Hanging around on the fifth rung of the local sports-interest ladder — behind the NCAA hoops tournament, the surprising Celtics, Red Sox spring training, and residual Patriots fever — reside our beloved Boston Bruins. The perennial Lunch-Pail AC seems to have bounced back strongly from the non-playoff debacles of the past two years and managed to put together a pretty robust season. Not that anyone is paying attention, other than those fans in spoked-B jerseys that populate the FleetCenter and the folks at home watching on NESN.

It’s not necessarily surprising, because more so than probably any other local team, the Bruins have the most decisive contingent of die-hard fans, combined with the most potential bandwagon-jumpers. Merge those two groups, and the B’s have amazing waves of support when they’re winning, because deep down, Boston is still a hockey town, and whenever the Bruins make the playoffs, interest becomes keen again. Yet when the team is down, the casual Bostonian tends to tune out. Thanks to an out-of-town owner who doesn’t seem to give a damn, a dearth of marquee players in the post–Cam Neely, post–Ray Bourque eras led indirectly to the sagging attendance of recent years. That happens when your team qualifies for the playoffs for 29 straight years, then manages to miss them three out of the next five. But when they make the postseason, particularly if they win a round or two, the B’s are the princes of Maine, and hockey is king of New England again. And it is about to happen again, right here, right now.

If you’re among those who are watching the B’s out of the corner of your eye, if at all, be aware that our local bruisers are 14 games over .500, are tied for the best record in their division, and share second place in the Eastern Conference. I think they could lose their last 14 games outright and still make the playoffs now. How’d they get to this point after missing the postseason by a point last year? Well, a trio of free-agent pick-ups — Sean O’Donnell, Martin Lapointe, and Rob Zamuner — have added depth; getting back prodigal sons Glen Murray and Jozef Stumpel in a trade with LA for disgruntled forward Jason Allison has added some needed scoring punch; and fan favorite Jamie Rivers has added the other kind of punch. In addition, Joe Thornton and Brian Rolston are having career years, goaltender Byron Dafoe — returning healthy after an injury-plagued 2000-’01 season — has sparkled between the pipes, and winger Bill Guerin has quietly put together a 35-goal season. It’s a good bunch of guys that has meshed nicely in a conference that remains completely up for grabs.

The Bruins will at times drive you crazy, no question about it. Nearly every game is an adventure. Of their 35 wins, only 11 have been "comfortable" (winning by three goals or more), and 16 others found the good guys on top by a single goal. Twenty of their games have gone into overtime. Their losses are often excruciating, with 17 of their 28 losses by just a single tally; 13 times, they have blown a lead late in the third period. Yes, they make your heart race and sometimes cause you to rip your hair out, but at least they’re not boring, or irrelevant. In fact, they very well could make a splash in the postseason tournament.

Why? Because the Bruins have two top-flight goaltenders, and therefore neither Dafoe nor John Grahame should be tiring when the playoffs hit next month, and a hot (and rested) goaltender has carried many an underdog to the silver chalice — just ask the ’71 Bruins. The Black and Gold really are just a player or two away from being a complete team, and a couple of wily pick-ups at the trading table could bolster Boston’s efforts in making a serious run for the Cup.

There are, regrettably, few patsies awaiting them in the playoffs, though. If the playoffs ended today, the Bruins would draw the New Jersey Devils, a seventh seed, but also the team that has advanced to the Cup finals the past two years (and won it two years ago). And that’s the seventh seed; they could very well meet a team like the Rangers or Maple Leafs, squads that have given them fits each time they’ve played.

Yet compared to the past two years, things are looking brighter and brighter in the land of the Black and Gold folk, as we approach the regular season’s end. The specter of losing Dafoe and Guerin to free agency this summer is daunting, but it’s an issue for another day, since neither is likely to be shuttled before the trading deadline. Only a fool messes with a good thing at this stage of the game.

Yes, doubts linger, but, then again, there were the Bruins Wednesday night in New York, having already seen a 2-0 lead cut in half by the Rangers in the third period. Normally, one would have prepared oneself for the inevitable tying goal and perhaps a devastating OT loss as the Garden Faithful howled. Instead, the D tightened, Dafoe held the fort, and an empty-netter clinched the 3-1 road victory. And this critical win was gained without the services of Thornton, who was nursing a shoulder injury. Yeah, the Bruins make things interesting, but they’re certainly battle-tested in close games as they approach unfamiliar territory: the playoffs — with a home-ice advantage through the first two rounds.

But let’s take baby steps for now. Realistically, all things considered, I still see Detroit as the team to haul home the hardware in June, with Colorado and Philadelphia as the Wings’ chief challengers. But the Boston Bruins are back in the game, and ready to welcome back every bandwagon-hopper they can get.

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Just 17 days till my favorite Beer Gal, Jeanine, pours me that first $5 Mike Port Porter of the season from her perch below section 37 in the Fenway bleachers.

Sporting Eye runs Mondays and Fridays at BostonPhoenix.com. Christopher Young can be reached at cyoung[a]phx.com.