01:00 AM EST on Sunday, December 14, 2003

BOSTON -- Before you get nervous, there is a big difference between last year and this season for the Boston Bruins.

Sure, it seems pretty ironic the team is in the midst of a funk right now, exactly one year since its biggest meltdown in recent history.

Last season, the Bruins got off to an incredible 13-2-1-1 start, and then went down the drain quicker than you can say Jack Robinson. They barely made the playoffs, then lost in the first round to the eventual Stanley Cup Champion, the New Jersey Devils.

This season, Boston jumped out to an 11-2-3-3 start, but has fizzled since. Before last night's game against the Ottawa Senators, the Bruins were 1-4-4-1 in their last 10 games.

But, there is a huge difference between the two scenarios. While last year was a major debacle, this season is just a bump in the ice, and there's a perfectly clear explanation for it all.

There's no need to talk about whether rookie coach Mike Sullivan has lost the team so early. That's not the case. It's a long season and a team is bound to have its peaks and valleys. It just so happens that the two seasons have strong similarities on the outside. But, behind closed doors it's quite different.

The Bruins' 6-5 loss to the Washington Capitals on Thursday is a perfect example.

Boston was beat and most teams would have thrown in the towel, but the black and gold battled back. The Bruins scored two goals less than a minute apart with two minutes remaining in regulation and Sullivan couldn't have said it better after the loss.

"We did a lot of good things," he said. "We competed right down to the wire. That's the kind of team we want to be. One that competes to the last second, no matter what the score is."

A year ago this statement wouldn't have rung true.

During last season's meltdown the Bruins were outscored, 64-37, during an 18-game stretch from Dec. 10 against the Montreal Canadiens to Jan. 17 versus the Atlanta Thrashers. Over Boston's previous 10 games before last night, it was outscored 23-16. Average out the two and it's quite a difference.

Sure, there have been boring, ho-hum games over the last two weeks, but the important thing is that the Bruins are still earning points. More importantly, this season the team has solid goaltending. The play at that position was a farce a year ago.

Andrew Raycroft is quickly becoming the go-to guy and for all the right reasons. He's the future for the club and Sullivan knows he can rely on him to get the job done.

Last season, former coach Robbie Ftorek had to deal with John Grahame and Steve Shields. Wow, just the thought of that tandem compared with this year's would make anyone's stomach turn.

Sullivan is a motivator. He can -- and will -- get the most out of his players. He's been shuffling the lines around a bit, looking for the right combinations. Eventually, he'll get back to what was working earlier in the year and before you know it the Bruins will be on another roll.

Boston knows how to win and has proven that this season. Captain Joe Thornton is the leader -- when he wants to be -- on the ice. And, even though fans are giving Marty Lapointe a hard time, he's the leader off the ice and as long he can remain healthy you can expect him to have a career season.

Despite which combinations Sullivan decides to send out against opponents, the more crucial point is that he has the manpower to do so. From top to bottom, the Bruins have a lineup that wants to win. There's no bickering between linemates, no arguing between goaltenders, and more importantly, no complaining about the coach's decisions.

Unlike Robie Ftorek a year ago, Sullivan hasn't deviated from the norm. He's not making defensemen into forwards or vice-versa. Sullivan knows which goaltender will be able to lead this team and he's giving Raycroft every opportunity to succeed.

Including last night's game against the Senators, the next nine games could make or break the Bruins' season, because it was the same time last season when Boston imploded.

This season, however, is quite different. The players know it. The coach knows it. And, even though the fans feel like it's going to happen again, it won't.

It won't happen this year with these players and this coach. It's a guarantee -- hopefully.