I can’t tell you how excited I was when I first got the assignment to write about the best Boston Bruins players of the past 25 years. Immediately, my mind fixated on players like Cam Neely, Adam Oates and, of course, Ray Bourque.
Then I remembered I was old because 1994 was more than 30 years ago.
Whether the modern-day Bruins have been better than their counterparts from the last 25 years of the 1900s is a debate for another BetMassachusetts.com article across Massachusetts sports betting. The B’s listed below were part of an era that included three Presidents’ Trophies, three Eastern Conference titles and the franchise’s first Stanley Cup in nearly four decades.
To do this, we relied on Hockey-Reference.com’s point shares statistic, which is like win shares in baseball and basketball, to determine the top four forwards at each position, the top six defensemen and the top two goalies. Some of these players played in Boston before Y2K, but the point shares they accrued in those seasons did not count.
Player | Years With Team | Quarter-Century Point Shares |
Patrice Bergeron | 2003-2023 | 125.5 |
David Krejci | 2006-2023 | 84.0 |
Joe Thornton | 2000-2006 | 40.2 |
Marc Savard | 2006-2011 | 29.9 |
The top name on all these lists rank among the top 10 Bruins in all-time point shares, and Bergeron is the top modern-era Bruin. He’s third overall behind Bourque and Bobby Orr. He scored 427 goals and 1,040 points and had six 30-goal seasons during his 19-year career in Boston, but he wasn’t just about offense. Bergeron won the Selke Award for best defensive forward six times, including his final two seasons.
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Play it smart from the start! Live Chat @ http://GameSenseMA.comPlayer | Years With Team | Quarter-Century Point Shares |
Brad Marchand | 2009-2025 | 125.2 |
Milan Lucic | 2007-2015, 2023-2024 | 41.0 |
Jake DeBrusk | 2017-2024 | 30.0 |
Sergei Samsonov | 2000-2006 | 28.1 |
Dubbed the “Little Ball of Hate,” the 5-foot-9 Marchand is the type of player fans of other teams despise but would love him dearly if he played for their team. Marchand may have eclipsed Bergeron in point shares had he not been sent to the Florida Panthers last month at the NHL trade deadline. With 424 goals, he ranks fourth all-time in franchise history behind Johnny Bucyk, Phil Esposito and his long-time teammate.
Player | Years With Team | Quarter-Century Point Shares |
David Pastrnak | 2014-Present | 106.8 |
Glen Murray | 2002-2008 | 41.8 |
Loui Eriksson | 2013-2016 | 17.4 |
Mike Knuble | 2000-2004 | 16.8 |
Pastrnak is consistently one of the league’s top goal scorers. He finished this season with 43,good for fourth in the NHL regular season, and 391 in his 11 seasons. Pasta has topped 40 goals in five of the last six seasons. The only season he didn’t was the COVID-shortened 2020-21 campaign that lasted just 48 games.
If he’s able to produce at his current rate for a few more seasons, Pastrnak will quickly make his way up the all-time Bruins list. He currently ranks 10th in all-time point shares. He also could catch Bucyk and his franchise record of 545 goals, a record to keep note of across Massachusetts betting apps.
Player | Years With Team | Quarter-Century Point Shares |
Zdeno Chara | 2006-2020 | 109.1 |
Charlie McAvoy | 2017-Present | 57.5 |
Torey Krug | 2011-2020 | 54.2 |
Brandon Carlo | 2016-2025 | 35.3 |
Matt Grzelcyk | 2016-2024 | 33.6 |
Dennis Seidenberg | 2010-2016 | 25.9 |
For almost any other franchise, Chara would go down in history as its best ever. The Czech giant, who stood 6-foot-9 without skates, has to settle for third with the Bruins.
Surprisingly, he won the Norris Trophy just once in his career. He was an instrumental part of all three Bruins teams that reached the Stanley Cup Final and twice led the league in plus-minus during the playoffs.
Player | Years With Team | Quarter-Century Point Shares |
Tuukka Rask | 2007-2022 | 107.1 |
Tim Thomas | 2002-2012 | 85.4 |
Both goalies listed here were workhorses for the Bruins and were teammates for six seasons. That includes the 2010-11 Stanley Cup champions when Thomas won the Conn Smythe Award for being the most valuable player in the playoffs.
Rask gets the nod, though, mainly because of longevity. Over a five-season span from 2013-14 to 2017-18, the durable Finn posted a 172-92-37 record with a .920 save percentage and a 2.30 goals-against average. His 2.28 GAA for his career, which he played for the Bruins exclusively, ranks 11th. The only netminders above him who have played since 1990 are Dominik Hasek and Martin Brodeur.
USA Today photo by Winslow Townson.
Hope is here. Call (800) 327-5050 or http://gamblinghelplinema.orgPlay it smart from the start! Live Chat @ http://GameSenseMA.comAuthor
Steve is an accomplished, award-winning reporter with more than 20 years of experience covering gaming, sports, politics and business. He has written for the Associated Press, Reuters, The Louisville Courier Journal, The Center Square and numerous other publications. Based in Louisville, Ky., Steve has covered the expansion of sports betting in the U.S. and other gaming matters.
Hope is here. Call (800) 327-5050 or http://gamblinghelplinema.org Play it smart from the start! Live Chat @ http://GameSenseMA.com
Hope is here. Call (800) 327-5050 or http://gamblinghelplinema.orgPlay it smart from the start! Live Chat @ http://GameSenseMA.com
Hope is here. Call (800) 327-5050 or http://gamblinghelplinema.org Play it smart from the start! Live Chat @ http://GameSenseMA.com
Hope is here. Call (800) 327-5050 or http://gamblinghelplinema.org Play it smart from the start! Live Chat @ http://GameSenseMA.com
Hope is here. Call (800) 327-5050 or http://gamblinghelplinema.orgPlay it smart from the start! Live Chat @ http://GameSenseMA.comCited by leading media organizations, such as:
