Questions surround Bruins' future

BOSTON --Despite getting the help they needed Saturday, the Boston Bruins didn't take care of their end of the deal and failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Bruins needed one point against the Ottawa Senators to clinch a playoff berth because the Detroit Red Wings lost to the New York Rangers. Instead, the Bruins lost to the Senators 6-1 and came up one point short.
So for the second straight season the Bruins are not in the playoffs and they're left to lament the points they didn't get throughout the season that would've made a difference.

"If you look back, just one or two points would make a difference at the end," captain Zdeno Chara said. "But again, we had these stretches where we played well and then when we had to kind of maintain that play and effort, we fell backwards. And then again it took us a few games to get going and be back at the place where we were and again we fell back."
There are always changes made to teams, regardless how the season ends, but with the Bruins missing the playoffs two straight seasons, general manager Don Sweeney may want to continue to overhaul the roster. There also are questions about the future of coach Claude Julien. Neither Sweeney nor Julien spoke Monday.

Bruins center David Krejci, though, said blame for any failures should fall on the players.
"We lose as a team and we win as a team, and we obviously didn't show up [against the Senators]," Krejci said. "We failed when it mattered the most. And the result is that we won't be playing hockey for the next couple of months. ... Obviously didn't live up to our expectations and we're here now."
WHAT THEY SAID:"We probably lost some points we could have gotten," goaltender Tuukka Rask said. "But then again, I think at the end of the day you get what you deserve, and the kind of a roller-coaster season we had, we got what we deserved and that's the end of it. We definitely showed signs of good hockey at times and we just couldn't keep that going for a long period of time. Because you know if we would have played like we played against Detroit [a 5-2 win Thursday] and some other games, the outcome would have been different. But it's easy to stand here and say that now, but yeah, we definitely got what we deserved."
THE BURNING QUESTION:How will the Bruins address their defensive deficiencies after finishing 20th in goals-allowed per game (2.78)?
INJURIES: Krejci needs surgery on his left hip and is expected to need 3-4 months to recover. He said he hopes to be able to play for Team Czech Republic at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, and that he expects to be ready for training camp. Forwards Brett Connolly (MCL sprain), Jimmy Hayes (MCL sprain) and Patrice Bergeron (sprained ankle), and defenseman Dennis Seidenberg (groin strain), need rest and not surgery for their injuries.
WHO COULD GO:Forwards Loui Eriksson, Lee Stempniak, Max Talbot and Chris Kelly, defensemen John-Michael Liles and Kevan Miller, and goaltender Jonas Gustavsson, will become unrestricted free agents July 1.
BIGGEST NEEDS:Top-four defense, scoring on the wings
2016 DRAFT PICKS: The Bruins' two first-round picks, theirs and the San Jose Sharks' first pick, which was acquired for goaltender Martin Jones. They have seven picks total.
REASON FOR OPTIMISM:The Bruins still have a world-class goaltender in Rask and one of the best one-two center punches in the League with Bergeron and Krejci. Between their haul at the 2015 NHL Draft, when they picked five players in the first two rounds, their other prospects and players they will select at the 2016 draft, the Bruins should have plenty of building blocks and trade assets for the next couple of seasons.