DONE DEAL: Boston Bruins have reached verbal agreement to sign another top sensational star….

(AP) — ARLINGTON, VA After a record-breaking season in which the Bruins finished as the Stanley Cup favorites, Kevin Shattenkirk arrived in Boston months after the team’s first-round playoff loss and saw Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci skate off into retirement.

It astounded him what he saw. Even with Bergeron, Krejci, and Zdeno Chara gone, the winning standard and professional culture he and his teammates were working to establish across the nation in Anaheim remained intact.

Shattenkirk remarked, “It’s very refreshing to see that groundwork has been laid.”

The Bruins, nevertheless, believe that the best is still to come. Eight games remain in the regular season until they can exact revenge for the heartbreaking loss that followed their record-breaking performance in the NHL.

With the most victories and points, they have guaranteed a postseason berth. They are now concentrating on honing their game in anticipation of the upcoming challenge and want to be more ready for it.

Captain Brad Marchand stated on Friday, “I thought we did a great job coming together and accomplishing what we needed to get to the playoffs—especially with the adversity that we went through, the amount of changeover that we had, and the players that we lost.” “It’s a big deal, but when the playoffs begin, everything starts over and the stakes are much higher.”

Though the squad isn’t the one to beat, internally there is expectation for the franchise’s first championship since 2011. On FanDuel Sportsbook, Boston has the seventh-highest odds to win the Cup—behind Florida, Colorado, Carolina, Edmonton, Dallas, and the New York Rangers—at 11-1.

All of that is true even though they are only three points behind the Rangers for the league’s top record and the Presidents’ Trophy, which isn’t something that anyone wants to win but gives them home-ice advantage in the postseason nonetheless.

The 35-year-old Marchand and other elite players aren’t expected to be rested by coach Jim Montgomery since he believes they aren’t being overworked already. Furthermore, there’s a goal to wrap things up well before the playoffs begin on April 20.

“Since the All-Star break, probably, we knew we would be in the playoffs for a while,” Montgomery admitted. “For us, it’s more about playing the right way and fighting for positioning right now in order to make the playoffs.”

Montgomery is of the opinion that the Bruins can compete effectively against any opponent if they adopt a specific, disciplined style of play. With three losses in the last four games, that has waned a little, but maybe going through a difficult time could help as the pressure mounts during the playoffs.

Marchand stated, “It’s about preparing the same way every night.” “You can’t just turn a switch when it’s playoff time. You must be prepared, and there are There are many teams that are now playing incredibly well and battling for their lives; if you don’t have the same mentality, you can be taken off guard when the playoffs roll around. Thus, it’s important to make sure that you always arrive ready to play and that you never become complacent.