Bruins at a glance
	Camp schedule: Sept. 11: Rusticcia Memorial Arena (Wilmington, Mass.) Coach: Robbie Ftorek (1st season) General manager: Mike O'Connell (2nd season)

After missing the playoffs for the second straight year, the Bruins retooled (again), letting go coach Mike Keenan and bringing in Robbie Ftorek -- their third coach in eight months. Whether it makes a difference or not remains to be seen.

They overspent for one unrestricted free agent (Martin Lapointe) and added depth with others (Rob Zamuner, Sean O'Donnell, Scott Pellerin). This is a pivotal year for general manager Mike O'Connell, who is heading into the last year of his contract.

Center of attention: When fall arrives, you can count on a chill in the air and a salary squabble with at least one player. This year it's captain Jason Allison, who is the No. 1 pivotman. Joe Thornton, who has made great strides in his first four years, is still a year or so away from being the top center so the Bruins are in a pickle.

Minding the net: The team drafted a goaltender in June but didn't make a move to acquire any, believing that Byron Dafoe's balky right knee will hold up. If not, they'll be counting on backup John Grahame to fill the bill. When Dafoe, who will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year, is in the net, the team always has a chance to win. It's keeping him there that was the problem last season.

Offense from defensemen: The blueliners were a huge disappointment in terms of helping out at the other end last year. Of the Bruins' 227 goals, only 19 came from the defensemen. Kyle McLaren, who suffered significant knee woes, had a team-high five. Eric Weinrich, who had six before coming to Boston from Montreal, added just one to the Bruins' offense. The team has got to get better production or they're not going anywhere.

Bruins 2001-02 preseason schedule
Date	Opponent	Time
Sat., Sept. 15	vs. Pittsburgh at First Union Arena, Wilkes-Barre, Pa.	Canceled
Sun., Sept. 16	vs. Washington at Cumberland County Civic Center, Portland, Me.	Canceled*
Tue., Sept. 18	at Detroit	7:30 p.m.
Thu., Sept. 20	at Montreal	7:30 p.m.
Fri., Sept. 21	Florida	7 p.m.
Mon., Sept. 24	vs. Washington at Cumberland County Civic Center, Portland, Me.	7 p.m.
Thu., Sept. 27	vs. Montreal at Halifax Metro Center, Halifax, Nova Scotia	6 p.m.
Fri., Sept. 28	vs. New Jersey at Dunkin' Donuts Center, Providence, R.I.	7 p.m.
Sat., Sept. 29	N.Y. Rangers	7 p.m.
Sun., Sept. 30	at N.Y. Rangers	5 p.m.
*Rescheduled for Sept. 24