Frankly, Julien has done more with less. In the offseason, General Manager Peter Chiarelli traded away disgruntled Phil Kessel, the team's leading goal scorer last season with 36 goals. The Bruins netted two first round drafts picks from the Maple Leafs (one of which will be the #2 pick in June's draft) and a second rounder for Kessel, so the Bruins have to be happy with the outcome.
With the team badly struggling midseason and many clamoring for the Bruins to acquire a goal-scorer like Ilya Kovalchuk, the team decided to stand pat. Claude had to make it work with the group of guys that he alredy had in the locker room.
Julien has coached around a flurry of injuries to key players including Marc Savard (41 games), Milan Lucic (32 games), and Andrew Ferrance (31 games) among others. Currently, the B's are without Dennis Seidenberg & Brad Stuart.
Many things are different this season, yet the Bruins find themselves in a similar situation. The B's are again playing for an opportunity to play in the Eastern Conference Finals. However, this year is slightly different in that the Bruins currently have a comfortable 3-0 series lead and are just one way away from the next round.
Lets give credit where credit is due. Claude Julien is a major reason for this team's sustained success.
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