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Snapshots: Kuraly, Gardiner, Merzlikins

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When looking at the injury report for the Boston Bruins, most people won’t spend too much time pausing on the name Sean Kuraly when going down the list of injured players. After all, the 26-year-old has just eight goals and 21 points on the season as the team’s fourth-line LW — hardly a key figure as they close in on the playoffs. However, Kuraly, who will be out a month after undergoing hand surgery, is a critical player to the team’s playoff hopes.

The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa (subscription required) writes that the combination of Kuraly, Chris Wagner and Noel Acciari have become head coach Bruce Cassidy’s second-favorite line, which had received the second-most minutes in 5-on-5 play. The top line of Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak have played 421:22 minutes of 5-on-5 time together, while the Kuraly-Wagner-Acciari line are second on the team with 401:55 of playing time. Cassidy often plays that fourth line against the other teams’ top lines, which includes the Toronto Maple Leafs’ top line of Zach Hyman, John Tavares and Mitch Marner.

With a significant matchup coming up with Toronto in the first-round of the playoffs, the loss of Kuraly could radically affect that fourth line’s play against Toronto’s top line. Regardless of how Cassidy replaces the fourth line, it’s unlikely he’ll match it up with Toronto’s top line now, so that will complicate Boston’s plans for the immediate future.

  • Toronto Sun’s Lance Hornby reports that Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake Gardiner, who has been out since Feb. 25 with a back injury, was sighted on the ice Sunday. The 28-year-old blueliner was working out after Maple Leafs’ practice with team skills coach Mike Ellis, but there remains no timeline for his return. The team could use him back as they have dropped five of their last seven games without him as well as fellow defenseman Travis Dermott, who could be back soon.
  • The Columbus Dispatch’s Brian Hedger reports that Columbus Blue Jackets’ new goaltender Elvis Merzlikins has an appointment Monday with the embassy in Bern, Switzerland to get a visa and hopes to join the Blue Jackets’ roster at some point this week. Merzlikins, who has been playing in the Swiss National League for the past six seasons, signed his entry-level contract and depending on the roster moves that Columbus makes in goal, could be a candidate to challenge for playing time as soon as next season. Merzlikins finished this year with a 2.44 GAA and a .921 save percentage in 43 appearances in the NLA.

Central Notes: Hartman, Crawford, Davidson, Dickinson

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The Department of Player Safety announced they have fined Nashville Predators forward Ryan Hartman $1,000 for spearing Boston Bruins’ Chris Wagner Saturday with less than a minute left in the second period.

Hartman has been in trouble with the Department of Safety before as he was suspended for one game on Apr. 19 for an illegal check to the head against Colorado’s Carl Soderberg and then was fined for $2,320 for slashing Brayden McNabb in Oct. of 2017 against Vegas.

  • The Chicago Blackhawks may get a better idea today of where starting goaltender Corey Crawford is at after he sustained another concussion on Dec. 16. According to NBC Sports’ Charlie Roumeloitis, head coach Jeremy Colliton confirmed this morning that Crawford was in the building, but still hadn’t talked to the coach. “As far as I know he’s still in the protocol. He is here, so that’s a positive,” Colliton said. Crawford missed quite a bit of time when he suffered a concussion last year in December as he still wasn’t ready to return at the start of this season. The team hopes Crawford can return much earlier this time.
  • John Dietz of the Daily Herald reports that defenseman Brandon Davidson says that he should be ready to return to the Blackhawks lineup in 7-10 days. The blueliner underwent surgery on Nov. 27 on his right knee and was expected to be out for six to eight weeks, which suggests he could be ready at the six-week mark. The 27-year-old has only appeared in seven games for Chicago this year.
  • The Dallas Stars may have lost one of their own Saturday when forward Jason Dickinson was forced out of the second period of Dallas’ game against Minnesota with an upper-body injury, according to NHL.com’s Mark Stepneski. Head coach Jim Montgomery said that Dickinson was doubtful for their game today against the Islanders. The 23-year-old has been a mainstay for Dallas on the bottom-six as he has five goals and 11 points in 34 games.

 

Trade Rumors: Bruins, Kings, Hurricanes

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After another humiliating loss last night, an 8-5 drubbing at the hands of the Vancouver Canucks, the pressure on the Boston Bruins has been ratcheted up even higher. The team is falling short of expectations so far this season due to a total lack of secondary scoring. While speaking on the topic, Sportsnet’s John Shannon reports that the team feels they have too many of the same style of player among their secondary scorer. Shannon is likely referring to young forwards Danton Heinen and Anders Bjork, who have both underwhelmed in middle-six roles, and potentially AHL options Trent Frederic and Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, as well as the possible similarities between veterans Joakim Nordstrom, Chris Wagner, Sean Kuraly, and Noel Acciari. Shannon states that the team is not happy and that a trade centered around one of their redundant forwards in exchange for an established young forward is likely coming soon.

  • Shannon also states that the Los Angeles Kings are not done making moves after firing head coach John Stevens. However, Shannon reports that the team is waiting to pull the trigger until their trade candidates can repair their market values. With the team struggling so severely to begin the campaign, the Kings would be trading the majority of their players while their stock is at its lowest. This is particularly true for the likes of struggling Tanner Pearson and ineffective Kyle Clifford. Once L.A. can string together some strong outings and potentially see some improvement from Pearson, Clifford and other names out there like Alec Martinez, Jake Muzzin, and Tyler Toffoli, they should become active players on the trade market.
  • During the latest “Insider Trading” segment on TSN, Pierre LeBrun confirms that the Carolina Hurricanes are interested in more than just William Nylander. LeBrun says that the Hurricanes are worried about their scoring abilities and want to add a top-six scorer. Nylander is surely Carolina’s favored target, but they are looking elsewhere for help as well. The Hurricanes were recently rumored to be shopping young forward Valentin Zykov and, like the Bruins, may be looking to use his upside  to swap for a more established young forward.

2018-19 Season Primer: Boston Bruins

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With the NHL season now just underway, we continue our look at what each team has done this summer and what to watch for in the year to come. Next up is a look at the Boston Bruins.

Last Season: 50-20-12 record (112 points), second in the Atlantic Division (lost in second round to Tampa Bay Lightning)

Remaining Cap Space: $5,246,849 per CapFriendly

Key Additions: F Martin Bakos (free agent, Liberec – Czech Rep.), G Jaroslav Halak (free agent, NY Islanders), D Steven Kampfer (trade, NY Rangers), D John Moore (free agent, New Jersey), F Joakim Nordstrom (free agent, Carolina), F Chris Wagner (free agent, NY Islanders)

Key Subtractions: F Kenny Agostino (free agent, Montreal), D Tommy Cross (free agent, Columbus), F Austin Czarnik (free agent, Calgary), F Brian Gionta (retirement), D Nick Holden (free agent, Vegas), G Anton Khudobin (free agent, Dallas), D Adam McQuaid (trade, NY Rangers), F Rick Nash (free agent, unsigned), F Riley Nash (free agent, Columbus), D Paul Postma (free agent, Kazan – KHL), F Tim Schaller (free agent, Vancouver), F Tommy Wingels (free agent, Geneve – NLA)

[Related: Bruins Depth Chart From Roster Resource]

Player To Watch: F Ryan Donato – Rookie forward Donato made his NHL debut last year in the midst of a season most only dream of. Donato wrapped up a stellar collegiate career with Harvard University by leading the NCAA in goals per game with 26 tallies – and 43 points – in 29 games. The effort made Donato a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, given to the top player in college hockey. Donato also starred for his country, playing a major role for Team USA at the Winter Olympics where, again, he led the tournament in goals per game, potting five in six contests. He then stepped right into the NHL, notching five goals and four assists in 12 regular season games down the stretch and even skating in three playoff games. After such an impressive campaign, the question now is can he keep it up?

The ceiling for Donato is clear: as a supremely talented shooter and intelligent offensive player, Donato is able to seamlessly transition into a regular scoring role on a skilled Boston lineup. Donato is currently skating on the off-wing, something he did little of in college, on the Bruins’ second line with veteran center David Krejci and impressive sophomore winger Jake DeBrusk. He’s also been tasked with first unit power play work, getting to share the ice with the NHL’s best line of Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, and David Pastrnak. If he adjusts well to this role, Donato could be looking at 30+ goals and not only in the conversation for the Calder Trophy, but perhaps the favorite.

However, the floor for Donato is also apparent. The Bruins have recently seen what can happen when a talented offensive player with a knack for putting the puck in the net during his developmental years fails to transition that ability to the NHL. Frank Vatrano, traded late last year to the Florida Panthers, was a goal-scoring phenom in the AHL and was expected to take over a top-nine role last season, only to struggle with scoring, too often get exposed defensively, take too many bad penalties, and ultimately end up as an extra skater later jettisoned away. While Donato is a far superior prospect to Vatrano and is in no way at risk of being dealt, his rookie year could go similarly to Vatrano’s final season in Boston. The Bruins ask all of their forwards to play a responsible, two-way, forechecking game. Donato is still developing those skills and, if he isn’t scoring enough on the second line, could find it hard to get play time in the bottom-six. Danton Heinen and Anders Bjork already have a pro experience, and more importantly two-way IQ, to their credit and could push Donato for an opportunity in the top-six or even force him out of the lineup entirely. The Bruins also have their eye on a Stanley Cup this year and could seek to replace a disappointing Donato via trade if it comes to that down the line.

It says a lot that the Bruins let several middle-six free agent forwards walk without finding viable replacements this off-season, as they clearly trust Donato, as well as DeBrusk, Heinen, Bjork, and other options in the AHL, to be reliable NHL scorers. Already, through just three games, secondary scoring has been an issue for Boston and Donato needs to prove management right that he is ready to take on his current role. The Bruins’ season rests with the ability of their young forwards to continue improving and provide stable secondary scoring. Of that group, Donato is the most important, having been handed the second-line opening early on, and bears watching all season long.

Key Storyline: For much of last season, the Boston Bruins were neck-and-neck with the Tampa Bay Lightning for the top spot in both the division and the conference and at times even the league’s best record. Boston ended up only one point behind the Bolts in the final standings and then fell to their foes in the second round of the playoffs. Part of the reason that Tampa was able to relatively easily dispatch the Bruins: their trade deadline additions of Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller, both of whom remain on the team moving forward. The Bruins added Rick Nash, who was a good fit while healthy but a bust overall, as well as several depth pieces. None of those players are donning the black and gold this year.

Then, this off-season the Toronto Maple Leafs, who finished third behind the Bruins in the division last season and proved to be a difficult first round opponent, landed the biggest fish in free agency, superstar center John Tavares. The Bruins were in on Tavares as well, but after they missed out, opted not to pursue any other prominent free agent scorers.

The Atlantic Division has improved right before the Bruins’ eyes, with many calling the Lightning and Leafs favorites not only to win the division, but the Stanley Cup. And that isn’t even considering the improvements made by the Florida Panthers and Buffalo Sabres as well. Meanwhile, Boston continues to rely on their current core and the young players they have shuffled into the lineup. Without many noticeable external improvements – outside of a top backup goaltender in Jaroslav Halak and a reliable, versatile defenseman in John Moore – can the Bruins keep up? Is this team as good as the patient front office thinks they are?

Overall Outlook: The answer, of course, is yes. This Bruins team is great. Ignore an ugly opening night loss to the banner ceremony-fueled Washington Capitals and Boston still enters the season with some of the highest expectations in the NHL. The best line in the league is supported by young, exciting scoring forwards, dependable veterans like Krejci and David Backes, and several capable fourth line options. The defense is anchored by a legend in Zdeno Chara and a wunderkind in Charlie McAvoy, not to mention offensive dynamo Torey Krug and young Brandon Carlo. Tuukka Rask and Halak could also prove to be the best goalie tandem in the league and not a stretch as Jennings Trophy favorites behind a possession-dominant, defensively responsible lineup. Not to mention, the Bruins have ample cap space and will almost assuredly be a top suitor come trade deadline time. Yes, the Bruins are great. But is “great” enough in a division that is stacked at the top with arguably three of the NHL’s top five teams? Or to make it out of the Eastern Conference, which features the past three Cup winners in the Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins?

Snapshots: Kempny, Backes, Schmid

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Washington Capitals defenseman Michal Kempny is on the mend. Kempny has yet to play this season due to a concussion – one he doesn’t even remember suffering – after ending up on the receiving end of a high hit from the St. Louis Blues’ Robert Bortuzzo. Bortuzzo was suspended for the Blues’ opening night match-up, but is already back in action for St. Louis. Kempny hopes to follow suit, telling NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti that he hopes to make his season debut on Wednesday. Kempny practice in full today and was feeling good, but admits the final call will come from head coach Todd Reirden. The Capitals have fared fine without Kempny, winning in blowout fashion against the Boston Bruins before falling in overtime to the rival Pittsburgh Penguins, but Kempny would be a welcome addition back to the Washington lineup. The 2017-18 trade deadline acquisition found instant chemistry on the team’s top pair with John Carlson and brings high expectations into the new season.

  • The Bruins bounced back well from their beating at the hands of the Capitals on Wednesday, shutting out the Buffalo Sabres the next night with a rearranged forward lineup. However, WEEI’s Matt Kalman reports that the team is still not content with the play of Sean Kuraly as the third line center. The Bruins gave youngsters Jack Studnicka, Trent Frederic, and Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson – all recent high draft picks – the chance to win that job in training camp, but none could seize the opportunity. Kuraly began the year in the top nine by default, but has underwhelmed playing with both Ryan Donato and David Backes and Danton Heinen and Anders Bjork. As a result, Kalman states that the team is prepared to move Backes back to center, a position he has played infrequently since arriving in Boston two years ago, but almost exclusively played during his years in St. Louis. Kalman spoke to head coach Bruce Cassidy, who seemed optimistic about transitioning Backes back down the middle and his fit with Heinen and Bjork. It may not be a long-term solution, but should improve the contributions of the third line while the team continues to evaluate their options. The move would presumably return Kuraly back to the fourth line, where he and Noel Acciari starred last season and should again find success lining up with new additions Chris Wagner and Joakim Nordstrom.
  • New Jersey Devils prospect goaltender Akira Schmid has reportedly had enough of North American junior hockey already, early on in the new campaign. Schmid, a fifth round pick in June, had joined the WHL’s Lethbridge Hurricanes this year after developing in his native Switzerland. However, after failing to win the starter’s job and his first, disastrous appearance  – Schmid allowed seven goals on 27 shots – he appears to be ready to move on. European news source “Sonntagsblick” reports that Schmid is set to return to the SCL Tigers of the NLA in Switzerland, the program in which he developed. Schmid is likely to make most of his appearances with Langnau, the team’s top junior program. The question now, after such a rough experience in North America, is how long it takes Schmid to return. The Devils hope that this setback doesn’t stunt the growth of their promising goalie prospect.

Bruins Face Threat Of History Repeating Itself

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The problem that every team wants to have is being too deep. Having a redundancy of talent is nothing to complain about. However, it does make for hard decisions and sometime losing players on waivers or regretting not signing an impressive camp invitee. The Boston Bruins learned this the hard way in 2015-16, when Lee Stempniak worked out with the team all off-season and early in camp only to sign with the New Jersey Devils when no offer came from Boston. The Bruins then had to give up a second- and fourth-round pick to acquire Stempniak at the trade deadline, whose 41 points at that point would have been of use to the team all season long. The Bruins are a much improved team entering 2018-19 than they were three years ago, and are unlikely to be as negatively impacted by a bad call, but still want to make the best decision for the team.

Naturally, Stempniak as well as Daniel Winnik have been in camp on PTO’s and have looked surprisingly good. Winnik looked like one of the Bruins’ best skaters in their first two preseason games and has a goal and an assist through four games, while Stempniak has dominated the team’s last two preseason games, racking up a goal and four assists with a hand in nearly every Bruins tally. Stempniak and Winnik may be 35 and 33 years old respectively, but both are proven veterans with the versatility to play multiple roles. The hard-nosed Winnik, who totaled 23 points with the Minnesota Wild last year, might be better suited for a fourth-line role, while the keen-eyed Stempniak could bounce back from an injury-plagued season with the Carolina Hurricanes to be a serviceable middle-six replacement option. There is no doubt after this preseason that both experienced forward can still help an NHL team, but are either the right call for the Bruins?

The Athletic’s Dom Luszczyszyn recently analyzed the Bruins roster and found data to support the claim that the Bruins have eight forwards who are of top-six caliber, among the best count in the league. Of course, the top line of Patrice Bergeron between Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak is set, while David Krejci and Jake DeBrusk won’t be splitting apart on the second line. One of rookie Ryan Donato or sophomore Danton Heinen will play the off-wing on that line, with the other lining up naturally on the left side with David Backes at right wing. There are the eight top-six forwards, none of whom are losing ice time to Stempniak or Winnik. However, the Bruins also invested in their fourth line this off-season, bringing in Chris Wagner and Joakim Nordstrom to complement Sean Kuraly and Noel Acciari. Winnik would seem like a fit with that group as well, but five veteran grinders fighting for three fourth line spots may not be Boston’s best use of roster space. Finally, the Bruins seem committed to giving a prospect a shot at centering the third line, with Trent Frederic, Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, and Jack Studnicka all trying out in camp. Winnik or Stempniak would seemingly only make sense if the Bruins had doubts about all three of those options handling the position. Even as injury fallback options, there is a logjam. Anders Bjork and Peter Cehlarik are both young forwards with NHL experience currently slotted for AHL assignment who could benefit from increased opportunity.

Then again, feeling content with the roster is what caused the Bruins to pass up on Stempniak the first time around. Given that Bergeron, Kuraly, and Acciari are all dealing with injuries currently, the team could opt to sign Winnik or Stempniak for the time being and deal with the roster management down the road. Boston could also avoid the sunk-cost bias associated with their recent signing of Nordstrom, who very well could be an inferior option to either of the veterans. At a $1MM salary, the Bruins could completely bury Nordstrom’s cap hit in the minors if he were to clear waivers. Such a decision would then clear room for Stempniak or Winnik (or both) to join the team. There is no easy answer and lots of moving pieces, but Boston knows as well as any one how a training camp roster decision can come back to haunt a team.

Atlantic Notes: Maple Leafs’ Defense, McAvoy, Bruins’ Rookies, Drouin

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With most of the media attention drawn towards the Toronto Maple Leafs’ signing of John Tavares, many people didn’t notice that the team didn’t really address their defensive issues this last offseason. The main reason for that is that general manager Kyle Dubas feels the answers to their defensive problems are more likely to be found within their own organization.

The Star’s Mark Zwolinski writes that the team has their top four of Morgan Rielly, Jake Gardiner, Ron Hainsey and Nikita Zaitsev, but they also have an overabundance of talented blueliners who are ready to step in and fill in those final two spots as well as help out if one of those top four struggle next season. The team can look to a number of defensemen, including Travis Dermott, Igor Ozhiganov, Connor Carrick, Timothy Liljegren, Justin Holl, Jordan Subban, Andreas Borgman, Calle Rosen, Martin Marincin and Andrew Nielsen, who all have the capabilities of checking in if needed.

The scribe writes that one major advantage for all these players is they’ve had at least one year (except for Ozhiganov) of experience with defensive coach D.J. Smith, who was voted in a players’ poll as the assistant coach best suited to become a head coach.

  • After seeing Calgary Flames defenseman Noah Hanifin sign a six-year, $29.7MM deal ($4.95MM AAV) on Thursday evening, The Athletic’s Joe McDonald (subscription required) wonders what it might end up costing the Boston Bruins to lock up defenseman Charlie McAvoy, who is playing out the final year of his entry-level deal this season. If Hanifin makes that much, McAvoy, who has been quite an impact for the team already in just one-plus season, should be able to get an even bigger deal. The scribe writes that the Bruins had already started extension talks at $6MM over seven years, but are more likely to work out an even longer-term deal after this season, which could be an eight-year deal between $7.5MM and $8MM.
  • In a team preview, The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa (subscription required) writes that it looks like a rookie will be centering the Boston Bruins’ third line next season after having Riley Nash centering it last season. It just comes down to who wins that job between Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, Trent Frederic and Jack Studnicka. All are expected to have significantly better offensive skills than Nash, but all have no NHL experience so far. The 21-year-old Forsbacka-Karlsson was inconsistent in his first season in the AHL last year. The 20-year-old Frederic is considered to be more of a grinder after two seasons at the University of Wisconsin, while the 19-year-old Studnicka still lacks both size and strength and may not be ready for an NHL role yet, despite excellent offensive skills. If none are ready, Sean Kuraly or Chris Wagner would have to assume the role.
  • Patrick Hickey of the Montreal Gazette, in a series on key players the Montreal Canadiens need to get a better season from, suggests that the team must get a major improvement out of center Jonathan Drouin this season. One reason the highly-touted Drouin struggled was because the 23-year-old spent the previous summer training with Max Pacioretty with the assumption they would be linemates, but learned early on that they weren’t very compatible together as well as the fact that some within the organization felt he would be a better winger, while others wanted him playing center. Now, a full-time center, Drouin has been training for this season all offseason. “Last year, I came in and I had no feel for what was going on,” Drouin said earlier this week. “As the year went on, I felt more comfortable knowing what do in some areas, at some points in the game. At the end of the year, things were starting to work out and I want to continue like that.”

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Boston Bruins

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Navigating the Salary Cap is probably one of the more important tasks for any general manager to have. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2018-19 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Boston Bruins

Current Projected Cap Hit: $76,540,667 (under the $79.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry Level Contracts

D Charlie McAvoy (one year, $917K)
D Brandon Carlo (one year, $789K)
F Jake DeBrusk (two years, $863K)
F Danton Heinen (one year, $873K)
F Ryan Donato (one year, $900K)
F Anders Bjork (two years, $925K)

Potential Bonuses:

McAvoy: $500K
DeBrusk: $425K
Heinen: $213K
Donato: $850K

Total: $1.99MM

Under $5.5MM in salary and under $2MM in potential bonuses for that group of players? It would be hard to find any team in the league who wouldn’t be excited about that scenario. Carlo has played a top four role for the Bruins for two seasons already and McAvoy asserted himself not only as the top defenseman on the team as a rookie last year, but one of the best defenders in the league; they’re both just beginning to show what they can be. The other four forwards will likely make up the bulk of the top nine in Boston this season. Heinen and DeBrusk finished fourth and sixth respectively among Bruins forwards in scoring last year, each with 40+ points, and noticeably improved as the season wore on. Bjork began the year in the top six and scored at a pace that would have put him at 30+ points on the year, if not for a roster crunch and later on an injury that kept him out of the lineup for much of the year. The latest addition is Donato, who joined the team down the stretch after leading both the NCAA and Winter Olympics in goals per game. If the Bruins’ top prospect finds chemistry with a scoring line and earns substantial ice time, he could be a legitimate Calder Trophy threat.

Of course, the caveat to all of this is that the Bruins can only enjoy most of these bargain deals for one more year. All but DeBrusk and Bjork will be due extensions by this time next year. McAvoy is in line for an expensive, long-term contract that could easily surpass the six-year, $29.7MM contract just recently signed by the Calgary Flames’ Noah Hanifin. Carlo will be due a much more modest raise, but a raise nonetheless. The real intrigue lies with Heinen and Donato. If Heinen is again the best non-first line forward on the Bruins this season, he will have cemented himself as a crucial piece of the core and will be able to command a hefty bump in salary. A regression and being overshadowed by other young forward could keep his next cap hit at a more comfortable level. The same goes for Donato, who could meet his lofty expectations as a rookie and significantly raise his asking price or could fail to stand out against Boston’s other young forwards and sign a more modest second contract. Perhaps even the Bruins don’t know which outcome they would prefer: their impending RFA’s playing incredibly well and boosting their value or instead playing secondary roles and staying reasonably priced? Either way, the team will at least be glad to have DeBrusk and other incoming prospects at ELC cap hits in 2019-20.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry Level

D Zdeno Chara ($5MM, UFA)
D Adam McQuaid ($2.75MM, UFA)
F Noel Acciari ($725K, UFA)

Not much is going to change on the Bruins roster between 2018-19 and 2019-20 if unrestricted free agency is any indicator. Given how few current players are impending unrestricted free agents and the number and value of the likely RFA contracts that they will need to hand out, it will probably be a quiet summer in Boston next year.

Of this group, the one departure that seems certain is McQuaid. As it stands now, McQuaid might not only be a bench player for the Bruins this season but could even be considered the team’s #8 defenseman and very well could land on the trade block or even waivers over the course of the campaign. The loyal veteran is one of the remaining holdovers from the team’s 2011 Stanley Cup title and has only ever played hard-nosed, competent hockey in Boston. However, frequent injuries paired with the development of Kevan Miller into a better version of McQuaid has all but made the original superfluous. Now, Boston may not carry eight defenseman all season long and if someone other than McQuaid is traded, that would open up some more opportunity for the physical veteran. However, it still seems that – given the players signed on the blue line as it is and the crop of prospects in Providence (AHL) pushing for play time – that McQuaid’s days in Boston are numbered one way or another.

Counting the days until Chara retires may be a pointless effort, though. The 41-year-old continues to defy nature in every regard. Chara led all Boston skaters in ice time with 23 minutes per night and has been the team’s average ice-time leader for a whopping twelve years straight. While his offense remains in decline, his defensive game made a major comeback last season and the league’s oldest defenseman even garnered Norris Trophy votes. In all likelihood, the Bruins will look to reduce Chara’s role this year in an effort to make him even more effective in limited minutes. If that proves successful, don’t be surprised to see Boston give Chara incentive-laden one-year contracts until he finally decides to hand up his skates. At this rate, it could be another year or two after this current contract expires.

Some may discount what spark plug Acciari brings to the Bruins and consider his impending free agency to not be much of a factor. Yet, Acciari is considered by many to be one of the more underrated defensive forwards in the league. A versatile player and punishing checker, Acciari is an ideal fourth-liner who frustrates the opposition without landing in penalty trouble or ending up on the wrong side of turnovers. Acciari logged 152 hits last season versus just four minor penalty minutes and recorded 20 takeaways to just nine giveaways. Few players in the league are so efficient with their defensive play. Acciari is a local product who fits the style and culture of the Bruins well and could certainly wind up with a multi-year extension. With that said, the Bruins’ addition of Chris Wagner this summer adds a lot of the same ability that Acciari brings to the table. If cap space or roster space becomes an issue, Acciari is not guaranteed a new contract.

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What Happened To The Antoine Vermette Market?

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Approaching July 1st this year, one name had been given a somewhat surprising amount of attention. Veteran center Antoine Vermette, who was coming off the least productive season of his long career, was nevertheless reported to be a target of several teams by several different sources. TVA’s Renaud Lavoie went so far as to say that with a high demand for centermen, there was “significant interest” across the league in Vermette. Yet, three weeks later, he remains a free agent with little to no discussion of any potential landing spots.

What could have caused Vermette’s market to fall apart? It could be that many teams taking a look at the two-way pivot were able to land superior options, while others found comparable players at a cheaper price. Vermette hasn’t made under $1MM in a season since 2006 and at 36 years old he may not have been willing to return to that price point to extend his career. However, several other unrestricted free agent centers with similar (and superior) 2017-18 production have signed at cap hit between the $650K minimum and Vermette’s previous $1.75MM salary. They include Matt Cullen and Derek Grant to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Kyle Brodziak to the Edmonton Oilers, and Vermette’s Anaheim teammate Chris Wagner to the Boston Bruins, as well as Connor Brickley to the Nashville Predators, Paul Carey to the Ottawa Senators, and Michael Sgarbossa to the Washington Capitals. That’s at least six teams who likely kicked the tires on Vermette but may have found a better fit at an more comfortable price in who they decided to sign.

The other possibility is that the market was overblown in the first place. It did seem as though Vermette was slowing down substantially last season. The 14-year veteran recorded eight goals and eight assists for 16 points with the Ducks last season; each of those marks is Vermette’s lowest since his rookie year in 2003-04. His physicality tailed off and he was not as successful with his trademark defensive play, lagging in turnovers and zone exits and posting career-low possession numbers. Vermette was still dominant at the face-off dot, but teams may have been overplaying that one trait and Vermette’s years of experience, when other options with higher potential for offense and defense were waiting for them on the open market.

It could be that Vermette’s name value alone lands him a job this summer. It may be that he was overpricing himself early on to teams or that the market simply never developed, but it seems unlikely that if the well-respected and well-traveled center wanted to play next season, that he couldn’t find a shot somewhere. However, the demand is not what it once was in the past and not what it was made out to be earlier this month. Perhaps Vermette’s time to hang up the skate has come.

Bruins Expected To Sign Chris Wagner

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The Bruins are poised to add some grit into their bottom six group of forwards as they are expected to ink center Chris Wagner to a two-year contract, reports Fox Sports West’s Andy Strickland (Twitter link).  Mark Divver of the Providence Journal adds (via Twitter) that Wagner will get a two-year deal with a $1.25MM AAV.

The 27-year-old spent the majority of the season with Anaheim before being dealt to the Islanders at the trade deadline in exchange for winger Jason Chimera.  He is coming off of a career year offensively as he collected 16 points (7-9-16) in 79 games while logging 13:17 per night of playing time.  For perspective, he came into 2017-18 with a total of 13 points in 95 games over parts of three seasons.

However, despite his increase in production, Wagner is most known for his physicality.  He ranked third in the league – second among forwards – in hits last season with 253, an average of 3.2 per game.  The Bruins will be counting on that to continue from their fourth line for the next couple of years.

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