Bruins in 18-19

You have to ask yourself if acquiring Panarin and another center (because I don’t think Panarin by himself is enough given that hole there) let’s use Tyler Toffoli for example, is enough to have a punchers chance at Tampa.

They really are at a crossroads right now. They have a good core and some solid prospects, but they’re clearly behind Tampa in the east, and all of their prospects have back slid this year. Neely and Sweeney have some hard decisions to make.

 

Yeah, ultimately I think I would do it.

I do wonder if it may be a better play to see if that package could get them Mark Stone. He might be a *slightly* better fit since he is a RW. Breadman is freaking awesome but is a LW and would shove DeBrusk to RW, where I don’t think he has been quite as effective.

Marchand - Bergeron - Stone
DeBrusk - Krejci - Pastrnak

Vs.

Marchand - Bergeron - Pastrnak
Panarin - Krejci - DeBrusk

They are both massive improvements.

 

The outcome of a hockey playoff series always has a level of randomness to it. The Bruins won the President's trophy in 2014 with 117 points and looked dominant doing so and lost in the 2nd round. The Finals that year had the 5th best team in the East playing the 6th best in the West.

It would be less than ideal for the Bruins to sit tight at the trading deadline and then watch Tampa get upset by the Habs or Penguins in the opening round, and then finding out that McDonagh, Gourde and Johnson were dealing with hidden injuries.

Panarin does also offer a longer term solution if they can convince him to resign.

 

This I agree with. Stone is a perfect fit. I also think he'd be a more reasonable sign (still $8mil but Panarin is going to want $10m +).

 

Stone might be the better player even now. Certainly has a significant size advantage and I think his two way game is considerably better.
Stone is also going to blow past all his career high rate stats this season. He might not cost much less than Panarin but unlike Panarin he should almost certainly be available at the deadline.

A consolation prize could be the other OTT connection Mike Hoffman. Not as good as Stone/Panarin but no slouch either. He has 1 more year on his contract at a reasonable 5.1 but FL is rumored to be in the hunt for both Bob and Panarin in the off-season so clearing cap space is a priority. I would expect you can land Hoffman for much less than Stone/Panarin, likely a tier 2 prospect + a 2nd rd pick.

 

I like the idea of Stone or Hoffman. Is the ownership up there still dead set against trading inside the division?

 

Hoffman is a good player but there’s a big difference between him and Panarin/Stone. The latter two are superstars, it would be like adding another Marchand/Pastrnak level talent. They'd have more than a puncher's chance vs Tampa. Hoffman would move the needle less than Rick Nash IMO. I don't even think he's an upgrade over DeBrusk, at least at 5v5.

I agree with cshea -- if the price is similar, I'd prefer Stone over Panarin. He's a natural RW and I think they'd have a better chance of signing him. Panarin is a righty but has played mostly on the left the past few years. I also think he's probably going to sign in Florida in the offseason.

 

Lee Stempniak is joining Providence and will play for them on a PTO. I guess he will probably be this years Brian Gionta. He’s been practicing with the Bruins all season.

 

Don't look now, but the Bruins have won 6 in a row, including 3 straight on a west coast road trip, with the last 4 coming without Pastrnak. The secondary scoring has improved. McAvoy is looking really, really good.

They still have issues holding a lead and they still need a 3rd line center and a wing to play with Krejci. Heinen has looked good since being reunited with 37 and 63, so center is looking like the biggest need. I would very much like to see them finish above Toronto and have home ice for that 1st round series. If they can stay healthy, this should be a fun rest of the season.

Edit: Without Pasta - thanks Tater.

 

Should be without Pastrnak, but otherwise, yeah. I agree completely. This could get really fun if the Bruins stay ahead of Toronto. The Leafs' next two games are at a very hot St Louis and then home against Washington. Hopefully they get beat.

 

The remainder of this month will be very tough. They are in Vegas tomorrow, St. Louis on Saturday, then have the lightning and sharks to end the month. Things get considerably softer after that. It will be interesting to see if this hot streak is a competition thing or not. It does seem like they have really stepped up. It's crazy, but they've taken points in 11 straight games and haven't lost in regulation in a full month (that BS rangers game where Rask was injured.)

 

How many teams have more points than the Bruins? 2
How many teams have fewer losses than the Bruins? 2

True, 4 teams are within 3 points of the B's, but they are all behind them, and the Bruins are only 1 point behind the Flames.

 

Fluto reporting Charlie turned down a contract extension last offseason and wants Ekblad money (7.5 mil annually).