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FLUTO SHINZAWA

Claude Julien has a plan for next season’s Bruins

“We’re going to play quicker and we’re going to want to play quicker,” said Bruins coach Claude Julien.AP

Claude Julien had time to watch playoff hockey this spring. His season ended April 9 in a 6-1 hammering by Ottawa, a conclusion that accelerated his timeline to undergo hip replacement surgery.

With neither his day job nor his regular physical activity eating into his schedule, the Bruins coach followed Pittsburgh’s caffeinated charge to the Stanley Cup.

Julien praised the Penguins for peaking at the right time. He approved of the tempo at which they played. He liked how their young players, starting with Matt Murray, provided their superstars with the support that every championship team requires.

Despite all that, the NHL’s current longest-tenured coach with one club is not sprinting toward acceptance of the Pittsburgh model and tearing down what he has helped to build in Boston.

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“We always want to imitate the team that wins and what they do,” Julien said of the league’s annual exercise of mimicry. “But one year the team that wins is big and strong. The next one is maybe quicker. It just seems to go back and forth. I really think you’ve got to play the game you believe in, and you’ve got to play it well.”

In other words, Julien does not intend to rewrite the formula that has helped him become the winningest coach in Bruins history. He believes in robust defense, protecting in layers, and attacking with speed and numbers.

The problem of preventing a third straight playoff shortfall, however, will be tricky for Julien to solve. At this point, his roster stands to be diminished. Loui Eriksson, one of Julien’s four best forwards last year, could walk Friday. Fellow right wings Brett Connolly and Lee Stempniak will become unrestricted on the same day. Zdeno Chara and Dennis Seidenberg will be a year older.

The Bruins have posted help wanted signs at multiple positions: defense, right wing, and backup goalie. These are not vacancies that make coaches comfortable.

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So unless general manager Don Sweeney can execute significant upgrades via trades or free agency, Julien will be trying to wring more points out of a lineup that may not have any to spare. If the Bruins are to execute a turnaround, the starting point will be within his players’ heads.

“ ‘Mind-set’ is probably the biggest keyword,” Julien said. “We’ve got to have that mind-set. We’re going to play quicker and we’re going to want to play quicker. You’ve got to tell yourself that’s how you want to play. Hopefully we’ll be able to do that.”

Julien believes an adjustment in attitude will result in a team that plays faster, crisper, and better, even if it doesn’t follow Pittsburgh’s blueprint. To prove his point, Julien cited Pittsburgh’s priority of at-all-costs puck clearance. It didn’t matter how the Penguins moved the puck from the defensive zone just as long as it advanced to center ice, where they preferred to engage in their swarming battles.

If the Bruins execute their breakouts crisply, they’ll exit their zone as efficiently as Pittsburgh, just using another approach.

“I’m not sure if teams around the league are going to want to do that — just chip pucks out, chip pucks out. Who knows?” Julien said. “I think most teams would rather probably break out of their own end quick, but hopefully with a certain amount of control, a good first pass or whatever.

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“It’s not about having speed. It’s about how fast you want to play the game, how fast you want to close the gap, how fast you want to get it out, and how fast you’re going to counter instead of slowing the game down, D-to-D, back to D.”

The game continues to evolve, with pace being the primary improvement. Every team in the playoffs, not just Pittsburgh, thought and played with speed and precision. The unexpected, as it always does in the small-sample postseason, still took place.

Even during the regular season, Julien believed Washington was the team to beat. Braden Holtby, the eventual Vezina Trophy winner, was a proven ace. The Capitals played mean hockey in the defensive zone. They had depth up front. Once they got to their down-low grind game, the scoring chances began. Their roster included multiple game-breakers, from Alex Ovechkin to Nicklas Backstrom to Evgeny Kuznetsov.

“They forechecked well, but they also did a good job of closing quickly,” said Julien. “They didn’t give you much room to play in their own end. But their skill level — look at their roster. Let’s be honest. Their skill level is unbelievable overall throughout their lineup.”

Yet a collection of variables led to the Penguins beating the favored Capitals — better speed, a hot goalie, good luck. Such things happen in the playoffs. In retrospect, the Penguins were playing better at the right time.

Last year, the Bruins did the opposite — hitting the wall at the wrong time. Whether they can prevent a repeat will depend heavily on internal improvement. Frank Vatrano, Colin Miller, and Joe Morrow were among the young players who showed hints of potential but fell short of qualifying as full-time NHLers. That should change next year, while youngsters such as Austin Czarnik, Brandon Carlo, Rob O’Gara, and Matt Grzelcyk also could push for NHL work.

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“If you think they’re ready and they can come in and help your team, why not?” said Julien. “No issues there.

“At the end of the day, no matter what you have at training camp, my opinion is you put in your best guys that are going to make your team be successful.”

Projected Bruins lineup for 2016-17

Forward lines

Brad Marchand-Patrice Bergeron-TBA

Matt Beleskey-David Krejci-David Pastrnak

Frank Vatrano-Ryan Spooner-Jimmy Hayes

TBA-Noel Acciari-Brian Ferlin

Defensive pairings

Zdeno Chara-Colin Miller

Torey Krug-Adam McQuaid

Dennis Seidenberg-Kevan Miller

Goalies

Tuukka Rask

Malcolm Subban


Fluto Shinzawa can be reached at fshinzawa@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeFluto.