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Claude Julien

Bruins Scouting Ducks-Wild Game

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It would be a surprise to no one that the Boston Bruins’ brass are out watching other teams. While the Bruins are still clinging to a playoff spot in the Atlantic Division, currently tied with the Ottawa Senators for second with 52 points, that position is only temporary. The Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs, just two points behind, have six games in hand on Boston. They are currently doing battle with each other, which could result in a three-way tie with a Toronto win, a drop to third in the division with a Senators win, or the worst-case scenario, a Leafs OT-win in which both results would occur. Regardless, the Bruins are not going to be able to hang on to their spot long with the way they have been playing. Boston has lost three straight, including shutouts by the Chicago Blackhawks and New York Islanders and a crushing 6-5 shootout defeat to the Detroit Redwings wherein they blew two three-goal leads. The Bruins have only won six of their last sixteen games and those six wins have come against four teams that are struggling as much or more than they are: the Philadelphia Flyers, St. Louis Blues, Florida Panthers (twice), and Buffalo Sabres (twice). Beyond just wins and losses, there are rumors about coach Claude Julien, reported turmoil in the front office surrounding president Cam Neely, injuries on defense to Kevan and Colin Miller, a 16-game goal-less streak for early-season superstar David Pastrnak, and ongoing issues with line chemistry. The Bruins need a shake-up to save their season, and everyone knows it.

So, when Minnesota Wild beat writer Michael Russo reported that Bruins GM Don Sweeney was on the press box list at tonight’s game, with the Wild hosting the Anaheim Ducks, it came as no surprise. Both teams are known for their immense lack of talented depth on defense, something that Boston would definitely be interested in. While the team has been shut out three times this month, their scoring has actually been trending upward. Patrice Bergeron has begun to shake off his early struggles, Frank Vatrano has been a shot in the arm since his return from injury, and Brad Marchand and Torey Krug have remained on fire. The recent return of Matt Beleskey should help to add some scoring and balance out the forward lines (much-needed), while the AHL’s Providence Bruins, who won 9-1 tonight, have been explosive and could potentially offer support up front. That’s not to say that the Bruins, who will have about $17MM in cap space by the time the NHL Trade Deadline rolls around, won’t still look to add an impending free agent forward with some finish, but despite appearances, the offense should be able to figure itself out in the short-term. The defense is a different story. While the Bruins are loaded with defensive talent in the system, none of it is on its way this year and maybe not next year either, and the Bruins need some help now. Krug has four goals and 25 assists, but has also had his issues in his own end. His pair mate Adam McQuaid has had a nice bounce-back season, but offers little in the way of puck movement and offense. Same goes for the top pairing of Zdeno Chara and Brandon Carlo, who have been one of the better shutdown duos in the league this season, but are slowing down as a 39-year-old and a rookie respectively. John-Michael Liles, an impending free agent, has just recently returned from injury and has yet to make a major difference. Colin Miller, though he has upside, was in and out of the lineup even before his injury, and Kevan Miller, also injured, is likely better suited as an extra man. The Bruins need a legitimate top-four defenseman for this year and for the near future, and both the Wild and Ducks provide intriguing trade partners.

As it stands right now, Anaheim and Minnesota are both guaranteed to lose a top-four caliber defenseman in the upcoming NHL Expansion Draft, if the Vegas Golden Knights choose to select that player. A team can either protect seven forwards and three defenseman or eight skaters total, allowing them to protect a fourth defenseman. Neither situation works out particularly well for either team. The Ducks will be forced to protect veteran Kevin Bieksa, due to his no-movement clause, and will likely choose to protect young cornerstone blue liners Hampus Lindholm, Sami Vatanen, and Cam Fowler as well, even if it means leaving a promising forward like Jakob Silfverberg exposed. However, Vegas could choose to instead take another good young defenseman in Josh Manson or potentially Simon Depres. Similarly, the Wild too are expected to protect four defenseman, selecting from Ryan Suter (a veritable lock), Jared Spurgeon, Jonas Brodin, Marco Scandella, and Matt Dumba. One way or another, one of those d-men will be exposed and almost certainly scooped up by the Golden Knights. So, with both teams fighting for position atop the Western Conference and with their eye on a Stanley Cup, Anaheim and Minnesota also have to be thinking about trading a defenseman. They would much rather get something in a trade rather than nothing in the draft, even if that means dealing away talent in a Cup-contender season. Armed with a deep prospect system and quality forwards they may willing to part with, such as David Krejci, Ryan Spooner, and Jimmy Hayes, the Bruins would be an interesting suitor for either team. With Don Sweeney in attendance, watching two teams that are facing a difficult situation and may feel like pressured to make a move, an important shake-up trade could be on the horizon in Boston. Could it be the revitalized Fowler? The youngster Dumba? A more Bruin-like player like Scandella or Manson? Only time will tell, but the connection between the Bruins and these defense-deep teams will be something to keep an eye on as we head toward the Trade Deadline in just over a month.

Atlantic Division Notes: Lazar, Bylsma, Tampa Bay

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The Ottawa Senators have reportedly been perusing the trade market since early on in the campaign in search of a scoring forward, albeit without success to this point. With the recent news that Clarke MacArthur will not be returning this season due to lingering issues related to a concussion suffered in the preseason, the Senators search now has added urgency with the trade deadline approaching. However, as Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun writes, the Sens should not be willing to include Curtis Lazar in any potential trade for an upgrade at forward.

Even though Lazar has failed to register a single point in 23 games this season for Ottawa, Brennan sees parallels between the 21-year-old forward and another former Senators first-round pick, Nick Foligno. Selected with the 28th overall choice in the 2006 draft, Foligno spent the first five seasons of his NHL career with Ottawa but never scored more than 17 goals or 47 points in any single campaign and ultimately was dealt to Columbus in exchange for defenseman Marc Methot. Since the trade, Foligno has developed into a terrific power forward with a 30-goal campaign to his credit and is on pace for 60-plus points this season. To be fair, Methot has been a solid defender for Ottawa but a physical forward that can score, something Brennan believes Lazar can become, is exactly what this Senators club needs and the team should be hesitant to pull the plug too early on his development.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:

  • The recent rumors pertaining to Claude Julien’s job security prompted Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News to compile a list of head coaches he feels also may be in jeopardy of losing their current gig. Chief among them is Buffalo Sabres bench boss Dan Bylsma. In the scribe’s estimation, the Sabres have no excuse to be sitting near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings despite injuries to several key regulars, and the coach deserves his share of the blame. However, whether it would be warranted or not, Harrington doesn’t believe team owner Terry Pegula will pull the trigger on a coaching change in large part because the Buffalo Bills, also owned by Pegula, recently dismissed their high-profile head coach, Rex Ryan, who like Bylsma was in the second year of a five-year contract at the time of his termination.
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning’s success in recent seasons has had a lot to do with a stingy defense, one that allowed the fifth fewest goals last year. It’s been a much different story this season, as the team has allowed nearly half-a-goal more per game and the Lightning are far closer to the bottom of the standings than the top as a result. However, in the midst of a crucial six-game road trip, it’s Tampa Bay’s offense that has let the team down and further jeopardized their playoff chances, as Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times writes. The Lightning have found the back of the net five times in their last four games while managing to amass just three points halfway through what Smith refers to as a “make-or-break” road trip. Conversely, the club’s defense has tightened up, allowing just four regulation markers during that span. There is plenty of scoring talent on the roster and it’s likely just a matter of time before the goals start coming in bunches, but will that happen soon enough to save the team’s season? The answer to that question may well dictate whether the team is a buyer or a seller at the trade deadline.

The Latest On Claude Julien

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After another loss last night, this time a 1-0 shutout to the Chicago Blackhawks, Boston Bruins head coach Claude Julien found himself answering more questions about his job security. After a gut wrenching loss to the Red Wings on Wednesday night that saw the B’s squander a 4-1 lead, Julien called the latest inquiries on his job “shock journalism.” Here’s what some journalists have been saying after what CTV and TSN’s Brian Wilde tweeted to be a “ridiculous comment” from Julien.

  • The Boston Herald’s Stephen Harris writes that time is running out on a decision with Julien. It’s mistakes, after stretches of dominating play, that seems to undermine the good the Bruins are achieving on the ice.
  • Yahoo’s Jen Neale comments on the Julien “shock journalism” answer, writing that the hockey world has been looking for the  final nail in the coffin moment when it comes to Julien’s time in Boston. She adds that after his refusal to give an answer to the question, he left the media scrum.
  • ESPN’s Joe McDonald writes that Julien is not going anywhere.  He includes video of post-game interviews and also tweets that “no changes are imminent” when it comes to Julien’s job status.
  • TSN’s Travis Yost believes the Bruins would be best served by holding onto Julien. While he believes that Julien’s time is in fact “running out” in Boston, he feels that allowing him to twist in the wind is the wrong move for both Julien and the organization. Yost argues that simply firing the coach is an action, not a plan. Further, he wonders if Julien is really the problem in the first place. Could it be a failure by the front office to supply him with the right players?

Bruins Notes: Julien, Beleskey, Becker

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As was reported earlier, the Boston Bruins are set to address the public tomorrow about their coaching situation. The announcement will be made regardless of the result in tonight’s match-up against the Original Six rival Chicago Blackhawks. ESPN New Hampshire’s Jimmy Murphy has been keeping a close eye on the situation and believes that, good or bad, a decision has already been made on head coach Claude Julien and the bench boss knows what it is. However, no one else seems to know what it is and speculation is running rampant. Murphy added fuel to the fire by releasing a picture of the Bruins’ internal PR schedule, which features Julien’s name specifically throughout the coming week. So is Julien safe?

Julien has seemingly been on the hot seat for three seasons. After winning the Stanley Cup in 2011, returning to the final in 2013, and winning the President’s Trophy as the league’s top regular season team in 2013-14, back-to-back seasons of missing the playoffs has been unacceptable in Boston, and a possible third in the making requires swift handling. By slim margins or not, the Bruins missing the postseason draws much attention in a city where, since the turn of the century, every pro sports team is expected to not just make the playoffs, but challenge for a championship every year. While many still believe the Bruins will qualify in 2016-17, heads will roll if they don’t and the front office may decide to cut the coach loose before that happens to lessen the blow of missing the playoffs once again. Boston is currently tied for second place with the Ottawa Senators in the Atlantic Division with 52 points, which may not seem so bad, but the Sens have five games in hand, as do the Toronto Maple Leafs right behind them with 50 points. Even the Florida Panthers with 49 points and game in hand and the red-hot Detroit Red Wings, who came back from a three-goal deficit to defeat the B’s on Wednesday to move within six points with three games in hand, are starting to threaten the Bruins playoff hopes. The Bruins are 4-4-2 in their last ten, including that devastating loss to Detroit and shutouts at the hands of bottom-dwellers like the New York Islanders and New Jersey Devils.

However, is firing Julien really the right move? The long-time Bruins coach is approaching his 1,000th NHL game behind the bench and has won far more than half of those games, including more than 400 wins in Boston. He won the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year in 2009 and is well-respected around the world of hockey. Many have claimed that Julien’s greatest weakness is that he does not work well with young players. However, David Pastrnak, Frank Vatrano and rookies Brandon Carlo and Austin Czarnik have been bright spots for the Bruins in 2016-17. Julien was also not the one who traded Tyler Seguin or Blake Wheeler, both of whom were playing well with him as their head coach, but simply still developing. The Bruins organization has not done well with young talent, but the head coach is not wholly to blame. Many have also argued that Julien has struggled with the power play, and well that has been true from time to time, the Bruins scored on both man-up tries against Detroit on Wednesday and their power play has been increasingly better over the past month. Some Julien mistakes, like the mismanagement of Ryan Spooner and Colin Miller and an inability to find good balance in the forward lines this season, are more inexcusable, but the Bruins struggles reach far beyond that. Does Julien deserve some blame? Yes. However, firing the most successful coach in team history in a season where they still have a very good chance of making the playoffs may be ill-advised for Boston. The decision appears to have been made and the announcement will come tomorrow.

  • With the decision on his coach’s fate already made, Matt Beleskey’s return to the Bruins lineup may be coming a few games too late. However, the team will greatly benefit from having the big forward back in the lineup tonight against the Blackhawks. Beleskey has been out with a knee injury since earlier December, but is returning just in time with the Bruins struggling to both find scoring and to play a more physical defensive game. With Frank Vatrano suffering an injury prior to the beginning of the season and Beleskey getting hurt before Vatrano’s recent return, tonight marks the first time in 2016-17 that the Bruins will have the full complement of forwards that they had expected to have at the ready all season. Although Beleskey is expected to skate alongside Dominic Moore and Austin Czarnik on the fourth line tonight, the Bruins are still trying to find a balance up front and can afford to ease Beleskey back in while they hunt for line chemistry. After scoring a career-high 37 points as a top-nine player for the Bruins last season, he’ll be back in that role sooner rather than later.
  • Bruins prospect Jack Becker has announced his commitment to play college hockey at Michigan Tech.  Drafted by the Bruins in the seventh round of the 2015 NHL Draft with little experience beyond high school hockey, Becker was supposed to follow fellow Bruins prospects Trent Frederic and Cameron Hughes to the University of Wisconsin. However, slow development at the junior level with the USHL’s Sioux Falls Stampede changed those plans. Becker is still Division I-bound though, as he heads to Michigan Tech next season. Becker does not project to be an NHL player as of now, but the Bruins signed Frank Vatrano as an undrafted underclassmen out of just an average college program in UMass-Amherst and so far he looks like a sure-fire NHLer. The B’s can only hope that Becker develops late in the same way.

Snapshots: Coyotes, Bruins, Ellis

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The Arizona Coyotes swapped forwards with their AHL affiliate on Friday morning, according to GM John Chayka.

Laurent Dauphin is making his way to the Tucson Roadrunners while Christian Fischer will take his place on the NHL roster. Fischer has 16 goals and 32 points in 31 games in the AHL, which puts him first in goals and second in points on the Roadrunners. The 32nd-overall pick in the 2015 draft has been named to the AHL All-Star Classic. Meanwhile Dauphin has three points in 24 games with the big club.

The Coyotes have lost four games in a row, and are currently in 29th with a 13-26-6 record.

  • The floundering Boston Bruins will publicly address their coaching situation tomorrow, according to Bruins reporter Jimmy Murphy. Murphy quotes “numerous sources” as saying the team will speak regardless of the outcome of tonight’s game versus the Chicago Blackhawks. The Bruins have 52 points, which has them third in the Atlantic Division as of today, but they have played five more games than the teams above and below them. They have four wins in their past 10 games. Murphy tweets that the team’s management has “created a PR mess” by not publicly addressing the situation. This is Claude Julien’s 10th season as head coach of the Bruins.
  • Adam Vingan of the Tennessean tweeted an interesting fact, via Elias Sports. When Ryan Ellis scored twice against Calgary on Thursday night, he lost out on a Predators’ team record. Ellis had the most goals (35 before last night) in his Predators career without having a multi-goal game. That record now belongs to former Predator Dan Hamhuis, who had 32 goals during his six seasons with Nashville.

Atlantic Notes: Holland, Rielly, Julien, MacArthur, Sabres Rebuild

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Detroit Red Wings general manager Ken Holland spoke with NHL.com’s Nick Cotsonika who quizzed the manager about how the Wings will approach the next month. Holland wants to give the Red Wings every chance to get back into the race before having to make the decision to trade off assets–something he’s never done in his career as a general manager. During the first intermission during the Bruins-Red Wings matchup Wednesday night, Bob McKenzie added that the Wings will most likely look to sell during their bye, which comes a week before the trade deadline.

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs received some great news when it turned out Morgan Rielly’s injury was not nearly as serious as initially thought. The defenseman was all smiles in the locker room when he met with the media regarding his day-to-day status.
  • If the Bruins are going to fire head coach Claude Julien, it’s going to come from the hockey men in charge, not ownership. Bruins CEO Charlie Jacobs, according to the Boston Herald’s Steve Buckley, will defer Julien’s fate to team president Cam Neely and general manager Don Sweeney. Jacobs adds that his role is to support the front office on their hockey decisions.
  • Bruce Garrioch writes that Clarke MacArthur has to undergo more testing before he is cleared to return for the Sens. Though they want him back, the team is taking every precaution in the name of safety.
  • On the Sabres, the Buffalo News’ Mike Harrington reports that the Sabres have been “left in the dust” when it comes to rebuilding. Using the Maple Leafs as the measuring stick, Harrington’s lede argues that it certainly shouldn’t be the case. But Buffalo has taken a path that appears to be wrought with poor decisions from the front office to the bench.

Head Coaches Potentially On The Hot Seat

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As we pass the halfway point of the 2016-17 schedule, teams will soon have to make the sometimes difficult decision as to whether they are going to act as a buyer or seller ahead of the March 1st trade deadline. Additionally, teams that have underachieved their internal preseason expectations will take the time to look in the mirror and assess what they can do to improve their on-ice fortunes, both for the remainder of the current campaign and into the future. Sometimes that assessment leads to coaching changes.

Though just one bench boss has been relieved of his duties so far this season, several more could soon join Gerard Gallant on the unemployment line. In this post we’ll examine the situations of several coaches who would appear to be on the hot seat at this point in the 2016-17 season.

Jack Capuano (New York Islanders) – The Islanders have been one of the biggest disappointments this season, just one year after making it to the second-round of the playoffs for the first time in more than two decades. Currently residing in last place in the Metro Division and tied for the lowest points total in the East, the Islanders under Garth Snow have generally exercised patience with their head coach. In five full seasons behind the Islanders bench, Capuano has missed the postseason twice and has two first-round playoff defeats on his record. Other teams might have already pulled the plug on the coach. It’s not necessarily fair to assign all of the blame for the team’s underachievment this year on Capuano as Snow allowed two key players – Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen – to leave via free agency this past summer, and the players he inked to help replace them – Andrew Ladd and Jason Chimera – haven’t played well. Capuano has also had the unenviable task of trying to manage a three-headed monster in goal for much of the season until Jaroslav Halak was reassigned to Bridgeport after clearing waivers. With franchise player John Tavares nearing unrestricted free agency, the pressure to turn in a deep playoff run to help convince their captain to sign on long term has to be growing.

[Update: Capuano has been relieved of his coaching duties by the team.]

Dave Tippett (Arizona Coyotes) – It seems unlikely that just a year after being given more power and some influence over player personnel that the Coyotes would move on from their longtime head coach. Yet nonetheless, the struggles in Arizona will assuredly mean some changes are made and it’s always possible ownership in Arizona reverses course and moves on from Tippett. After all, it seems likely some improvement over their 78-point 2015-16 campaign was expected and with just 32 points to date, those improvements simply haven’t been there.

Paul Maurice (Winnipeg Jets) – The Jets certainly have talent in the form of Mark Scheifele, Dustin Byfuglien and Blake Wheeler – among others – but the team has been maddeningly inconsistent this year. Some observers believe the Jets have a tough time sticking to their system and structure and that doesn’t speak well of Maurice. But, the absence of a true number one goaltender is another one of the issues stifling the team’s success and that’s not the fault of the head coach. Maurice has also integrated a number of younger players into the linuep during his tenure in Manitoba, allowing management to get a better sense as to the real quality of their yong talent. Ownership in Winnipeg has a reputation of being patient when it comes to making decisions and will likely give the veteran coach another season to see what he can do.

Claude Julien (Boston Bruins) – The Bruins are currently in second place in the Atlantic and if they end up qualifying for the postseason, it’s likely the team refrains from making a change behind the bench. But three teams – Florida, Ottawa and Toronto – are just three points behind Boston in the standings and all have games-in-hand, meaning there is a real possibility the Bruins could miss the postseason tournament for the third consecutive season.

Vancouver bench boss Willie Desjardins, who has been thought to be on the hot seat for much of the season, would seem to be safe for the time being with the Canucks in the mix for a playoff berth.

 

Bruins Notes: Marchand, Miller, Miller

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In his 500th NHL game yesterday, Brad Marchand celebrated in style. The pesky 28-year old scored five points (2G, 3A) and continued proving he’s one of the NHLs brightest stars. After setting a career high in goals (37) and points (60) last season, Marchand is on pace to shatter his assist high this year while setting the point mark once again. His 43 points in 46 games rank among the top 10 in the NHL and leads the Bruins by 10.

Remember, Marchand was a third-round pick for the Bruins in 2006 and was thought of as an under-sized bottom six-type player. Instead, he’s turned into one of the most consistent goal scorers in the NHL, racking up at least 20 in every season except the lockout-shortened 2012-13, when he scored 18. With 17 this year and no signs of slowing down, he may post back-to-back 30+ goal seasons and prove that he should eventually be talked about as a Hart trophy candidate.

  • In all the fun that was Marchand’s 500th came some bad news, as Kevan Miller was knocked out by Jakub Voracek during the second period. The defenseman has suffered a concussion and is “in the protocol” according to head coach Claude Julien. In Joe Haggerty’s latest column for CSNNE, he reports that Miller was absent from practice today and will be out indefinitely. Voracek did not receive any supplementary discipline from the league for the hit.
  • The Bruins will be without either Miller, as Colin Miller was also missing from today’s practice due to the lower-body injury that he’s been dealing with. Haggerty reports that Miller did skate on his own before practice however, meaning his return may be on the horizon. Julien seemed unaffected by the news of both Millers, saying “we’ve got some depth at that position. We still have enough guys up here to get through, and hopefully we’ll get some guys back sooner rather than later.” Joe Morrow will likely figure back into the lineup in their absence.

Atlantic Division Notes: Gallant, Ryan, Miller, McQuaid

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The Florida Panthers decision to fire head coach Gerard Gallant earlier this season was met with harsh criticism in some circles of the hockey community. It was widely assumed the dismissal was a reflection of the new front office structure’s belief in analytics, something the former player and long time coach may not have been completely on board with,  as opposed to Gallant’s coaching ability. Gallant is known as an old-school coach who values “intangibles” and other traits not ordinarily appreciated by analytically-driven front offices and it was assumed this generated a disconnect between management and the bench boss. However, according to Gallant his termination had little to do with his feelings on analytics and likely had more to do with his stubbornness, as Pierre LeBrun of ESPN wrote recently:

“I wasn’t fired because of analytics,” he continued. “I loved coaching the Florida Panthers and I’m a stubborn guy at times; maybe I said a little too much, maybe I gave my opinion a little bit too much. Maybe when they asked for my opinion, I have an honest opinion and sometimes it doesn’t help you. Maybe it wasn’t always what they wanted to hear. I don’t know where it went from there …”

Gallant, like many coaches, actually did utilize information provided to his staff by the team’s analysts and described analytics as “a tool.”

“For me, analytics is certainly part of coaching, but it’s not the whole thing. In my mind, if I take a job, analytics is part of it for sure, 25 to 30 percent, whatever percentage you want to put on it. It’s definitely a tool. If you get the right information, you’re happy with that. Every coach uses analytics. We all go over the same stuff.”

Of course it should be noted that while Gallant admitted to utilizing analytics, it can be inferred from his comments that it was done to assist with lineup decisions and on-ice strategies, leaving open the possibility that he didn’t necessarily agree with analytically-driven decisions made by the front office with regards to player acquisitions. It’s certainly possible Gallant voiced his displeasure over certain moves the front office made over the summer and that led in part to his dismissal.

Nevertheless, despite how it turned out in Florida, Gallant is respected within the industry and it’s likely he will have his choice of head coaching jobs this summer, assuming he isn’t offered and subsequently accepts a job prior to the offseason.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:

  • Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun examines the Senators recent decision to scratch forward Bobby Ryan, and wonders what the “bigger picture” is with the player and Ottawa. Brennan points out that Ryan, a four-time 30-goal scorer, ranks 12th on the team in scoring and theorizes his lack of production may have served as justification for the benching. However, as the scribe points out, Ryan’s ice time, or rather the lack thereof, has likely led to the 29-year-old right winger’s lackluster output. Ryan currently ranks eighth among Senator forwards in overall ATOI (Average Time On Ice) and is seventh on the team in power play ice time. For his career, Ryan has registered just more than one-quarter of his points on the power play but this season has just one goal and three points on the man advantage. Brennan wonders why the Senators, who rank 22nd in the NHL in goals, would not find a way to get one of their most skilled players more ice time. Ultimately, as Brennan writes, the situation is one that bears watching for the rest of the season.
  • The Boston Bruins, and in particular David Backes, were undoubtedly pleased to come away from St. Louis with a 5 – 3 win over the Blues. However the victory didn’t come without cost as the team lost right-shot blue liners Colin Miller and Adam McQuaid to injury during the game. As Jason Brough of Pro Hockey Talk writes, the losses of Miller and McQuaid forced the B’s to finish out the game with just four defenders. After the game, Claude Julien could provide no information other than the two were being evaluated by the team’s medical staff. Today the team announced that Miller is doubtful for tomorrow’s contest in Nashville. If he can’t go the Bruins could insert either John-Michael Liles or Joe Morrow into the lineup with the other available to draw in if McQuaid is ruled out.

PHR Mailbag: Duchene, Gaudreau, Julien

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Over the last few days, we’ve taken your mailbag questions on Twitter using the hashtag #PHRMailbag.  Here are the inquiries for our inaugural mailbag:

@DAN35NY: what would the rangers have to give to get Duchene can girardi a prospect and 2 2nd rounders

The Avalanche have a nice collection of talent up front with the likes of Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog, and Mikko Rantanen on top of Matt Duchene.  Unfortunately for them, their defense corps is an area of weakness, both in the short-term and long-term.  Accordingly, if they’re going to move Duchene, something they’re at least willing to consider, a good young defender would need to be part of the deal.

That presents a bit of a challenge for the Rangers who really only have one young impact defensemen on their roster in Brady Skjei.  They’re not likely to have interest in Dan Girardi and Marc Staal as their preference would be to add someone whose age is close to the rest of the core of their team.  Ryan McDonagh is relatively close in age and has the same team control with a somewhat comparable cap hit ($6MM for Duchene versus $4.7MM for McDonagh) and if GM Joe Sakic wanted to do a one-for-one deal to shake up the core similar to the Adam Larsson–Taylor Hall swap over the offseason, that would probably be something he’d consider.

Based on their reported asking price from the Islanders (where players like Travis Hamonic and Anthony Beauvillier were mentioned on top of other players), it seems that the Avs are more interested in youngsters that can help now over future draft picks.  For the Rangers, that would likely mean players like wingers Jimmy Vesey and Pavel Buchnevich would be sought after along with Skjei.  Overall, I don’t see a great fit trade wise between the two teams when it comes to Duchene as I believe Colorado’s preference is to get a top pairing blueliner (or someone with that type of potential) in exchange for their top line forward and that’s something the Rangers just don’t really seem to have available.

@WG894: J.Gaudreau gets 3yr ELC in 13/14 & played 1 NHL game in 13/14 so how did he sign 6yr deal? 13/14 ELC slide,no?

The slide rule only pertains to players that are junior aged (18 and 19).  At the time that he signed his entry level deal, Gaudreau was already older than that so he wasn’t eligible for a slide.

The contract was signed at a time that allowed Gaudreau to burn the first year of his rookie contract by playing just one game, a common enticement offered to college players to get them to forego the remainder of their college eligibility.  That way, the player gets the full signing bonus, a few days of NHL pay, and gets to restricted free agency one year earlier.  It’s a small price to pay to ensure the team gets the player under contract.

I don’t think either side is unhappy with how things turned out.  Gaudreau has turned into a legitimate top line forward and as a result of being able to burn the first year of his entry level pact with just one game played back in 2014, he was able to get the big bucks quickly.

@bamoro31: What are the Bruins doing?? Can’t score some nights don’t show up others. Coaching change??

There has been plenty of speculation in recent years regarding whether or not the Bruins should make a coaching change.  I thought they took a bit of a step back in the offseason so they’re about where I thought they’d be standings-wise, hanging around the edge of the postseason near the halfway mark.  From that standpoint, I wouldn’t lean towards making a change if I’m GM Don Sweeney.

The fact they’ve come out listless a few too many times though is a concern, especially when you’re a bubble team in the standings.  Pretty much every team deals with inconsistency at times during the year, even the top ones but a lack of energy is never ideal.

Claude Julien is one of the longest-tenured coaches in the league and there’s an argument to be made that his message is growing stale and that’s why the effort level isn’t there every night.  But I wouldn’t pull the trigger on a firing just yet.  If Sweeney thinks this is a playoff team (and they’re right in the hunt), I’d be more inclined from his perspective to try to add to the roster first.  Then if the team continues to scuffle down the stretch, it might be the time to make a change either late in the year or in the offseason.

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