Boston Bruins After 1/3 of the Season...

[BruinDust]

No but let's be fair...it's definitely possible that other teams have differing opinions on "most likely to succeed", as teams deal prospects for more established players and teams pass on guys in the draft who were higher on other teams' boards in every sport. Some GM's have a knack for acquiring or not giving up the right guys, and some don't. So while what you say makes logical sense, the very nature of the sport tells you it isn't a rule by any stretch.

As you know I think Sweeney's work/non-work with NHL acquisitions and/or trades has been awful. But the drafting and developing effort has been excellent. So if the time comes where he actually closes a deal to try to improve his roster and gives up kids in the process, I'm pretty optimistic he'll give up the right ones because after all, he's been good at that. He's shown he has an eye for the right ones, and he's developed, promoted and remained patient with guys I think we all like, for the most part. The bigger concern I think we should all have isn't whom he gives up, but whom he gets. That's what he's sucked at to date - acquiring the right NHL level talent.

Your right, it's not an exact science.

All I'm saying is it's wishful thinking that Sweeney is going to pitch a deal around the 2-3 guys he likes the least of this group of prospects and get another GM to bite on handing over a very good experienced player.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

I was talking about from 1972-2011 we are now at year 7 of the next wait which I have no desire to be 39 years. I have zero faith in Sweeney's rebuild and faith in his super prospects, really I have zero faith in Sweeney period

Well, that makes one of us.

 

[KnightofBoston]

@Fenian24

It feels like what you are asking for is more of how chiarelli approached the team. As we witnessed, sometimes it works out 2011-2013) and sometimes it doesn't (2014) and typically when it doesn't, the chickens eventually come home to roost.

What we're seeing with Sweeney is a model that's sustainable, when your team inevitably is one of the 28 teams that don't make the final dance or one of the 29 that goes home a loser, you have components you're constantly working on behind the scenes that will replace injured or aging players, or players that price themselves out


Sweeney absolutely needs to get better at hockey trades and really needs to improve his ability to identify NHL talent that will work here, but the core piece is there with drafting and development, he's now on the verge of a sustainable model, one that will beget better NHL talent as our cap is free-er with mor and more elc's and if the league sees that Boston is a winning hockey town once again

 

[Don Cherry]

I was talking about from 1972-2011 we are now at year 7 of the next wait which I have no desire to be 39 years. I have zero faith in Sweeney's rebuild and faith in his super prospects, really I have zero faith in Sweeney period

I have to agree. Actually, I have less than zero faith in him.

Why he can't even make a minor move to replace guys like Vatrano, Schaller and Acciari is beyond me. Jarred Boll could bring as much to the table as Acciari does. I'm not saying I want Boll, I'm simply saying that is better than Acciari.

 

[KnightofBoston]

I have to agree. Actually, I have less than zero faith in him.

Why he can't even make a minor move to replace guys like Vatrano, Schaller and Acciari is beyond me. Jarred Boll could bring as much to the table as Acciari does. I'm not saying I want Boll, I'm simply saying that is better than Acciari.

You can't be so positive with the current results AND have "less than zero faith" in the person who's ultimately responsible for those results. Just doesn't work that way

 

[Dr Hook]

You can't be so positive with the current results AND have "less than zero faith" in the person who's ultimately responsible for those results. Just doesn't work that way

You also can't have less than zero faith, period. It's an impossibility

 

[Alberta_OReilly_Fan]

Wait another 39 years? Were you in a coma for the 2010-11 season? It seems like forever but it’s only been 7 years.

i think he meant 39 years between cups... not 39 now but rather 39 until next one

 

[Don Cherry]

You can't be so positive with the current results AND have "less than zero faith" in the person who's ultimately responsible for those results. Just doesn't work that way

I think they're winning is even more remarkable when you consider the incompetence of both Sweeney and Neely.

I have no faith in Sweeney being able to do anything other than once in a great while maybe a call-up due to injury.

 

[bearcountry17]

I was talking about from 1972-2011 we are now at year 7 of the next wait which I have no desire to be 39 years. I have zero faith in Sweeney's rebuild and faith in his super prospects, really I have zero faith in Sweeney period

You have zero faith in Mcavoy, Debrusk, and Carlo? Do you know how many teams wish they drafted/had the chance to draft Mcavoy? Do you know how easy or safe it would have been to take Chychyrn and call it a day? I applaud Sweeney for gambling and picking the player with more upside. Drafting what looks to be an legit #1 Dman at 14th overall is something that absolutely should restore faith as far as Sweeney's ability to rebuild. Some teams have never drafted a dman who looks as good as Mcavoy, even in a lottery spot. We've been talking about a Chara replacement for last half a decade and Sweeney got one in 2 years on the job, and didn't have to tank or overpay to get him.

Are you sure this isn't just about the lack of perceived toughness on the team? Because Sweeney has done at very least done a good job.

 

[Fenian24]

You have zero faith in Mcavoy, Debrusk, and Carlo? Do you know how many teams wish they drafted/had the chance to draft Mcavoy? Do you know how easy or safe it would have been to take Chychyrn and call it a day? I applaud Sweeney for gambling and picking the player with more upside. Drafting what looks to be an legit #1 Dman at 14th overall is something that absolutely should restore faith as far as Sweeney's ability to rebuild. Some teams have never drafted a dman who looks as good as Mcavoy, even in a lottery spot. We've been talking about a Chara replacement for last half a decade and Sweeney got one in 2 years on the job, and didn't have to tank or overpay to get him.

Are you sure this isn't just about the lack of perceived toughness on the team? Because Sweeney has done at very least done a good job.

Great, explain to me the 2015 first round or last year, explain why he cant make a hockey trade, explain the return for Hamilton and Lucic.

I hate gambling with first round picks, I still hate the return for Lucic and Hamilton, I hate how soft they are and I'm still waiting to see this speed and skill upgrade. Beleskey is still the gift that keeps on giving from the Lucic trade because he was going to replace some of what Lucic brought

 

[Glove Malfunction]

I think they're winning is even more remarkable when you consider the incompetence of both Sweeney and Neely.

I have no faith in Sweeney being able to do anything other than once in a great while maybe a call-up due to injury.

Maybe the fact that they're winning says a lot more about Sweeney's abilities than the misinformed opinions of a random internet poster.

 

[Alberta_OReilly_Fan]

Maybe the fact that they're winning says a lot more about Sweeney's abilities than the misinformed opinions of a random internet poster.

We are all guilty at times living in our fantasy land. Even at our own jobs we arent perfect. Sometimes best intentions dont deliver perfect results

You are correct though... winning doesnt happen by accident.

Chiarelli did have a role in our cup win... sinden was the architect of our very impressive run of consecutive playoffs... and sweeny has been in charge of the most impressive restocking of our prospect system ive seen in my 44 years as a fan

We all wish we were smarter than the guys running the show... but they deal with the restrictions of reality. If they have success maybe we got to admit they must be doing something right

I still think chiarelli should be gm... but sweeny has done more right than wrong imho since being given the keys

 

[bearcountry17]

Great, explain to me the 2015 first round or last year, explain why he cant make a hockey trade, explain the return for Hamilton and Lucic.

I hate gambling with first round picks, I still hate the return for Lucic and Hamilton, I hate how soft they are and I'm still waiting to see this speed and skill upgrade. Beleskey is still the gift that keeps on giving from the Lucic trade because he was going to replace some of what Lucic brought

So you hate Mcavoy? As I said, Chychyrn was falling right to us, many here wanted him, nobody would have batted an eye. He would have been a layup pick. Sweeney gambled, maybe not a 3 pointer but just inside the line, on Mcavoy. He was listed anywhere from 9 to the mid 30s in mock drafts and below Chychyrn in nearly all of them.

If people are going to put all of the credit/fault squarely on Sweeney for the draft then we have to accept that the same process that led us to pick the players we did in '15 was the same process that decided to draft McAvoy. It's all a gamble.

The return from Lucic is still coming. I like Kuraly now(a nice throw in) and you, especially will like Frederic and Zboril. Both play physical.

The Beleskey signing looks bad but he did get him signed at significantly less that what even guys like Bob Mckenzie were saying. If he played as well as he did his 1st year he he would be worth that deal, but he hasn't, so that obviously falls on both Beleskey and Sweeney.

I think Backes was a good signing that helps replacing some of what Lucic brought as well as some consistent effort and leadership that we lost from guys like Kelly/Thornton.

I'm sure there are some trades that went down that could have helped this team but Sweeney looks smart to have held on to at least some of his prospects such as Heinen, Debrusk, and Bjork and was definately smart to avoid Duschene who many here were clamoring for.

In the end, I think this team is better than the team Sweeney inherited and, even with the players on the roster graduated, has a better prospect pool as well. Sweeney's job was to retool on the fly, the toughest thing to do in the NHL, before Chara, Bergeron, Krejci are too old to contribute. That hasn't happened yet and he's already added the teams new #1 Dman, a very good top 4 RHD, and a top 6 LW to it just 2 1/3 seasons in.

 

[easton117]

Great, explain to me the 2015 first round or last year, explain why he cant make a hockey trade, explain the return for Hamilton and Lucic.

I hate gambling with first round picks, I still hate the return for Lucic and Hamilton, I hate how soft they are and I'm still waiting to see this speed and skill upgrade. Beleskey is still the gift that keeps on giving from the Lucic trade because he was going to replace some of what Lucic brought

If I remember correctly, Lucic got moved because they were cap strapped. Not sure off hand if that was because of Iginlas bonuses kicking in or not, but they did go all in 2013-2014 and paid the price for it the next few years.

Belesky hasn’t worked. That’s true. But I don’t think anyone saw him falling off the cliff he has. He will get bought out next year to limit the penalty for it going forward.

Hamilton who cares. He looked disninterested half the time he was here and by all reports wanted out. In the future don’t draft gingers. No one is intimidated by guys with rosy cheeks.

Personally I’d like to see Boston ride things out with what they have until February. If they’re in the hunt still, and the Isles still haven’t locked up Tavares then maybe sell the farm for him as a rental. A first, second and two or three of whatever they want from Providence. If that doesn’t work call Philly about Simmons.

 

[Oates2Neely]

If I remember correctly, Lucic got moved because they were cap strapped. Not sure off hand if that was because of Iginlas bonuses kicking in or not, but they did go all in 2013-2014 and paid the price for it the next few years.

Belesky hasn’t worked. That’s true. But I don’t think anyone saw him falling off the cliff he has. He will get bought out next year to limit the penalty for it going forward.

Hamilton who cares. He looked disninterested half the time he was here and by all reports wanted out. In the future don’t draft gingers. No one is intimidated by guys with rosy cheeks.

Personally I’d like to see Boston ride things out with what they have until February. If they’re in the hunt still, and the Isles still haven’t locked up Tavares then maybe sell the farm for him as a rental. A first, second and two or three of whatever they want from Providence. If that doesn’t work call Philly about Simmons.

I’m on board with this post except the Hamilton paragraph. Personally I’d rather still have Seguin and Hamilton on this team then Senshyn (& whoever they drafted in the 2nd round). Talent is talent. Some dmen take longer than others to develop that veteran mindset. There’s no debating Hamilton showed skill early. Folks now give him the Thornton treatment because he wasn’t bashing heads with his 6’6” frame. He certainly looks great in Calgary. I didn’t mind him being traded. I’d prefer if Monahan or Gaudreau were part of the return.

On topic: after 1/3rd of the season I’d say I’m okay with how things are playing out. The team is certainly fun to watch again. And the youngsters are a big part of that. If they keep improving, this team can be someone teams want to avoid in the playoffs.

 

[easton117]

Sorry I thought I posted something about Hamilton’s return. Ya I agree that one should’ve brought a nhler back the other way.

I agree about Seguin and Thornton too. I remember that latter one vividly. And remember Brad Stuart, who should’ve been good for Boston, playing like hot garbage and sulking his way outta town. Dark days lol.

On topic: I admit I was frustrated the first few months of the year and injuries had a ton to do with it. They look competitive nightly now all things considered. If they could add just one veteran now that has a screw or two loose I’d be happy. Make the homer in later in the year and I’d be thrilled.

 

[Estlin]

So you hate Mcavoy? As I said, Chychyrn was falling right to us, many here wanted him, nobody would have batted an eye. He would have been a layup pick. Sweeney gambled, maybe not a 3 pointer but just inside the line, on Mcavoy. He was listed anywhere from 9 to the mid 30s in mock drafts and below Chychyrn in nearly all of them.

If people are going to put all of the credit/fault squarely on Sweeney for the draft then we have to accept that the same process that led us to pick the players we did in '15 was the same process that decided to draft McAvoy. It's all a gamble.

I think that Fenian24 was referring to gambling with a couple of the first-round picks in 2015 (Debrusk and Senyshyn). I disagree with you when you say that "It's all a gamble". In 2015, the likes of Barzal, Connor and Konecny were pretty much consensus picks for where Boston drafted. Selecting any of them would not have been a gamble.

Anyway, one third of the way into the season and Boston looks to be in good shape, especially given all the injuries sustained to some key players up to this point. The rookies (Debrusk, Heinen, Bjork, McAvoy and Kuraly) have played a key role, which is great to see.

 

[vjcsmoke]

The Bruins drafting has been great in the Sweeney era. I will give credit where it is due.

The free agency kind of meh.
Backes was looking old and overpaid until recently. His term still looks to be too long.
Belesky is the next Jimmy Hayes. We might have to buy him out soon.

And speaking of the Jimmy Hayes trade, it sucked.
We traded a young 20+ goal scorer for a guy who scored 2 goals in an entire season and whom we had to buy out.

We should probably have gotten a bigger return on the Dougie Hamilton trade if we had created a bidding war.
We got a very good return on the Lucic trade.

Summing up, Sweeney is a plus on the draft.
But his free agent signings have been hit and miss.
His trades have also been hit and miss.

He is not Danny Ainge or BB who always seem to get the better end of deals.
If Sweeney wants to be regarded in their stratosphere, he needs to get better in those areas.

Firing Chia was the right call, and honestly after 2+ seasons of missing the playoffs it was about time.
Cassidy was a good internal hire. And frankly he earned the contract after what he did at the end of last year.

After 1/3 of the season I am happy with an offensive core that includes -- Bergeron, Marchand, and Pasternak. And has a few promising youngsters like Debrusk, Heinen, etc.

On defense I like McAvoy and Carlo very much going forward as Chara heads off into the sunset.

At goalie, Rask seems to be recovering his form. And Khudobin has bounced back from early season woes into very strong form that makes him a legit tandem with Rask.

We still need a couple more pieces though. A legit top 4 defenseman to complete the blueline.
A legit top 6 player to complete our scoring punch.

We also need to drop a bit of deadwood. Bad contracts/poor players like Belesky, Spooner, etc.
It's too bad we didn't trade Spooner before his value bottomed out. Trading him in 2016 when he finished the year with 39 points would have returned more value than trading him now when he has a grand total of 4 points.

The core is good, but the team needs improvements. Can Don Sweeney pull the trigger that gets him to revered GM status or will he just stay... mediocre in the trade and free agency departments?

 

[Fenian24]

So you hate Mcavoy? As I said, Chychyrn was falling right to us, many here wanted him, nobody would have batted an eye. He would have been a layup pick. Sweeney gambled, maybe not a 3 pointer but just inside the line, on Mcavoy. He was listed anywhere from 9 to the mid 30s in mock drafts and below Chychyrn in nearly all of them.

If people are going to put all of the credit/fault squarely on Sweeney for the draft then we have to accept that the same process that led us to pick the players we did in '15 was the same process that decided to draft McAvoy. It's all a gamble.

The return from Lucic is still coming. I like Kuraly now(a nice throw in) and you, especially will like Frederic and Zboril. Both play physical.

Chychyrn and McAvoy were not that far apart in most pre draft evaluations, Chychyrn slipped and they moved up on McAvoy but they were not Senyshyn who was taken 30 plus places over where he was evaluated by almost every scouting service, he wasn't Vaakanainen who was rated by some services as low as 67. McAvoy was a bit of a reach, maybe by 5-6 picks over where he was generally considered to go and with Chychyrn one of best remaining defensemen left on the board at that point, not a huge stretch like Senyshyn or Vaakanainen. I don't know enough about how Vaakanainen has been playing to pass judgment but I can look at Senyshyns numbers and be greatly concerned that he is not trending towards a career as what he was projected as, an NHL goal scoring threat. Maybe he turns into a fast third or fourth line checker, with who was left on the board and rated much higher than him that's a failure. Zboril was the consensus D pick at the point he was taken, Chabot was ranked a bit lower, it was a sensible selection, one they may regret but one I can live with because it was sensible at the time.

Players over preform on their evaluations and under preform, it's what happens when you draft 18 year olds, but you have to ask if every other team looks at a players as a second round or later pick why is team Sweeney taking him in the first round?

Lucic should still be here, period. The return was mediocre and he did not get a significant raise on his next contract or a 7 year deal which was suppose to be a concern with him. Lucic-Krecji-Bjork is a considerably better line than what they have flanking Krecji now. He also would provide some physical presence for 2 million more than Matt Beleskey who is only intimidating the servers on the press level at the Garden. IF Frederic develops he becomes what, half the player Lucic is without the intimidation factor, Zboril is not impressing many scouts from the sound of it, good plus minus numbers or not.

Hamilton may not have been perfect, I was not a huge fan, with his size he should have had more physicality or at least intensity in his game , but you have to do better than what they got for him. I use the same argument with Seguin, I think it was time to move him but your return has to be dramatically better than the garbage Chiarelli got in that deal.

Yes Sweeney's complete disrespect of the physical game is one of the reasons I think he sucks, but just one, there are many and varied reasons why I think Dealer Donnie is in over his head.

 

[bearcountry17]

Mynhldraft did a consensus ranking of all the major lists using a point ranking system and all of Chychyrn(9), Fabbro(14), and Bean(16) were above Mcavoy(17). So the same people who wanted Sweeney to draft the consensus BPA must be cool with swapping Mcavoy for each of these guys right? I know, not as much as a reach as senyshyn but the Barzal cries would come just as strong had we drafted a guy like Svechnikov who was ranked in that area.

Saying Vaakkanainen was ranked in the 60s would be as disengenous as me saying we was ranked in the lower teens. 2017 draft was all over the place. The fact that the Bruins picked him with the glut of LHD they have shows you that they must have thought he was the BPA. His offensive upside is questionable but there is a reason this kid has been playing in the top Finnish league as a 16-17 year old.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

i think he meant 39 years between cups... not 39 now but rather 39 until next one

I know exactly what he meant.

Thanks

 

[ODAAT]

at the start of the year as they broke camp I thought they would be in tough, much like last year to snag themselves a playoff spot with it appearing like more than just a few spots were going to likely be occupied with kids.

Well, injuries piled up, and even more kids forced into the lineup and combine that with some players pushed into elevated roles that with a healthy lineup, they wouldn`t have been.

The team didn`t play too many symphonic games out there, often looking a bit off kilter, not from lack of effort but simply for the reason above, some learning on the fly and some being asked to cover more ground than is ideal just made things tough.

Credit where it`s due, the coaching staff and players have hung on, not sure many other teams could have done it, in fact, looking at the Ducks who I think have even worse injuries than the B`s, you could say the B`s have exceeded expectations for this fan at this stage.

I`m still not 100% what this team is, while were 1/3rd of the way through the season, it hasn`t been 1/3rd with as healthy as a lineup as were seeing recently.

One thing I can say is unlike the past few years, when I`ve had a chance to watch a Bruins tilt, I`m often entertained, not that they are putting up a half dozen a night but they play with speed, play with heart, are resilient. I think it will still be a race to the end for the boys but I`m reasonably content with where they are, actually, correct that, I`m impressed with where they are in the standings, really have hung on during a tough string of huge injuries to key pieces, impressive

 

[GloryDaze4877]

I think that Fenian24 was referring to gambling with a couple of the first-round picks in 2015 (Debrusk and Senyshyn). I disagree with you when you say that "It's all a gamble". In 2015, the likes of Barzal, Connor and Konecny were pretty much consensus picks for where Boston drafted. Selecting any of them would not have been a gamble.

Anyway, one third of the way into the season and Boston looks to be in good shape, especially given all the injuries sustained to some key players up to this point. The rookies (Debrusk, Heinen, Bjork, McAvoy and Kuraly) have played a key role, which is great to see.

Travis Konecny (24th pick 2015): 3g/6a/9p in 30 games (in his second NHL year)

Jake DeBrusk (15th pick 2015): 6g/7a/13p in 23 games (NHL rookie)


So, I guess we can remove Konecny from that list? He has 4 less points than DeBrusk in 7 more games.

 

[mjhfb]

If I remember correctly, Lucic got moved because they were cap strapped. Not sure off hand if that was because of Iginlas bonuses kicking in or not, but they did go all in 2013-2014 and paid the price for it the next few years.

Belesky hasn’t worked. That’s true. But I don’t think anyone saw him falling off the cliff he has. He will get bought out next year to limit the penalty for it going forward.

Hamilton who cares. He looked disninterested half the time he was here and by all reports wanted out. In the future don’t draft gingers. No one is intimidated by guys with rosy cheeks.

Personally I’d like to see Boston ride things out with what they have until February. If they’re in the hunt still, and the Isles still haven’t locked up Tavares then maybe sell the farm for him as a rental. A first, second and two or three of whatever they want from Providence. If that doesn’t work call Philly about Simmons.

"In the future don’t draft gingers. No one is intimidated by guys with rosy cheeks..".

 

[Fenian24]

Travis Konecny (24th pick 2015): 3g/6a/9p in 30 games (in his second NHL year)

Jake DeBrusk (15th pick 2015): 6g/7a/13p in 23 games (NHL rookie)


So, I guess we can remove Konecny from that list? He has 4 less points than DeBrusk in 7 more games.

Zach Senyshyn 0 NHL games 0 NHL points, we can remove him as well.