Bruins prez Cam Neely sends strong message to players, speaks out on rebuild

Boston Bruins' president of hockey operations Cam Neely gave a strong warning to the underperforming franchise’s players. The Bruins are currently on a seven-game losing streak and, with only nine games left in the season, are almost certain to miss the playoffs.

In an interview with the Boston Globe’s Jim McBride on Wednesday, Neely did not pull any punches while discussing the Bruins' future rebuild.

“There isn't really too much I can say about liking during the season right now,” Neely said via the Globe. “It's just really about how we finish and seeing what guys may want to step up and show us that they're NHL players.

"I think everything is on the table as far as trying to improve the club."

The Bruins were major sellers on the trade market this season, moving Charlie Coyle, Brandon Carlo, Trent Frederic and, most prominently, club captain Brad Marchand before the deadline on Mar. 7.

Marchand’s trade to the Florida Panthers minutes before the deadline ended has been a polarizing move as far as fans and analysts are concerned. Detractors saw it as an empty sensationalist move made for shock value, while others said that it was unavoidable given the circumstances. With the team's recent poor form, the criticism is becoming louder.

Neeley opened up about the difficult decision to move players.

“It was difficult. It was something we hadn’t had to do since I’ve been president. So normally we’re adding, not subtracting, so it was a little bit more challenging. Those guys have been around for quite some time and they’re really good people,” Neeley said.

During his interview, Neeley also tackled the issue of Boston fans booing their team during recent games.

“I feel like the only time they really boo is when they don’t like the effort that’s put out. You can play bad hockey, but you can work hard and put the effort in.”

Boston Bruins slump to 6-2 loss against Anaheim Ducks

The Bruins suffered their seventh loss in a row on Wednesday, losing 6-2 to the struggling Anaheim Ducks. The team’s defensive frailties were exposed as they let in their 11th short-handed goal of the season, tying the Tampa Bay Lightning for letting in the most this season.

Boston star David Pastrnak scored his 35th goal of the season but was unable to prevent the rout.

"We have nine games left," Pastrnak said via NHL.com. "We still need to build something in this group and be connected."

The team is currently six points short of earning a Wild Card playoff spot with 69 points from 73 games.