Bruins in 18-19

cshea

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Yeah, Heinen has a pretty secure spot. 47 points from the bottom 6, contributes on both special teams.

Looking closer at the roster, they probably can’t break camp with both Donato and Bjork. It’s going to be a numbers game, but I can’t see a way to fit both unless they either waive someone or injuries (which in all likelihood happens). Assuming they are healthy:

Marchand - Bergeron - Donato/Bjork
DeBrusk - Krejci - Pastrnak
Heinen - Rookie C - Backes
Wagner - Kuraly - Acciari
Nordstrom

Chara - McAvoy
Krug - Miller
Moore - Carlo
Grzelyck - McQuaid

Rask Halak

That has them at the 23 man roster limit, one of Donato and Bjork would have to go down (or waive/trade someone). Injuries will probably end up sorting it out, but I think that is the most likely roster they’ll break camp with.
 

mwonow

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Yeah, Heinen has a pretty secure spot. 47 points from the bottom 6, contributes on both special teams.

Looking closer at the roster, they probably can’t break camp with both Donato and Bjork. It’s going to be a numbers game, but I can’t see a way to fit both unless they either waive someone or injuries (which in all likelihood happens). Assuming they are healthy:

Marchand - Bergeron - Donato/Bjork
DeBrusk - Krejci - Pastrnak
Heinen - Rookie C - Backes
Wagner - Kuraly - Acciari
Nordstrom

Chara - McAvoy
Krug - Miller
Moore - Carlo
Grzelyck - McQuaid

Rask Halak

That has them at the 23 man roster limit, one of Donato and Bjork would have to go down (or waive/trade someone). Injuries will probably end up sorting it out, but I think that is the most likely roster they’ll break camp with.
That roster just made my last day of August much warmer - thanks!
 

McDrew

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Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak
Debrusk-Krecji-Donato

That 1st line is strong at the 2nd line's expense, and given that Marchand and Bergeron can be sparingly used against an opposing team's 1st line, I think the goal is to have 2 legit scoring threat lines that make opposing teams play their defensemen more wisely, Another goal could be moving talent down the lines so that all 4 lines are above-average rather than average with a super-overachiever line.
 

veritas

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Oh I definitely wasn’t advocating trading Heinen, just saying that he has a lot of value. I’m probably higher on him than almost anyone. After McAvoy and Pasta, Heinen and DeBrusk are clearly their two next best young players IMO. He’s already a top 6 forward and still has plenty of room to improve, especially if he can get a little stronger and quicker. I think he has a pretty good chance of turning into an Ondrej Palat type super utility player.

The problem with keeping the first line together is that Riley Nash is gone, and the 3rd line will very likely need to be sheltered instead of taking tough defensive assignments. Bergeron is probably going to be playing a very different role this year, and I don't know how much sense it makes to put Pastrnak on a line getting a ton of defensive deployment (because he's your best offensive player, not because he's bad defensively)
 

LogansDad

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I don't really understand the thought process of breaking up the best line in hockey. It doesn't make sense to me to "spread the wealth", I need to see the math.

#savethebergyline
I wouldn't be surprised to see some mix and match this year. Haggerty (I know, I know) was just on NHL Network and said maybe they move Pasta down against teams that have one really good shut down defensive line, to mitigate that, and then fill in with someone like Donato. I think the top line likely stays together most of the season though.

I am really impressed by how deep this team appears to be. They don't really have room to make a big splash addition, and sure it sucked to have Tavares go in division, but I look at the team from top to bottom, and while they have one of the top 5 lines in the league (maybe the best, with another year of Pasta maturity), and there isn't a group on it that I wouldn't trust to be useful when they need them to be.

Also, I liked Khudobin, but I really think that Halak is going to be a big addition to this team.

They are young, and I wouldn't be surprised at all to see the 3rd/4th line struggle early in the season, but I think they have one of the best coaches in the NHL to help them grow from that, and it feels to me like a team that can make some serious noise next spring/summer.

Also, does it blow anyone else's mind when they are reminded that Pasta is only 22?? I feel like he has been around forever at this point! I'm still more excited for the future of this team than I can remember being for any of the Boston teams in a long time.
 

cshea

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It’s early, but some chatter from the Canadian media that the B’s are poking around the league looking for centers, dangling Heinen and Bjork as bait.


No real surprise here, it probably makes sense to use a surplus young wingers to plug a hole in the middle. Something to keep an eye on as the season moves on. Backes is holding down the fort for now but that seems like more of a stop gap than anything.
 

RedOctober3829

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It’s early, but some chatter from the Canadian media that the B’s are poking around the league looking for centers, dangling Heinen and Bjork as bait.


No real surprise here, it probably makes sense to use a surplus young wingers to plug a hole in the middle. Something to keep an eye on as the season moves on. Backes is holding down the fort for now but that seems like more of a stop gap than anything.
Who would be available that is an upgrade plus fitting under the cap?
 

TheRealness

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Who would be available that is an upgrade plus fitting under the cap?
He doesn't identify anyone, but basically posits they need a center, and a team may want to trade an older center for a younger winger like Bjork and Heinen. He calls it "on the back burner" for the Bruins.

Seems like they are testing the waters to see who is available, and what teams want. I doubt they will make any moves any time soon.

I will say selling short on Bjork is a bad idea, but I am fine with trading Heinen. I just don't see much of a market for him.
 

cshea

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It is too early to know, but names that would make sense are Duchene and Kevin Hayes. They are both UFA’s on teams that are projected to suck (Sens have been a bit frisky early on). Sweeney had made a ton of trades with NYR, so maybe Hayes is someone to keep an eye on, unless they are scared off by the Jimmy experience. I’m not sure I’d traded Heinen or Bjork for either though, I’d want a controllable player back, not a rental.

The B’s will likely take a wait-and-see approach for another month or two. See what the landscape of the league looks like at that point as well as how the kids in Providence are doing.
 

lexrageorge

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It is too early to know, but names that would make sense are Duchene and Kevin Hayes. They are both UFA’s on teams that are projected to suck (Sens have been a bit frisky early on). Sweeney had made a ton of trades with NYR, so maybe Hayes is someone to keep an eye on, unless they are scared off by the Jimmy experience. I’m not sure I’d traded Heinen or Bjork for either though, I’d want a controllable player back, not a rental.

The B’s will likely take a wait-and-see approach for another month or two. See what the landscape of the league looks like at that point as well as how the kids in Providence are doing.
A big "no thanks" for trading Bjork for Kevin Hayes.
 

McDrew

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I think this is just a case of a reporter identifying the B's biggest need and biggest surplus and proposing using one to fix the other and trying to spin it as "breaking news"
 

LogansDad

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Agreed, AMcGhie. I'm going to guess that the front office is still hopeful that one of the kids will pan out this year, and if it isn't looking like it come February we might see them make a move. I don't think there a big rush right now, because the team is more than likely going to be playoff bound, and they may as well see what they have. If they feel like they are one piece away as the deadline approaches, though, I wouldn't be at all surprised to see them be aggressive.
 

cshea

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Backes isn’t practicing today. Wonder if he had delayed concussion symptoms from the Benning hit. They cleared him at the time and then he was a late scratch in Vancouver with the team saying he wasn’t feeling well. 2 days later and not on the ice. Feels similar to the Bergeron incident in the playoffs.

Anyways, the lines they seemed to settle on in Vancouver were:

Marchand - Bergeron - Pastrnak
Heinen - Krejci - DeBrusk
Bjork - Nordstrom - Wagner
Donato - Kuraly - Acciari

Chara - Carlo
Moore - Kampfer
Vaakanainen - Grzelyck

They probably stick with that tomorrow. It really feels like a trade for a C needs to happen soon, especially if Backes is out. That bottom 6 is ugly.
 

veritas

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They didn't end up playing UV and Grz together much, or UV much at all (just 12 minutes). I wonder how much of that had to do with him playing 26+ minutes for Providence the night before. I'd like to see him get some regular minutes with a consistent partner. He can't be worse than Kampfer.

Diver with some thoughts on C options in Providence:

 

cshea

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Backes has returned to Boston. So he’s out for tomorrow, at a minimum.

I though Vaakanainen looked good, given the circumstances of his call up. His first shift was a clusterfuck between him and Grz that wound up in the back of the net, but he seemed to settle in after that. Good first pass, quick decisions, didn’t seem to get caught out of position.
 

PedroSpecialK

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I'm onboard with anything that allows them to never play Kampfer again. I don't use it lightly, but in his 16:10 he was positively Jason York-esque
 

cshea

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Injury updates:

Krug- Skating, was going to join the team in Ottawa for practice but had flight problems.

Miller- Definitely out tomorrow. Saw a dr, awaiting results.

McAvoy- Undergoing “a bunch” of tests. Hope to have more info tomorrow. (This seems a bit scary, no?)

Backes- Not feeling well, back home for tests.

 

TheRealness

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The McAvoy thing has the real potential to derail the whole season. The lack of answers or specifics is very scary.

The 3C spot is a major problem, but man, without Charlie Mac they are truly fucked.
 

LogansDad

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Yeah, I'm really worried about this McAvoy thing, not just for the team's season, but for him. "A bunch of tests" is seriously ominous, to me.
 

veritas

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I wonder if it's related to whatever illness he picked up in China. He missed a game over there and really hasn't looked right this season
 

cshea

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Krug skated with the team today, so that’s good news. No updates yet on the other 3, but Cassidy says Miller will be “out for a bit”


When Charlie left the team, Cassidy said he thought McAvoy’s issue traced back to the first game against Edmonton. I don’t really remember if he took any weird or heavy hits in that game.
 

cshea

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D depth getting tested early. 9 games in and we’ll be on our 9th D tomorrow night and Krug hasn’t been one of the 9. The Vaakanainen concussion means there will have to be a call-up for tomorrow. Krug is close, but they ruled him out the rest of this week. Vaak is done for a few games minimum. Miller is going to be “out a bit” and still no word on Charlie.

Cody Goloubef is likely the leading candidate. He has NHL experience and is a right shot. Zboril or Lauzon could get the nod and debut, but the Bruins usually like to stay away from shuttling the real prospects up and down.
 

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I haven't been able to watch a lot of the recent games, but just box-score scouting, the reliance on the first line for production worries me a bit. Does that match what we're seeing on the ice, or are other lines getting chances but just not quite finishing them off right now?
 

cshea

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I haven't been able to watch a lot of the recent games, but just box-score scouting, the reliance on the first line for production worries me a bit. Does that match what we're seeing on the ice, or are other lines getting chances but just not quite finishing them off right now?
It is mostly a 3rd line problem. The 2nd line has been good but a bit unlucky. Krejci and DeBrusk are running at 55% CF and 65% high danger chances. They’ve just been unable to convert the chances into goals. DeBrusk in particular seems snake bit, he has only been on the ice for 3 goals so far despite good numbers. 2 goals in 9 games but my view is that he has been buzzing around every night. I’m not overly concerned about the lack of production here just yet.

The 3rd line has been a disaster. Part of it is there has been no continuity. This needs fixing, likely via trade. They need a center. The kids didn’t look good in pre-season, Kuraly fell flat on his face in his cameo, Backes was a sort of emergency option (and now he’s hurt), so now we’re onto Nordstrom who has been playable in 2 games but probably not a long term solution here. The wingers have been so/so. Donato has been bad, and has been dropped to the 4th line. Bjork has been a bit better, but still finding his way offensively. He seems stronger and better along the board, but as a whole that line has struggled to possess the puck so they aren’t getting much in the offensive end.

The 4th line is the 4th line. They get buried with d zone starts, but hold their own and do their thing. They’ll chip in the odd goal here and there.
 

cshea

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Miller out a minimum of 3 weeks.

Charlie and Backes out with upper body injuries but both are feeling better. Has to be concussions in both cases, though the team isn’t saying. They came out and said concussion for Vaakanainen, but that was for DoPS lobbying purposes.

Also Krug is a “stretch” to play Saturday, but not completely ruled out. So there is some good news. I

 

veritas

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I was really high on Lauzon going into last year but he struggled a lot in Providence. Sounds like he's progressed a lot, he has 4 points in 6 games so far. His best case upside is probably something like a Johnny Boychuk type player, he's physical, athletic, good in the defensive and offensive zone, but not really a puck mover.
 

Haunted

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I’ve been super busy and Red Soxing and haven’t been able to watch much. But, do we have a Tuukka problem? I recall him starting slowly last year too, so maybe I’m just reading too much into less than a half dozen games.
 

Haunted

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Good. He needs to get himself straight. Best of luck to him in Providence, hopefully it'll light the proverbial fire under his ass and he returns in a few months all the better for it.
 

cshea

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Donato has been pretty awful this year. He was fighting with Bjork for ice time, and while Bjork hasn’t lit the world on fire, Bjork has been the more effective player (I think a break through comes soon for Bjork). Backes is due back Saturday, so one of them has to sit, and I think the Bruins made the right call here.

Donato was barely playing at ES, and when he was, he was getting caved in. He needs to improve his game away from the puck, in the defensive end, and along the walls. He’s got plenty of offensive talent but it is no good if he never had the puck in the offensive end.
 

veritas

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Good. He needs to get himself straight. Best of luck to him in Providence, hopefully it'll light the proverbial fire under his ass and he returns in a few months all the better for it.
I’m not sure that’s fair to him, I think he’s just not good enough right now. He needs to get better at playing hockey, not just try harder.

The concerns about his skating as a prospect have proven to be well founded. He has a ton of offensive talent as cshea said, but it’s *really* hard to make it in the league when you’re small and a bad skater. I think providence will be good for him. NCAA to the NHL is a huge jump, now he’ll get some time to develop without being over his head.
 

TheRealness

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I’m not sure that’s fair to him, I think he’s just not good enough right now. He needs to get better at playing hockey, not just try harder.

The concerns about his skating as a prospect have proven to be well founded. He has a ton of offensive talent as cshea said, but it’s *really* hard to make it in the league when you’re small and a bad skater. I think providence will be good for him. NCAA to the NHL is a huge jump, now he’ll get some time to develop without being over his head.
I think the big problem is he's floating around out there and not moving his feet. It's like having Lucic and Glen Murray combined into one player. Moreover, I am concerned his floating around may be part of who he is, and we may have really overestimated his skating and all-around offensive ability.

I'd love to see him turn it around, but I agree with Veritas, the problem is much more pervasive than effort.
 

McDrew

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He needs to get better at playing hockey, not just try harder.
I think providence will be good for him. NCAA to the NHL is a huge jump, now he’ll get some time to develop without being over his head.
I spent 5 minutes trying to figure out how to say those two things, then just decided I'd quote you because I agree with what you said.
 

Eddie Jurak

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I think the big problem is he's floating around out there and not moving his feet. It's like having Lucic and Glen Murray combined into one player. Moreover, I am concerned his floating around may be part of who he is, and we may have really overestimated his skating and all-around offensive ability.

I'd love to see him turn it around, but I agree with Veritas, the problem is much more pervasive than effort.
This seems overly pessimistic for a guy who has 2 dozen NHL games under his belt. I agree he has some adjustments to make and sending him to Providence is a good thing.
 

veritas

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This seems overly pessimistic for a guy who has 2 dozen NHL games under his belt. I agree he has some adjustments to make and sending him to Providence is a good thing.
You’re right that we shouldn’t be writing him off, but he’s 22, almost old enough to not be a prospect. This isn’t baseball, most NHL players peak around 23/24. Many on this board have had legitimate concerns about players still younger than him being busts (Senyshyn, JFK, Zboril, Lauzon, etc). And there are 6 players on the Bruins NHL roster who are currently younger than him.
 

McDrew

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There are a significant (and increasing every year) number of NHL players that go through the NCAA ranks for all 4 years and enter the AHL/NHL stage of their careers at that stage. The NCAA is not the NHL, but I can see how for some people it can be a useful and valuable step. 22-23 is about when the players that come out of the canadian juniors have 2-3 years of AHL experience and could be making the leap. If Donato had come out of Harvard 3 years ago, and still was struggling, I'd be a lot more worried. I still think some time in Providence is a good thing for him.
 

cshea

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I don’t think that is true. If you are any good, you leave college early. I can’t really think of a single 4-year college player that has turned into a star. Grzelyck has turned out well, but it is the exception not the rule. Vesey did it and is meh. The 4 year guys more often than not end up as O’Gara/Sherman type long shots. I haven’t actually looked at it, but so would hazard a guess that the vast majority of NCAA products playing in the NHL left school early.
 

TSC

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I don’t think that is true. If you are any good, you leave college early. I can’t really think of a single 4-year college player that has turned into a star. Grzelyck has turned out well, but it is the exception not the rule. Vesey did it and is meh. The 4 year guys more often than not end up as O’Gara/Sherman type long shots. I haven’t actually looked at it, but so would hazard a guess that the vast majority of NCAA products playing in the NHL left school early.
Martin St. Louis?

Tim Thomas?

Brian Gionta?
 
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