The opening of training camp means a renewed sense of optimism no matter which team is gearing up. From the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks, to the owners of June's first overall draft pick in the Edmonton Oilers. Rosters are shuffled, injuries are nursed, and each squad hits camp having erased the past from its collective memory, right?

Wrong. 

One would think the Bruins would find themselves atop the list of teams who looked into getting their hands on the neutralizer stick from "Men in Black" after blowing a 3-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Flyers. To the contrary, everyone from the top down preached just the opposite on Friday following the camp-opening fitness testing.

"One of the things we talked to the group about this morning was not essentially turning the page -- this is always going to be in out memory -- but building on it," general manager Peter Chiarelli said. "I don't think we are ever going to turn the page on it. We are going to build on it and we are going to respond to it." 

The message was well-received by both Claude Julien and his players. As much embarrassment and shock as the team and the city felt simultaneously following the series, the players are buying into the notion that keeping it in their minds -- at least a little -- may be the way for the team to take the next step. 

"Half of it is not forgetting what happened at the end of the season and half of it's using it as motivation going forward," defenseman Mark Stuart said. "It's a little bit of both."

Up 3-0 in the first period of Game 7, the Bruins failed to get on the board again after a fast start and saw the Flyers beat the defense and goaltender Tuukka Rask for four goals and the series victory. Speaking on Friday, Rask carried the same attitude as he did at Shawn Thornton's charity golf tournament last month.

"Obviously, you've got to recognize what happened and you can't just not think about it," Rask said. "It's in your mind somewhere and you know what happened and you've got to learn from that. If that same situation comes in front of us we've just got to be more prepared and ready to take the challenge and not fail like that."

Stuart mentioned the idea of this season being used to "remedy what happened" against the Flyers. While the series cannot be stricken from the record, the team obviously made some big additions in the offseason to form a more balanced roster. 

In trading for Nathan Horton and drafting Tyler Seguin -- who, as a result of the return of post-concussion symptoms for Marc Savard, will enter camp as a center rather than being moved to wing --  Chiarelli and the Bruins positioned themselves to pose a bigger threat offensively after earning a reputation for defense and goaltending. 

"On paper, it looks good," Patrice Bergeron said of the roster. "We need to bring it on the ice and that's something [that's] important."

As optimistic as the club has been in returning after such a traumatic ending, the coach doesn't view this season as an opportunity to avoid another embarrassing defeat. For Julien, it's a shot at redemption and a chance to make the Bruins the talk of the town for good. 

"I like the frame of mind that our guys are in right now. It's encouraging and I've sensed that for the last couple of weeks. I'm kind of looking forward to getting going here because we've got a pretty committed group this year that understands the opportunity that's in front of them and the things that we have to accomplish as an organization to make this city proud of their team again."

Though 11,571 and 14,180 provided proof of excitement for the B's at the rookie exhibitions on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, making the city  genuinely proud might only be able to be achieved with a Cup. Julien gets that and the organization is set on entering next camp with a better memory to deal with.