Morning Skate 420: Chiarelli ‘expected better' from Kaberle

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By JoeHaggerty
CSNNE.com

LAKE PLACID, New YorkTime is running on Tomas Kaberle to actually do something meaningful for the Boston Bruins.The puck-moving defenseman and power play quarterback was brought to cure all of the ills that bothered the Bruins special teams, but Kaberle has managed only three power play assists in 27 gamesboth regular season and playoffssince he arrived in Boston. The Bruins are 0-for-11 on the power play during the playoffs, and there are whispers now that the ex-Toronto defenseman wasnt in the proper shape this season to take on responsibilities as a 1A defenseman to Zdeno Charas No. 1 role. Beyond that, Kaberle also seems to really lose poise and coolness during big moments in these high pressure games along with the seeming unwillingness to shoot the puck from the point position on the power play.Mix that all together with the occasional defensive brain cramp at key points in games since his arrival, and Bs general manager Peter Chiarelli didnt pull any punches when asked about things this morning on 98.5 the Sports Hubs Toucher and Rich during his weekly conversation.Has he been a disappointment? He hasnt played up to the level that we expected, said Chiarelli. There have been parts of his game where he hasnt played in the playoffs for a while, and some of those bad habits have stuck with him. We expected better.With that decided, on to the links:Martin St. Louis has root canal surgery and then dresses for playoff games in another show of postseason toughness. It isnt Mark Recchi playing through kidney stones, but still worth remarking.Down Goes Brown is one of the most consistently funny hockey blogs around, and their map of an NHL arena in the spirit of a Pirates treasure map is pretty high-level genius stuff.Jon Tortorella and the Rangers wish that Bruce Boudreau and the Washington Capitals would quit their whining. It is the playoffs, after all.Here is the full Peter Chiarelli interview this morning, including the Bs general manager refuting some of his comments about being satisfied with making it through a couple of playoff rounds this season.Mark Stuart goes through some of his final thoughts about the season end with the Atlanta Thrashers while speaking with the Blueland Blog on exit interview day in Atlanta.A candid conversation with Calgary Flames President Ken King about the direction of the Calgary franchise after falling short of the playoffs this season.ESPN.coms Pierre Lebrun has the story on an amazing San Jose Sharks comeback from a four goal deficit against the Los Angeles Kings at the Staples Center. Not going to lie, I didnt think the Sharks had that in them.Stan Fischler says that Claude Julien is out in Boston if the Bruins dont beat the Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs. To which I reply: No Duh.
Joe Haggerty can be reached at jhaggerty@comcastsportsnet.com.Follow Joe on Twitter at http:twitter.comHackswithHaggs

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