2016–17 Boston Bruins season explained

League:	NHL
Season:	2016–17
Year:	2016
Team:	Boston Bruins
Division:	Atlantic
Divisionrank:	3rd
Conference:	Eastern
Conferencerank:	7th
Record:	44–31–7
Homerecord:	23–17–1
Roadrecord:	21–14–6
Goalsfor:	234
Goalsagainst:	212
Generalmanager:	Don Sweeney
Coach:	Claude Julien (Oct. 13 – Feb. 7) Bruce Cassidy (Feb. 7 – Apr. 23)
Captain:	Zdeno Chara
Arena:	TD Garden
Minorleague:	Providence Bruins (AHL) Atlanta Gladiators (ECHL)
Goalsleader:	Brad Marchand (39)
Assistsleader:	Brad Marchand (46)
Pointsleader:	Brad Marchand (85)
Plusminusleader:	Zdeno Chara and Brad Marchand (+18)
Pimleader:	Brad Marchand (81)
Winsleader:	Tuukka Rask (37)
Gaaleader:	Tuukka Rask (2.23)

The 2016–17 Boston Bruins season was the 93rd season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on November 1, 1924.^[1] After missing the Stanley Cup playoffs in each of the past two years, the team returned in 2017, losing to the Ottawa Senators in the first round in six games.

Schedule and results

Pre-season

2016 Pre-season Game Log: 3–2–2 (Home: 0–1–1 ; Road: 3–1–1)^[2]
	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Recap
1	September 26		3–2	Boston Bruins	OT		16,285	0–0–1	Recap
2	September 28		5–1	Boston Bruins			16,631	0–1–1	Recap
3	September 30	Boston Bruins	2–1				—	1–1–1	Recap
4	October 1	Boston Bruins	4–3		SO	Subban	17,920	2–1–1	Recap
5	October 4	Boston Bruins	3–4			—	—	2–2–1	Recap
6	October 6	Boston Bruins	2–1		—	Khudobin	8,851	3–2–1	Recap
7	October 8		0–1	Boston Bruins	OT		17,202	3–2–2	Recap

Regular season

2016–17 Game Log^[3]
October: 4–4–0 (Home: 1–2–0 ; Road: 3–2–0) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 1 October 13 Boston Bruins 6–3 18,144 1–0–0 2 Recap 2 October 15 Boston Bruins 1–4 19,466 1–1–0 2 Recap 3 October 17 Boston Bruins 4–1 Rask 15,296 2–1–0 4 Recap 4 October 20 1–2 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 3–1–0 6 Recap 5 October 22 4–2 Boston Bruins Khudobin 17,565 3–2–0 6 Recap 6 October 25 5–0 Boston Bruins 17,565 3–3–0 6 Recap 7 October 26 Boston Bruins 2–5 18,006 3–4–0 6 Recap 8 October 29 Boston Bruins 1–0 Rask 20,027 4–4–0 8 Recap
November: 8–6–1 (Home: 4–3–0 ; Road: 4–3–1) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 9 November 1 Boston Bruins 2–1 13,808 5–4–0 10 Recap 10 November 3 Boston Bruins 4–3 SO Rask 19,092 6–4–0 12 Recap 11 November 5 5–2 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 6–5–0 12 Recap 12 November 7 0–4 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 7–5–0 14 Recap 13 November 8 Boston Bruins 2–3 21,288 7–6–0 14 Recap 14 November 10 2–5 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 8–6–0 16 Recap 15 November 12 Boston Bruins 2–1 Rask 16,531 9–6–0 18 Recap 16 November 13 Boston Bruins 2–0 Rask 15,808 10–6–0 20 Recap 17 November 17 Boston Bruins 0–1 Rask 18,774 10–7–0 20 Recap 18 November 19 1–4 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 11–7–0 22 Recap 19 November 22 4–2 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 11–8–0 22 Recap 20 November 24 Boston Bruins 1–3 Rask 17,191 11–9–0 22 Recap 21 November 25 2–1 Boston Bruins 17,565 11–10–0 22 Recap 22 November 27 1–4 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 12–10–0 24 Recap 23 November 29 Boston Bruins 2–3 SO Rask 19,558 12–10–1 25 Recap
December: 8–5–3 (Home: 4–4–0 ; Road: 4–1–3) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 24 December 1 1–2 Boston Bruins SO 17,565 13–10–1 27 Recap 25 December 3 Boston Bruins 2–1 19,070 14–10–1 29 Recap 26 December 5 3–4 Boston Bruins OT Rask 17,565 15–10–1 31 Recap 27 December 7 Boston Bruins 3–4 OT Rask 18,506 15–10–2 32 Recap 28 December 8 4–2 Boston Bruins Khudobin 17,565 15–11–2 32 Recap 29 December 10 4–1 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 15–12–2 32 Recap 30 December 12 Boston Bruins 2–1 OT Rask 21,288 16–12–2 34 Recap 31 December 14 Boston Bruins 3–4 OT Rask 18,415 16–12–3 35 Recap 32 December 15 4–3 Boston Bruins Khudobin 17,565 16–13–3 35 Recap 33 December 18 0–1 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 17–13–3 37 Recap 34 December 20 4–2 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 17–14–3 37 Recap 35 December 22 Boston Bruins 3–1 Rask 14,462 18–14–3 39 Recap 36 December 23 Boston Bruins 2–3 OT Khudobin 12,924 18–14–4 40 Recap 37 December 27 Boston Bruins 3–4 Rask 19,005 18–15–4 40 Recap 38 December 29 Boston Bruins 4–2 Rask 19,070 19–15–4 42 Recap 39 December 31 1–3 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 20–15–4 44 Recap
January: 6–6–2 (Home: 3–3–0 ; Road: 3–3–2) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 40 January 2 Boston Bruins 0–3 15,141 20–16–4 44 Recap 41 January 5 4–3 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 20–17–4 44 Recap 42 January 7 Boston Bruins 4–0 Rask 16,630 21–17–4 46 Recap 43 January 8 Boston Bruins 3–4 OT 11,820 21–17–5 47 Recap 44 January 10 Boston Bruins 5–3 Rask 19,342 22–17–5 49 Recap 45 January 12 Boston Bruins 1–2 McIntyre 17,113 22–18–5 49 Recap 46 January 14 3–6 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 23–18–5 51 Recap 47 January 16 4–0 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 23–19–5 51 Recap 48 January 18 Boston Bruins 5–6 SO Rask 20,027 23–19–6 52 Recap 49 January 20 1–0 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 23–20–6 52 Recap 50 January 22 Boston Bruins 1–5 Rask 18,506 23–21–6 52 Recap 51 January 24 3–4 Boston Bruins OT Rask 17,565 24–21–6 54 Recap 52 January 26 3–4 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 25–21–6 56 Recap January 27–29 All-Star Break in Los Angeles 53 January 31 Boston Bruins 4–3 Rask 19,092 26–21–6 58 Recap
February: 7–3–0 (Home: 4–1–0 ; Road: 3–2–0) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 54 February 1 Boston Bruins 3–5 18,506 26–22–6 58 Recap 55 February 4 6–5 Boston Bruins 17,565 26–23–6 58 Recap 56 February 9 3–6 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 27–23–6 60 Recap 57 February 11 3–4 Boston Bruins 17,565 28–23–6 62 Recap 58 February 12 0–4 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 29–23–6 64 Recap 59 February 19 Boston Bruins 2–1 OT Rask 17,562 30–23–6 66 Recap 60 February 22 Boston Bruins 3–5 Rask 15,135 30–24–6 66 Recap 61 February 23 Boston Bruins 4–1 Khudobin 18,230 31–24–6 68 Recap 62 February 26 Boston Bruins 6–3 Rask 18,006 32–24–6 70 Recap 63 February 28 1–4 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 33–24–6 72 Recap
March: 8–6–0 (Home: 5–3–0 ; Road: 3–3–0) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 64 March 2 2–1 Boston Bruins 17,565 33–25–6 72 Recap 65 March 4 2–3 Boston Bruins 17,565 34–25–6 74 Recap 66 March 6 Boston Bruins 2–4 Rask 17,046 34–26–6 74 Recap 67 March 8 1–6 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 35–26–6 76 Recap 68 March 11 1–2 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 36–26–6 78 Recap 69 March 13 Boston Bruins 6–3 Rask 18,865 37–26–6 80 Recap 70 March 15 Boston Bruins 5–2 Khudobin 18,892 38–26–6 82 Recap 71 March 16 Boston Bruins 4–7 Rask 18,347 38–27–6 82 Recap 72 March 20 Boston Bruins 2–4 Rask 19,347 38–28–6 82 Recap 73 March 21 3–2 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 38–29–6 82 Recap 74 March 23 6–3 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 38–30–6 82 Recap 75 March 25 Boston Bruins 2–1 Khudobin 15,795 39–30–6 84 Recap 76 March 28 1–4 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 40–30–6 86 Recap 77 March 30 0–2 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 41–30–6 88 Recap
April: 3–1–1 (Home: 2–1–1 ; Road: 1–0–0) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 78 April 1 2–5 Boston Bruins 17,565 42–30–6 90 Recap 79 April 2 Boston Bruins 3–2 22,131 43–30–6 92 Recap 80 April 4 0–4 Boston Bruins Rask 17,565 44–30–6 94 Recap 81 April 6 2–1 Boston Bruins SO Rask 17,565 44–30–7 95 Recap 82 April 8 3–1 Boston Bruins Khudobin 17,565 44–31–7 95 Recap
Legend:

Playoffs

See main article: 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs. The Bruins clinched the playoffs for the first time since the 2013–14 season. They met the Ottawa Senators in the first round, where they were ultimately defeated in six games.

Player stats

Final Stats

Skaters

Regular season^[4]

Player					data-sort-type="number"
	80	39	46	85	18	81
	75	34	36	70	11	34
	82	23	31	54	−12	26
	79	21	32	53	12	24
	81	8	43	51	−10	37
	78	11	28	39	−8	14
	74	17	21	38	2	69
	75	10	19	29	18	59
	82	11	14	25	2	44
	44	10	8	18	−3	14
	81	7	10	17	−1	14
	82	6	10	16	9	59
	59	7	7	14	−6	23
	61	6	7	13	0	55
	49	5	8	13	−10	12
	58	3	10	13	1	50
	77	2	8	10	4	71
	18	4	4	8	8	12
	49	3	5	8	−10	47
	29	2	3	5	3	16
	58	2	3	5	−3	29
	36	0	5	5	1	4
	19	1	1	2	−2	7
	11	0	2	2	0	0
	8	0	1	1	−1	2
	17	0	1	1	−4	8
	1	0	0	0	0	0
	2	0	0	0	0	2
	8	0	0	0	−3	2
	3	0	0	0	1	0

Playoffs

Player					data-sort-type="number"
	6	2	2	4	2	2
	6	2	2	4	1	6
	6	1	3	4	1	6
	6	0	3	3	−2	2
	4	2	0	2	0	4
	6	0	2	2	−2	2
	6	0	2	2	1	0
	6	0	2	2	0	2
	4	0	2	2	−2	0
	4	1	0	1	0	2
	6	1	0	1	2	2
	6	1	0	1	−1	4
	6	0	1	1	−3	2
	1	0	1	1	1	0
	2	0	1	1	0	0
	4	0	1	1	1	2
	6	0	1	1	0	4
	5	0	1	1	1	2
	3	0	0	0	−2	4
	3	0	0	0	−1	0
	6	0	0	0	0	4

Goaltenders

Regular season^[5]

Player
style=white-space:nowrap		65	64	3679:30	37	20	5	137	2.23	1,610	.915	8	0	2	0
style=white-space:nowrap		16	14	884:47	7	6	1	39	2.64	405	.904	0	0	1	2
style=white-space:nowrap		8	3	332:37	0	4	1	22	3.97	155	.858	0	0	0	0
style=white-space:nowrap		1	1	30:36	0	1	0	3	5.88	16	.813	0	0	0	0

• ^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Bruins. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
• ^‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.

Awards and honours

Milestones

• On November 22, 2016, the Bruins as a team reached the milestone of 20,000 goals all-time in NHL play, dating back to their 1924–25 debut season with Smokey Harris' goal for the Bruins, as the first NHL goal in team history on December 1, 1924.^[6] New forward David Backes' power play goal achieved the 20,000 goal milestone for the Bruins on November 22, in a 4–2 home loss to the St. Louis Blues, Backes' former team as the visitors to TD Garden; the 20,000th goal plateau has only been attained by one other NHL team, the Bruins' top rival, the Montreal Canadiens.^[7]

Transactions

The Bruins have been involved in the following transactions during the 2016–17 season:

Trades

Date			Ref
	To Florida Panthers 7th-round pick in 2016	To Boston Bruins 7th-round pick in 2017	^[8]
	To Winnipeg Jets conditional 6th-round pick in 2018	To Boston Bruins Drew Stafford	^[9]

Free agents acquired

Date	Player	Former team	Contract terms (in U.S. dollars)	Ref
			5 years, $30 million	^[10]
			2 years, $2.4 million	^[11]
			2 years, $1.8 million
			1 year, $600,000
			1 year, $900,000	^[12]
			1 year, $600,000

Free agents lost

Date	Player	New team	Contract terms (in U.S. dollars)	Ref
			1 year, $800,000	^[13]
			1 year, $650,000	^[14]
			6 years, $36 million	^[15]
			1 year, $575,000	^[16]
			2 years, $5 million	^[17]
			1 year, $850,000	^[18]
			1-year, $900,000	^[19]
			1 year, $700,000	^[20]
			1 year, $1 million	^[21]

Player signings

Date	Player	Contract terms (in U.S. dollars)	Ref
		4 years, $21 million	^[23]
		1 year, $600,000
		1 year, $2 million
		1 year, $600,000
		2 years, $2 million	^[24]
		1 year, $800,000
		1 year, $650,000
		1 year, $725,000
		8 years, $49 million contract extension	^[25]
	Jesse Gabrielle	3 years, $2.775 million entry-level contract	^[26]
		2 years, entry-level contract	^[27]
		3 years, $2.775 million entry-level contract
		3 years, $2.775 million entry-level contract	^[28]
		3 years, $3.775 million entry-level contract	^[29]
		3 years, $2.775 million entry-level contract	^[30]
		3 years, $3.2 million entry-level contract	^[31]
		1 year, $650,000 contract extension	^[32]

Draft picks

See also: List of Boston Bruins draft picks. Below are the Boston Bruins' selections at the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, to be held on June 24–25, 2016 at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, New York.

Round		Player	Pos	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	14	Charlie McAvoy	D	United States	Boston University (Hockey East)
1	29	Trent Frederic	C	United States	U.S. NTDP (USHL)
2	49	Ryan Lindgren	D	United States	U.S. NTDP (USHL)
5	135	Joona Koppanen	LW	Finland	Ilves-jr. (FIN-Jr.)
5	136	Cameron Clarke	D	Canada	Lone Star Brahmas (NAHL)
6	165	Oskar Steen	C	Sweden	Farjestad-jr. (Swe-Jr)

Notes

• The San Jose Sharks' first-round pick went to the Boston Bruins as the result of a trade on June 30, 2015, that sent Martin Jones to San Jose in exchange for Sean Kuraly and this pick.^[33]
• The Boston Bruins' second-round pick went to the Tampa Bay Lightning as the result of a trade on March 2, 2015, that sent Brett Connolly to Boston in exchange for a second-round pick in 2015 and this pick.^[34]
• The New York Islanders' second-round pick went to the Boston Bruins as the result of a trade on October 4, 2014, that sent Johnny Boychuk to New York in exchange for Philadelphia's second-round pick in 2015, a conditional third-round pick in 2015 and this pick.^[35]
• The Boston Bruins' third-round pick went to the Carolina Hurricanes as the result of a trade on February 29, 2016, that sent John-Michael Liles to Boston in exchange for Anthony Camara, a fifth-round pick in 2017 and this pick.^[36]
• The Boston Bruins' fourth-round pick went to the New Jersey Devils as the result of a trade on February 29, 2016, that sent Lee Stempniak to Boston in exchange for a second-round pick in 2017 and this pick.^[37]
• The Minnesota Wild's fifth-round pick went to the Boston Bruins as the result of a trade on June 27, 2015, that sent a fifth-round pick in 2015 to Minnesota in exchange for this pick.^[38]
• The Boston Bruins' sixth-round pick was re-acquired as the result of a trade on June 25, 2015, that sent Carl Soderberg to Colorado in exchange for this pick.^[39]

Colorado previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on March 2, 2015, that sent Max Talbot and Paul Carey to Boston in exchange for Jordan Caron and this pick.^[40]

• The Boston Bruins' seventh-round pick went to the Florida Panthers as the result of a trade on June 25, 2016, that sent a seventh-round pick in 2017 to Boston in exchange for this pick.^[41]

Notes and References

1. Book: National Hockey League. The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2014. 2013. Diamond Sports Data, Inc.. 25. 978-1-894801-26-3.
2. Web site: Bruins Announce 2016 Rookie Camp, Training Camp And Preseason Schedules - Boston Bruins - News. Boston Bruins. June 24, 2016. May 31, 2016.
3. Web site: 2016–2017 Regular Season Schedule/Results – Boston Bruins – Schedule. Boston Bruins. June 24, 2016.
4. Web site: 2016–2017 – Regular Season – Boston Bruins – All Skaters – Summary – Points – NHL.com – Stats. NHL.
5. Web site: 2016–2017 – Regular Season – Boston Bruins – Goalie – Summary – Wins – NHL.com – Stats. NHL.
6. Web site: Joe Pelletier's Greatest Hockey Legends.com - Smokey Harris . Pelletier . Joseph . June 2011 . bruinslegends.blogspot.com . bruinslegends.blogspot.com . November 24, 2016 . This is Smokey Harris. He is the answer to the trivia question "Who scored the first goal in Boston Bruins history?"...on December 1st, 1924 the Bruins played their first NHL game, hosting their expansion cousins the Montreal Maroons at the Boston Arena. The Maroons opened the scoring that night, with Dinny Dinsmore scoring on an unassisted effort at the 9 minute mark of the 1st period. Cue Harris. At 3:30 of the second period he took a pass from Carson "Shovel Shot" Cooper and beat Maroons goaltender Clint Benedict to open the scoring. Exactly 6 minutes later Cooper scored the only other goal of the night, securing the Bruins a 2-1 victory in their very first game. . https://web.archive.org/web/20161125050601/http://bruinslegends.blogspot.com/2011/06/smokey-harris.html . November 25, 2016 . dead .
7. Web site: Need to Know: Bruins vs. Senators — Wait, There's More . Russo . Eric . November 23, 2016 . nhl.com/bruins . Boston Bruins . November 24, 2016 . David Backes' power-play goal in the first period of Boston's 4-2 loss to St. Louis Tuesday night was the franchise's 20,000th goal. They joined the Montreal Canadiens as the only NHL teams to achieve that feat..
8. Web site: B's Make Four Selections In Rounds Two Through Seven Of The 2016 NHL Entry Draft. nhl.com. June 29, 2016.
9. Web site: Bruins Acquire Drew Stafford From Winnipeg. nhl.com. March 1, 2017.
10. Web site: Bruins Sign Forward David Backes To Five-Year Contract Through The 2020-21 Season Worth $6 Million Annually. nhl.com. July 5, 2016.
11. Web site: Bruins Sign Six Players. nhl.com. July 5, 2016.
12. Web site: Bruins Sign Dominic Moore, Chris Casto, Brian Ferlin And Alex Grant To One-Year Contracts. nhl.com. August 31, 2016.
13. Web site: Oilers sign goaltender Jonas Gustavsson. Edmonton Oilers. July 5, 2016.
14. Web site: Free Agency Continues, Kings Sign D-Man Zach Trotman. nhl.com. July 5, 2016.
15. Web site: Canucks sign Loui Eriksson to six-year deal. nhl.com. July 5, 2016.
16. Web site: Predators Add Irwin Via a One-Year Contract. nhl.com. July 5, 2016.
17. Web site: Lee Stempniak Agrees to Terms with Hurricanes. nhl.com. July 6, 2016.
18. Web site: Capitals Sign Brett Connolly. . July 1, 2016 . July 6, 2016.
19. News Release: Senators sign forward Chris Kelly to a one-year contract. Ottawa Senators. July 7, 2016. July 11, 2016.
20. Web site: Blues Agree to Deal with Ferraro . NHL.com . July 9, 2016.
21. Web site: Seidenberg Agrees To One-Year Deal . . September 28, 2016 . September 28, 2016.
22. Web site: Leafs claim Seth Griffith off waivers, have cuts still to make. Horby, Lance. Toronto Sun. October 11, 2016. October 11, 2016.
23. Web site: Bruins Sign Defenseman Torey Krug To Four-Year Contract Worth $5.25 Million Annually. nhl.com. July 5, 2016.
24. Web site: Bruins Sign Colin Miller To Two-Year Contract Worth $1 Million Annually; Sign Joe Morrow To One-Year Contract Worth $800,000. nhl.com. July 18, 2016.
25. Web site: Marchand signs eight-year, $49 million extension with Bruins. TSN. September 26, 2016.
26. Web site: Bruins Sign Jesse Gabrielle To Entry-Level Contract. NHL.com. May 28, 2017.
27. Web site: B's Ink Fitzgerald, Johansson To Entry-Level Deals. NHL.com. March 27, 2017.
28. Web site: B's Sign Forsbacka Karlsson To Entry-Level Contract. NHL.com. May 28, 2017.
29. Web site: B's Ink Charlie McAvoy To 3-Year Entry-Level Contract. NHL.com. May 28, 2017.
30. Web site: Bruins Sign Joona Koppanen To Entry-Level Contract. NHL.com. May 28, 2017.
31. Web site: Bruins Sign Forward Anders Bjork To 3-Year Entry-Level Contract. NHL.com. May 30, 2017.
32. Web site: Bruins Sign Defenseman Tommy Cross To 1-Year, 2-Way Contract. NHL.com. June 14, 2017.
33. Web site: Sharks acquire goaltender Jones from Bruins. June 30, 2015. June 30, 2015.
34. Web site: Bruins acquire forward Connolly from Lightning. March 2, 2015. March 2, 2015.
35. Web site: Islanders trade for defensemen Boychuk, Leddy. National Hockey League. October 4, 2014. October 4, 2014.
36. Web site: Canes Acquire Picks, Prospect for Liles. February 29, 2016. February 29, 2016.
37. Web site: Devils acquire second- and fourth-round picks from Boston. February 29, 2016. February 29, 2016.
38. Web site: Trades completed during 2015 NHL Draft weekend. June 27, 2015. June 27, 2015.
39. Web site: Bruins Acquire A 2016 Sixth Round Pick From The Colorado Avalanche In Exchange For The Rights To Carl Soderberg. June 25, 2015. June 25, 2015.
40. Web site: Bruins acquire Talbot from Avalanche for Caron. March 2, 2015. March 2, 2015.
41. Web site: Boston Bruins NHL Draft 2016 Tracker: Every Pick, Rumor From Day 2. June 25, 2016. June 25, 2016.