marshy was in full effect. Um and uh you know, I just I’m pulling for him in every way I can. And it was a little bit the same with with Carlo, like one of my really good buddies, Carlo going to Toronto and you know, instantly overnight became a Leaf fan. So, um it was just uh both of those were a little bit uh um you know, not not expected, but you know, here we are today. So, uh I haven’t really I’m just ingesting this quick story out of nowhere, but you mentioned Brandon Carlo, and I just want to say, Adam, I don’t know if you know this, but some of my favorite memories. I think it was just uh 2 years into the job and I came in at the end of 2019. So co obviously hit in 2020 and everything was social distancing so we couldn’t really hang out but Brandon Carlo and Kevin Miller you guys weren’t playing you guys were recovering from injuries and you’re sitting on I don’t even know where I don’t think it was the ninth floor cuz I was on the ninth floor wherever we were in the garden but Brandon Carlo would message me Adam when I when he was with Kevin and I would have live hits and they would dare me to throw in certain words. Do you remember like shenanigans or banana or something? Do you remember? There were a couple times where you got it pretty good. Yeah, I did. I think I said there was one that I was rolling on the floor laughing right after the hit and I think Brendan messaged me and said like that was unbelievable. I don’t know what the word was. It could have been shenanigans but um yeah, so they would throw in a word at him and then I would have to do it throw it in live in the hit. I didn’t always, but that’s how we kept ourselves entertained. And I and I really appreciate you guys for making my job a little more fun, too. It was a good time. Well, like I like seriously impressive because if you’re trying to think about that while doing a live interview and keep a straight face to throw in a word like shenanigans. That’s uh that is true skill. So, we were we were very uh we weren’t easy on the verbiage and it got harder as time went on. So, it was uh it definitely kept us busy. There there was one there was one and I’ll get off this but we had to do our interviews via Zoom. So just kind of like this where you know we couldn’t you remember obviously we couldn’t uh interview you guys so we had to do them via Zoom with like the whole media and I think Brandon’s like try to get in the sentence right meow and I I couldn’t I couldn’t find a way to do it but he was he was actually at the podium. So, I guess he he had asked and then I didn’t do it that game, but he was at the podium in the next game and I did say something like I think he was coming back from injury. I’m like, “How are you feeling right meow?” And he tried to keep a straight face at the podium and I was like, “Yeah, I lost it.” And I lost it behind the camera. And anyway, those were those were good times. And I I miss you guys for sure. But I I can see why you rooting for Brando because you said uh he was a good buddy or between the two of them when they were facing each other. That must have been a hard one. But I guess the better team did did advance. Um, okay, I can keep talking about that. I’ll transition to a Marian question. You know, you talk about Zadoara. No surprise what he’s doing. Were you surprised at all at how impactful Brad was in the Stanley Cup playoffs? Oh man, no. I not not one bit. And then, you know, it’s kind of funny because, you know, you know, Marcy’s usually first line. Uh, he’s playing against the first pair D, first line on the other team. pair D and you just um some people don’t take that into account that um man he just he just flourished. Uh, I mean, I don’t think it would have been a problem if he’s playing against the first line guys, but I think it it just it just added to u his ability to to score and make plays and and um, you know, when you got a guy like Brad Marshon, you know, on the third line, it just it just shows you how deep a team like the Panthers are. And um, it was fun to watch, but you know, I kept telling everybody like, “Hey, play off Marshy. When that guy gets uh when he gets going, look out.” So, and that was kind of clear. So, no surprise to me. Yeah. Yeah. And in this day and age, you know, with free agency and and everything that goes along with it, you know, the the word dynasty isn’t really thrown around too much, but the Panthers are probably as close as you’ll get in today’s day and age having a dynasty. What what’s what’s impressed you about, you know, as a as a as as somebody who played the game and as somebody who’s a fan of the game, what’s impressed you the most about the Panthers? Well, I think um and they talk about this the you know they’re kind of open about it where you know we we talked about it in the Bruins is that hey we had this culture that was you know driven by a number of guys that were there big Z Patrice Crate like Brad and all these guys that came through. Um but they’re they’re pretty open about it. Um that the culture down in Florida is something that’s really it’s a winning culture. It’s infectious. It’s guys want to be a part of that. you know, you see these guys are signing before they’re getting to free agency to find out even what the money’s worth because they don’t want to be they want to be a part of that winning culture. You know, I think Chuck even openly said this is a dynasty. And you know, I can’t disagree with them because I mean, if you’re if you’re putting money on who the betting favorite is for the next couple years to win the Stanley Cup, it’s it’s the Panthers. And um you know, it’s it’s it’s fun to watch. Um really weird to say as a Bruins fan. Um but still um I think those guys were they they’ve leaned into each other and they’ve done a really good job of creating that culture and a winning atmosphere. And listen um just cuz we’re talking about culture so much we can transition back Adam if you want to the Stanley Cup final. But I just want to ask you um about what because we we talk about it so much here with the Bruins and I remember when I first joined the team and I I heard about the reputation of the Boston Bruins from Toronto and I was like okay like how great can it be? And then I was like, “Wow, this is this is amazing. It’s it was very very different than covering the Toronto Map Leafs in all facets.” And I I loved it so much. And so there’s talk about how that kind of shifted this year. A little bit of that was lost and how one of Marco Sturms and the next captain, whoever that’s going to be, their big job is to make sure they keep that alive. And well, I’m going to throw out some words that I felt I noticed, but I obviously wasn’t a player, but like accountability, work ethic, respect. Those were really big cogs in the culture. Can you dive into what made the Boston Bruins what they have been for so long culture-wise in the room? Like, what other things, what other words or characteristics would you use to describe the Bruins when when they were rolling? Yeah. Well, I think just kind of first and foremost that that comes top down. Whether that’s ownership, you know, President Cam and Sween, they they kind of set the mark on that. They’ve been over the years, they’ve been so good at identifying players that are going to fit the Bruins culture. Um, and they’ve been they’ve done a phenomenal job in that regard, bringing in guys who are going to add to that. Uh, and I don’t think that they changed that at all. But I do I do think it’s a it’s a man it just you lose guys like you know Big Z and then Patrice and Crate and then Brad and it’s just there’s a you know these guys had been there for so long. Uh it’s not an overnight transition to say hey here’s the reigns to whoever and we’re going to continue what’s going on. It’s something that’s built over time and um you know they they’ve invested over the past you know 10 years more than that um to be a winning program and they they they sent off a lot of draft picks. They sent off a lot of assets to to try and win and um you know credit to them. I give them all the credit in the world. We they tried so hard for so long to win. we were so damn close a few times that um but you know there has to be like some kind of transition at one point when some of these guys leave and I think saw a little bit of that this year and you know I know talking to Brad he did everything he could to pull that together and I think he did a phenomenal job as a captain he was a no-brainer to be the captain but um it it takes a it takes a group to be a part of that you know I know Pasta’s done a good job at that as well and he was around a lot of that when I was there obviously to to transition that, but it’s it’s more than a few guys to to pull on the rope and I think they’re in the position now to to reestablish that. I think that um you know, Marcus Sturm is going to do a great job in that regard because he did that in Ontario and he developed guys and they had a culture there. Um and so everything that I’ve heard is that he’s going to do a great job in that regard and and pull the group back together. And then I think that a lot of those things are probably those conversations are probably happening right now as guys are back on the ice and tooling up for for training camp. And um I think the leadership group’s probably going through a lot of that stuff right now is that hey how are we going to you know put our put our foot back in the sand here and say all right we’re turning the ship in the right direction. So, um, you know, I’m pulling for him in every way I can, but I think, you know, when you lose guys like Patrice Z, it’s and and and Cr and and and Brad, it just it’s tough to just turn the page overnight. So, you mentioned Marco Sturm, Kevin, you know, as a player, you know, what’s the most important quality uh that you want in your head coach? Uh, communication. I think, you know, some coaches are better at it than another or have different different versions of communication and some guys, you know, take take it uh in different ways, but it a coach that is going to be honest with you and communicate with you is u is first where you’re very clear what your job and your role is. Um there’s no beating around the bush. There’s no telling you one thing and doing another, you know, and I think um you know, just from what I’ve heard, uh he’s he’s great at that. He’s great at communicating with players. is great at developing young talent. Um, and so, you know, I I I think he’s going to do a phenomenal job. He’s he’s a younger guy as well, and he’s been in the league just 10 years ago or so. I mean, um, so it’s it’s I think he’s going to do a phenomenal job, and I think that you want the coaches that are that are going to be honest with you. Um, and so I I I see them doing a pretty good job with that this year through so many rides, but one of them was a lower stretch where you missed the postseason for in 2015 uh and 16. So going into the following year after that, what were the I don’t know if it’s characteristics again, I’m probably using the wrong word. Obviously, um, you know, the NHL, there’s so much parody, so there’s skill across the board. So, maybe what were some of the changes made that were able to get you guys back into a postseason after missing it? We had, you know, that year we had a ton of injuries going uh into that kind of stretch towards the end there. And I think that we had some some transition of guys going out and guys coming in and we were so dang I think we missed it by like one point or something like that that we knew we had the the skill in the in the room to to not just get into the postseason but make a run. So we it wasn’t like a hey uh we’re freaking out because we didn’t make the playoffs. It was okay we really need to you know dial in here a few few areas and and get back to our our Bruins way of hockey. And I think the next year we were right back at it. So, it wasn’t like a I think we were in a different situation than they are right now. You know, they talk about Retool. They have so many young talent. Uh so many so many young talent guy players that are coming in. They signed some some guys for free agency and um so it’s I think it’s going to be really important for them to to get off to a good start. And I like I said, I think they they probably I’m just spitballing here. they probably are diving in really hard here on having a really good training camp and getting guys um all on the same page um to to pull on the rope uh early. So yeah, and and actually that’s something that they had talked about over the course of the season was how disjointed the training camp was last year between some of the injuries they had, some of the uncertainty with contract situations. And so getting out of the gate, you know, how important is it to have a good training camp to set yourself up for success to start the season? It’s huge. Um, you know, you want to you want to get get off to a really good start. And historically, I don’t know the exact numbers, but it’s like something crazy like the team that’s the the the top eight teams that are in the playoffs come like November 15th or something like that are are almost like 85% chance of making it to the playoffs. So, the first part it’s the it’s the Thanksgiving rule. It’s usually the Thanksgiving rule, right? Like Yeah, pretty much. You know, and so that that’s not um that’s there for a reason, you know, I think. and and teams are really wanting to get off to a good start. And and so yeah, when you see it last year, there was just some some some things in the background going on that it uh it whether people believe it or not, it does weigh on guys, it weighs on the room, you you feel different in the room. And just if you’re off by half a percent or 1% here, it just those are those are points that you want that you want and need to get at that time of the year. And so, um, you always say, “Oh, you know, we got plenty of season left.” Well, no, you really don’t. Every game counts and, um, you really want to get off to a good start. So, I think they’re probably going to put a heavy emphasis on making sure everybody’s there early, a part of what’s going on with the captain’s skates, getting the culture right, having those big meetings together, and and um, and then then being ready to go when the puck drops. I want to transition quick to uh youth on the team. James Hagens drafted by the Boston Bruins, first round, seventh pick, going to BC. A lot of the discussion with the guests we’ve had on the show, should he do the year? Not our choice obviously, but uh should he do the year? Would it be beneficial to come up a little bit? You know, what’s your take on this young still very young, but hopefully uh going to be very impactful in the NHL player for the Boston Bruins. Would you even toy with with seeing him on some NHL ice or just let him focus on college hockey? Um, you know, I I think it’s it’s awesome and, you know, Swings and and the Bruins have done a good job of of drafting guys that are um just right in their backyard, which is I think there’s uh it’s really valuable to have that where they can they can go over and have communication with them u after a game at BC, you know, and and you know, as you can probably see, we’ve had a number of guys from BUBC come through and do really good things. So, um, I think it’s up to the the organization and and how this player is, how he is between the years. Is he is he is he grown up enough to to really come in and, um, and transition from a college game to to a pro game and add that many games? And, um, you know, with the game going, it’s so fast and so physical and so skilled now that um, it’s one of those things where um, you really want to make sure that he’s ready before you before you you you put him in the lineup. um because it can snowball and go the other way. And so those are those are, you know, I’m sure they’re having those conversations right now where they’re hey, is he ready or is it better to have another year and um I would say, you know, p personally I was I was late, right? So very late. Um I wasn’t even close to his age to to to look at the NHL. So um but you know, I think they’ll make the right decision. I think he’s a from all accounts a great player, good person, and and he’s in the great spot to to do some good things whether it’s at BC or coming right in and contributing. So, um we’ll we’ll kind of see we’ll leave that up to the pros with swings and Cam and those guys to to sort it out. I I did want to ask you about uh you know, one of the moves in free agency in particular that the Bruins made signing Tanner Janot, the 5-year deal. Obviously, somebody who’s very physical. Your style of play was very physical as a defenseman. Obviously, he’s plays the forward position, but you know, how important is it to have a guy like that on the roster that can sort of, you know, stand up for some of those skilled players? You know, I I um I don’t know much about him. I know a little bit. Um watched it a few times, but u I can just say that if you look at the Stanley Cup teams over the past 10 years, they had guys like this. They had a number of guys like this. They leaned heavily on those guys. They were big role players coming down the stretch. Um, you know, he’s, you know, great. He’s not going to score you 20 goals in the pre, you know, in the regular season. That’s fine because I promise you when playoffs come around, they’re going to be loving that guy, uh, for every minute and every every hit, every block shot, every leaning on this guy or the other that that he’s so valuable. Um, and I think it was a I think it was a great signing. U, they’ve got a few of those guys now. Obviously, you see Freddy leave, which is was tough, and I think he fills that void a little bit. Um, and it’ll be interesting to see kind of where they put him in the lineup. But, um, yeah, I think it’s a great sign. I think he’ll help a ton. I think he’s been around the league here for a little bit now, and he can be a guy that, uh, can go into the room and be a leader and and have some voice in there, and he’s now going to feel comfortable that he’s going to be there for some time, and so he could, u put some roots down and, um, and really kind of lean into the Bruins way. So, he he seems to fit the bill. Like I said, they’ve done a good job bringing in guys like that in the past, and I think he’ll he’ll fit in just great. How much truth is there to the something that uh Don Sweeney said in his press conferences is like and we know when Bruce Cassidy was around too that was a really big message but it was like this internal competition and guys in the A could be called up at any point. Uh you know your roster spot’s not safe. Maybe that’s not, you know, great, but you do want to create at least that there’s this day in and day out or night game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day game day in and game day game out, excuse me, you’re you’re um playing with pride and and knowing that you’ve got to be your best and they have a lot of guys that will be in training camp fighting for positions. How how much truth is there to that to making a team better when when that’s the case? Well, a lot. I think there’s a lot to that and I don’t you know I would argue it’s it’s even healthier to have more of that and to be honest with guys and say, “Hey, it’s not, you know, watch your back, but it’s just you need to show up every day. You need to put the work in every day.” And and if there’s I think if there’s more of that, I promise you, your training camp’s going to be better. Um because those guys are going to be laying it on the line every single day. They’re going to go out there, they know they got eyes on them every single day. So, I think it I think it will help them a lot. Um, and they’ll be more game ready come time when when it’s uh when it’s the real puck getting dropped and you’re not in preseason, you’re not playing against each other anymore. And the more of that, the better. Uh, they’ve preached that in the past and it’s tough to do when you have a really veteran lineup. Um, but you know, those guys that are really veteran lineup, they understand that they need to make sure they’re ready when the puck drops. So, it’s just a little bit different dynamic, but this year will be awesome uh to watch as those guys are all going to be um putting their best foot forward u and they better, you know, because if you’re not, then the guy right behind you is probably going to take your spot. So, those things are always healthy. I think, you know, I know Butchie preached that a lot when I was there and same with same with Claude and um but yeah, I think I think it’ll help them a lot. Well, you’ve been there, done that, man, and we really appreciate your perspective. also uh appreciate uh you know just your time uh here in the hockey. It’ll be your first episode. Maybe the first of you know many. I mean I don’t know maybe we’ll have you back. It’ll be great. I’d like to have you on again. Yeah, I’d have you back. I appreciate it. So I I made the cut. I made the cut. No, I uh it was great to connect with you guys. Obviously good to see uh Sophia and and and great to see you guys. Like I appreciate you having me on. Um it’s fun to talk to stuff. I enjoy it. So, um, and then obviously thanks for supporting the Warrior for Life fund and and having us on to talk about that. Absolutely. And look forward to talking more about um, yeah, look forward to talking more about the event coming up in Boston towards the end of the year. So, we’ll have to maybe we’ll have you on uh, before that. That’ll be a lot of fun. So, former Bruins defenseman Kevin Mill. Yeah, go ahead. Frank has been the key kind of, you know, Frank Simonetti. He’s been the guy that’s driving the bus on that and he’s been awesome. So, I mean, he can he can speak about it better than anybody, but yeah, he’s been he’s been a huge uh huge not addition obviously, but a guy that’s driven driven the bus for us for a while and and um but we’re happy to be on and happy to talk about it and thanks thanks again for having me on. Awesome. Kevin Miller, former Boston Bruins defenseman here on the hockey hub. Uh Kevin’s going to step aside, but uh Sophia and I will be back uh right after this.

Former Bruins player Kevan Miller joins Sophia Jurksztowicz and Adam Pellerin to discuss his thoughts on the future of the Bruins and the shift in culture when younger players join the team.

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