Inconsistency Remains Bruins Calling Card

For the first three games of the 2025-26 campaign, the vibes in Boston must have been pretty good as the team reeled off three straight wins to start the season, including a 3-1 victory on opening night against the Washington Capitals. So far, so good, right?

Wrong.

Then came what will forever be known as the “Dark Days” in Boston. For the next week and a half, the Bruins failed to win. First came a loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Oct. 13. Then three straight defeats followed — first to the Vegas Golden Knights on Oct. 16, then to the Colorado Avalanche (but who doesn’t lose to the Avalanche?) on Oct. 18 and finally to the Utah Mammoth on Oct. 19. It was a miserable West Coast road trip that folks in Boston will want to forget forevermore. Three more losses followed, turning what was a promising beginning to the season into a nightmare. Bad times, indeed.

But then the “Dark Days” ceased, and out sprang a prosperous chapter of happiness and cheer that will be known as the “Bright Side.” The Bruins won eight of their next nine, three of which came in overtime or a shootout and two of which were over the hated Toronto Maple Leafs. All in all, this hot stretch righted the season after it was falling off the rails early, helping the team get back on track for the long run.

There have been several other inconsistent stretches since then. Boston went 3-5 in the immediate aftermath of the “Bright Side,” but then proceeded to go 6-2 to make everything right again. Then, with people thinking that all of the Bruins’ issues had been solved, the team lost six in a row — one of which was in overtime and another in a shootout. It was baffling, bamboozling and just all-around confusing. What is going on with the Bruins?

That brings us to the present day, where Boston is currently in the midst of one of its hot stretches. Since Dec. 31, the Bruins are 6-1. Included in that batch of wins is a 10-2 rout of the New York Rangers, a game that saw Marat Khusnutdinov and Pavel Zacha record historic hat tricks, a 6-2 triumph over the Edmonton Oilers and Connor McDavid, and a 3-0 victory against the Detroit Red Wings, one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.

The pattern is, of course, recognizable. At some point in the near future, the Bruins will forget how to win hockey games. Then, once the world seems to be at its end, the team will lift the plane out of its free fall and rise to glory once more. Then some losing will happen, followed by more winning. It’s a roller coaster that’s more chaotic than Six Flags Magic Mountain’s X2.

But should the Bruins find themselves in one of their upswings at the right moment, then a run toward a Stanley Cup could be on the horizon. After all, what’s more fearsome than a team that’s as hot as can be once the playoffs roll around? There is also the distinct possibility that Boston is in the middle of one of its “Dark Days” when the Stanley Cup Playoffs commence, which would spell disaster. The only way to know for certain is to wait and see.