But Neely wisely isn't looking to clean house just one year removed from a Stanley Cup championship.
Speaking at an end of season news conference with owner Jeremy Jacobs and principal Charlie Jacobs, Neely expressed his continuing confidence in the team that general manager Peter Chiarelli has assembled and dismissed notions of a major overhaul of the roster or club leadership.
"I think just some tweaking," Neely said of the club's offseason plans. "Peter and I spoke a few days after the season ended. We're going to have more discussions as the summer progresses here but I like the makeup of our team. I like the character of our team. I think Pete's done a really good job of signing players before they become free agents as best he can.
"I think we have guys that are still going to improve," Neely added. "We have a young team in that regard as far as the core goes, and will improve. But we know we have some areas we will look to improve and we'll have more discussions in the offseason on how we can go about doing that."
Neely admitted that he's still "learning patience" and the lack of a radical revamping of the roster, "Doesn't mean I have to be satisfied with not winning."
But this is definitely a case where a little patience is well advised. Neely's emotion on the ice help make him a hall of fame player equally feared for his quick temper as he was for his scoring prowess. But leading a team in the boardroom is a little different than battling along the boards, and as disappointing as this year's early exit was, it shouldn't force the Bruins to stray from the plan that led them to the franchise's first Cup in 39 years last June.
So don't expect the Bruins to be making any major moves this summer. There will be some new blood brought in and depth added. Competition for spots is always needed. But there won't necessarily be any core players being shipped out or added to the mix.
"I think it's important to have guys pushing other guys," Neely said. "It's important to have fresh faces. I believe that just upon my own experience. It's also important to have guys who really truly love playing here, and I think most of our guys, if not all of them, love playing in this city."
Neely also had no hesitation in endorsing the work of Chiarelli and head coach Claude Julien.
"They both still have term on their contract," Neely said. "I thought they both did a great job this year. Claude's a very good coach and Peter's a good general manager. There's challenges at times with the way the [salary] cap is now, to try and make certain moves you'd like to make. The trade deadline is a great example of that. The offseason, especially July 1, is another good example of that. It's a little bit more difficult dealing with the cap than it used to be pre-cap.
"And I think Claude's done a good job," Neely added. "I've seen Claude make some adjustments since he's been here and I think it's been good thing. He communicates really well with the players. There's no gray area, which as a player I think is fantastic. You shouldn't have a gray area. He's done a really good job since he's been here."
There has been speculation that there could be changes elsewhere in the organization, particularly among Julien's assistants after the Bruins struggled so mightily on the power play again this season. But Neely indicated no changes were planned at this point.
"As far as I know yeah, there hasn't been any talks about anything different," Neely said when asked about the status of the assistants.
With five straight playoff appearances and a championship less than 12 months ago, there's no need for rash decisions at this point. Patience paid off with that Cup last year when many outside the organization were calling for heads to roll after the collapse against Philadelphia the previous spring, and it is the wisest course of action again this offseason.
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