Boston Herald Cam Neely weighs in on state of Bruins

[DKH]

The danger is becoming the Flyers - usually in the playoffs but

The Bruins are 4th in the city with major corporate sponsors but luckily for them, ORG has stepped up.

Ownership will give the brain trust a mulligan this year because of the injuries. The unknown is McAvoy as he was slotted to be the pillar for the next core.

When Brady leaves and the Patriots are 4-12 they will be offering $10 seats

 

[analyser]

With all the evaluating Sweeney and Neely seem to do, they should win every trade they do make.

The Bruins so called brass put themselves in the uncomfortable situation, they are always attempting to resolve the iissues when it is too late.

They knew for a long time that they needed a 2nd line right winger and 3rd line centre. You hear all this crap that oh they are in on this player and that player but nothing ever happens.

Now that injuries oçcur, other teams know you are desperate and as a result can hold you for a ransom or tell you to get lost.

Even with all the injuried players returned this team has to grab and claw for every win.

Management get off your A?? And do your job.

 

[Blowfish]

When Brady leaves and the Patriots are 4-12 they will be offering $10 seats

DK I thoroughly enjoy your posts when the Bruins play poorly. Classic DKH stuff and one of the many reasons I love coming to this site.

 

[KnightofBoston]

The danger is becoming the Flyers - usually in the playoffs but

The Bruins are 4th in the city with major corporate sponsors but luckily for them, ORG has stepped up.

Ownership will give the brain trust a mulligan this year because of the injuries. The unknown is McAvoy as he was slotted to be the pillar for the next core.

If that’s true, I’d consider tanking if guys keep dropping. I think this team needs another top 5 big, draft a big skilled center or winger. I’d rather than than a wild card finish and getting thumped by Washington, I really would. It makes so much more sense for this team long term


People need to get over the fact that guys like Bergeron Krejci and chara are nearing the end of their window, those guys should be looked at as leaders for the young kids, not necessarily old vets that deserve one last cup so we should mortgage the future to win now.

The bruins could make the biggest trades of the season and still not win a cup. I’m a bit fan of poker and one of the most important rules is don’t bluff much and know when to fold em. Your odds aren’t good this time around. We’re sitting with a pocket 7 and 2 right now and so far the flop has given us squat to work with

 

[sarge88]

They have a nice combination of not as good as they thought and not as ready as they thought.

 

[Tampbear]

I really want to see us trade for a good center. I think it would make a world of difference for us, much more so than a wing for Krejci which may or may not work out. Cassidy also needs to figure out how to take the pressure off, this is feeling a lot like right before Claude was fired, and Cassidy needs to figure out how to get them playing looser again or he could be facing the same fate. We lost Riley Nash and Tim Schaller in the off season, there is no reason for our O to fall off a cliff like it has but all three of the young wings are not confident, they should all be more productive than they've shown this year. We knew we needed a third line center though and that is definitely still the case, take some of the responsibility off of the rookies for driving offense.

 

[sarge88]

Absolutely; that’s the point of development. Let me clarify, there is a reason why I included ‘diminishing returns’ as part of the post and Id like to think I don’t have a history here in beating the snot out of prospects or being impatient with them specifically (even tho I can occasionally be a hot head).

In fact(gasp), Ive generally liked what Sweeney has done to rebuild what was a barren cupboard in a short period of time, especially on D and in goal.

But the end of the day, though, we can’t hold onto all of these assets; the future core must be identified as there are only so many spots available on the pro roster.

While i realize that’s a tough ask, to forecast, it does mean someone is going to get left behind and/or the prospects will stagnate in their development. That’s all. I didn’t advocate for Bjork or Donato being moved.

But I do think something could be done, now, to fix the roster and yield better results. It just depends on what they want to pay (who they are willing to sacrifice).

Let me ask you (anyone) this: over the next three/four years, who Do you see as the top 6 and 9 wingers between the current pro roster and what’s in Providence?
Who are all the eligible bodies?
Who gets left behind?
Do the same exercise with the defense.
This exercise , speaks to diminishing returns and the overall point I was trying to make. Obviously, reevaluating takes place as prospects aren’t all on a linear path of development.

But of who gets left behind, or might be on the cusp of being pushed outside, can any of those prospects make us better in a different capacity (i.e. trade market)?

This post could go on so I’ll end it here.

The most concerning thing to me, is that because they overplayed their hand (expected too many of JFK, Donato, Bjork, Heinen) to develop into relied upon regular contributors, and didn't try to diversify by moving one or two of them (with picks if necessary) they're now in a position where they may need to make moves they don't want to in order to improve....or even get to the point they hoped to be.

 

[weinsink]

Sad looking squad,both neely and sweeney need to pack their bags...team is way too soft,tank!

 

[BigBear83]

WOW, this thread is crazy negative... i would agree that a trade needs to be made but to sit at your keyboards and type this crap out is disheartening.. all these kids, are exactly that, kids.. at this stage of this year.. i send the majority of them down to providence to season as professional hockey players. you go the veteran route, guys you can get for cheap who still have some legs (eg. boyle) sign stemp. guys without options stay in the lineup (heinen, kuraly) .. as someone else said, figure out your future staples in the lineup and move forward.. we expected too much of our young guys this year but i think we are set up great for the future

 

[17of26]

It's really hard to know where this team stands right now.

So much of a team's offense relies on its defensemen, both in transition from the defensive zone and inside the offensive zone. I'm fairly convinced that at least a part of this team's offensive struggles are due to the complete mess on the back end from all of the injuries.

Not only has the defense been missing key pieces all year, but there hasn't even been a *consistent* set of 6 playing from night to night due to all of the injuries.

Does this team need a piece or two to go far in the playoffs? Absolutely. Are they as bad as they've been the past couple of weeks? Absolutely not.

 

[Krupp]

We all assumed last year might be a year in which the young guns struggled mightily, take their lumps, and adjust for it. Become better for the long term, so to speak. But that didn't quite happen. Chalire, Jeinen, Debrusk, they all played well.

I don't know if this year is entirely a surprise. Sophomore slumps DO happen; hell they happen all the time with various players across the league. The injuries have amplified these Sophomore slumps, and that's certainly made it even harder for this team to do anything. You want these kids, a few of whom have proven they can play starter levels in the NHL, to continue to develop, but when they're struggling this hard, it does make you wonder about what you saw last year.

I'm not surprised there's no cavalry coming from over the hills. Even as early as 2013, I worried about what this team would look like if both Bergy AND the Captain went down at the same time. It's not pretty, is it? I credit the wins these guys have gotten in the past weeks to guts and determination as much as anything else.

Until they seriously find some stabilizing force for the third line center spot, I think this team is gonna continue to have to pray that Bergy DOES NOT go down again. That's the area they're at right now. And even then, more help is needed. It is what it is, but i'm not surprised SweeNeely aren't making any desperate trades yet. It's what I expected

 

[4ORRBRUIN]

The danger is becoming the Flyers - usually in the playoffs but

The Bruins are 4th in the city with major corporate sponsors but luckily for them, ORG has stepped up.

Ownership will give the brain trust a mulligan this year because of the injuries. The unknown is McAvoy as he was slotted to be the pillar for the next core.

Before the Pats this was and always will be the case. Hockey doesn't have much appeal to suit types.

I would argue out all 4 teams they rely less on that money than the other teams to operate. Team is mess right now but financially? nope

 

[bergeronsboys]

Worst in the conference in goals for.

That would be Carolina - but we certainly aren’t putting enough pucks in the net. I’d prefer some line shuffling before a trade

 

[Oates2Neely]

If they lose next two I go to Bergeron and ask him if he wants to waive his contract.

Bergeron on a team like Colorado would be epic/iconic.

Bergeron & Krug for Maker & the Ottawa pick

Time to clean house & blow it up.

I’m aware your post is dripping in sarcasm, but do you not agree that it’s maybe time to get the players attention somehow? Yes this team is missing Chara & McAvoy on defense, yes their presence in the lineup helps the team offensively. I don’t see Bergeron returning and fixing all that ails this offense.

Bergeron retires a Bruin. I think the organization owes it to him to make every attempt to win another Cup while he’s still here in his prime.

I don’t see Bjork Heinen Donato improving to the point where this offense can hang and swap scoring chances with a Toronto Tampa or even Buffalo at this point. I’m not advocating moving them but something should be done to get the juices flowing in that locker room imo

 

[Seidenbergy]

Worst in the conference in goals for.

Not to nitpick, but that would actually be Carolina.

Problem is, at forward we only have one injury. So how exactly is that an excuse? The team wasn’t very good with Bergeron in. They lacked secondary scoring and the reality is they always played with two 4th lines. Getting Bergeron back won’t change that.

They were on pace for a 100 pt season when Bergy went down.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

The most concerning thing to me, is that because they overplayed their hand (expected too many of JFK, Donato, Bjork, Heinen) to develop into relied upon regular contributors, and didn't try to diversify by moving one or two of them (with picks if necessary) they're now in a position where they may need to make moves they don't want to in order to improve....or even get to the point they hoped to be.

I agree that the B's probably expected too much from the guys you mentioned, but I don't really understand the bolded part. People can poo poo it all they want, but I do believe that Plan A for the B's was to sign a Top 6 FA like Tavares, Kovalchuk, or Nash so that they would not have to rely too much on the youth. That didn't happen, so Plan B is to see if the young guys can produce, so you don't have to make a deal. They haven't and now they have to go to Plan C, which is to make a deal.

I don't see anything unusual about this progression. Every team in the NHL would prefer to fill holes in their lineup internally before having to go out and make a deal and get rid of players that you drafted and believed in. The question now will be how they react to the fact that the team definitely has some holes that need to be filled, even when Bergeron returns.

 

[BMC]

Would Charlie Jacobs ever allow the bruins to go to the bottom of the league for draft picks. The Home Playoff dates mentality could lead to the bruins being in no mans land for a long time if the current young players dont work out

You're talking a repeat of the Sinden/O'Connell years and I can't bear the thought of going through that again.

 

[bbfan419]

The Bruins so called brass put themselves in the uncomfortable situation, they are always attempting to resolve the iissues when it is too late.

They knew for a long time that they needed a 2nd line right winger and 3rd line centre. You hear all this crap that oh they are in on this player and that player but nothing ever happens.

Now that injuries oçcur, other teams know you are desperate and as a result can hold you for a ransom or tell you to get lost.

Even with all the injuried players returned this team has to grab and claw for every win.

Management get off your A?? And do your job.

I agree, Sweeney seems to do a pretty good job overall when it comes to drafting, especially the later rounds, but he is absolutely horrible at making trades or just pulling the trigger for that matter. Guys like Cehlarik, JFK and Zboril should be packaged with whatever else to get some help now.

 

[rocketdan9]

Its a good thing that Cam is making a statement. Usually means the Jacobs are worried/upset

So things cant continue as it is

 

[Tmac37]

Its a good thing that Cam is making a statement. Usually means the Jacobs are worried/upset

So things cant continue as it is

They are seeing an on ice product that is having trouble scoring and is not overly physical, not great for business in Boston.

 

[DominicT]

What's the harm in bringing the next batch of kids senyshyn federic etc. A hail Mary works once in a blue moon. I saw it live once with Aaron Rodgers against Detroit. It happens.

Depends on your definition of a blue moon.

The incorrect definition puts a blue moon in January and March. So if you are using that, you still have to wait another month at the least

#Patience

 

[GloryDaze4877]

WOW, this thread is crazy negative... i would agree that a trade needs to be made but to sit at your keyboards and type this crap out is disheartening.. all these kids, are exactly that, kids.. at this stage of this year.. i send the majority of them down to providence to season as professional hockey players. you go the veteran route, guys you can get for cheap who still have some legs (eg. boyle) sign stemp. guys without options stay in the lineup (heinen, kuraly) .. as someone else said, figure out your future staples in the lineup and move forward.. we expected too much of our young guys this year but i think we are set up great for the future

Yesterday, BruinsDust and I were going back and forth about Heinen and whether or not he was the guy we saw the first half of last year, or the guy we have seen since (who I am actually fine with, except for the lack of points ). He was making an argument about players not progressing after a certain age, and gave some examples.

There was a player I had in mind to show that progression was not always linear, and how a player's production can vary from year to year, but I could not think of the guy. It finally came to me last night. While this player is not a perfect comparison for Heinen, he does highlight why "selling low" on a player that has produced is not usually a good idea. The player was Cody Eakin.

The former 3rd round pick broke into the NHL full time in 13/14 at the age of 22 with Dallas after being an AHL/NHL tweener in Washington and Dallas. His first three seasons with DAL he was a 15-20 goal, 35 point guy, good 3rd line player. In 15/16 he struggled and then was hurt and played only 60 games in 16/17. He ended up being exposed in the Expansion Draft and Vegas selected him. He finished with 11g/16a last season, which is decent, but not bad for his $3.8m Cap hit, considering he's pretty good on FO's and can kill penalties as well. This year he already has 11g/9a in 26 games and his TOI is up 1:30.

Like I said, not a perfect comparison to Heinen, who has only done it for one season (but is younger), but it does illustrate why selling low on a guy is not the best idea.

After looking at Eakin's numbers, I wonder if he would be a good fit for the 3C slot in Boston? Only one more year on his deal after this, proven vet, good in the dot, can kill penalties and contribute on the offensive end.

 

[sarge88]

I agree that the B's probably expected too much from the guys you mentioned, but I don't really understand the bolded part. People can poo poo it all they want, but I do believe that Plan A for the B's was to sign a Top 6 FA like Tavares, Kovalchuk, or Nash so that they would not have to rely too much on the youth. That didn't happen, so Plan B is to see if the young guys can produce, so you don't have to make a deal. They haven't and now they have to go to Plan C, which is to make a deal.

I don't see anything unusual about this progression. Every team in the NHL would prefer to fill holes in their lineup internally before having to go out and make a deal and get rid of players that you drafted and believed in. The question now will be how they react to the fact that the team definitely has some holes that need to be filled, even when Bergeron returns.

I fully agree that they were hoping to add a big FA during the off-season and it didn't pan out, which was a setback.

I couldn't see what you bolded for some reason....guessing it's about relying on the youth. Which I'll expand upon here.

First, once the FA's didn't pan out, my fear is that Sweeney was too reluctant to move prospects to get more established veterans when they had good value. Off the top of my head O'Reilly and Spooner would have been good targets. No idea what the asking price for either would have been, as every GM has guys he likes or dislikes more than others.

Second, I've always been frustrated with the fact that they have drafted so many similar forwards over the past few years, and while there are always nuances between players; Bjork, Donato, JFK, Heinen, even DeBrusk, who is the best of the bunch....are all very similar, with little physicality to offer. I'm not even going to lament skipping on Barzal or Connor, because I know teams miss, but without delving into every draft of the last 5 years, I just get frustrated that they don't seem to value big and physical forwards as much as smaller, less physical ones.

Now, I could be off base and look further into it to find that there wasn't anyone available that fit that description around their picks, but they seem to reach for guys anyways, at times (Zboril, Senyshyn). To me, when you make a reach, it should be for someone who is smallish, but tremendously skilled....like a Barzal/Gaudreau or big and physical that maybe hasn't fully developed their offense. Maybe a third category is reaching for a good leader --- of course they did that with Mark Stuart and while he was a solid player, he wasn't Parise.

Lastly, I guess of all the points I've made, the biggest issue I have is that he seems too reluctant to move the young guys. Maybe he's gun shy because of Seguin, but do we want a gun shy GM? I know don't.

There are always deals to be made IMO. You target a guy or three that can help and do what it takes to get them. If they are truly too expensive to get according to your management team, you move on to the next one.

There's a draft every year and a chance to get the next Pasta, Donato, Bjork, etc. Stockpiling all of these kids is really only good to a point. I cannot envision a successful Bruins team that has Bjork, Donato, Heinen and JFK all playing major roles. Last year I felt the same way, but it was only because I thought they were all too small and not physical enough. Sadly, this year it's that and that I wonder if 1 or 2 aren't even good enough to play in the NHL long term, which is troubling because at least last year they had trade value...now I'm not so sure.

In the end, maybe I'll be proven wrong...but most of us have been around here long enough to have seen the Cam Stewarts, Ivan Huml's, Ryan Spooner's and Cameron Mann's of the world flop....is it really that much of a stretch to think it could happen to these guys?

 

[CharasLazyWrister]

Another ****ing excuse.

Can't make trades in the offseason, because you have to see what you have. Can't trade the abundance of young players, because they might be good. Can't trade when healthy because they're working things out. Can't trade while injured because they may have to pay more.

Can't trade when doing well. Can't trade when playing poorly.

One excuse after another for not utilizing the trade market to make any significant additions. Same song now for five years.

Pretty harsh evaluation but hard to not agree with it.

FO is afraid to make the wrong move so they come up with excuses to not do anything.

I get Nash didn’t work out last spring, but you can’t put your hockey team on hold because some things don’t work out.

The problems that the team is having are basically the ones predicted. If now isn’t the time to do something, when is?

 

[Prince Pasta]

Im still dumfounded that they havent even attempted to get Big Rick back into practice and maybe a couple million to play on the 2nd or 3rd line (depending if they trade for someone). He hasn't officially called it but jeez hes got to be a better option than the constant string of 4th line talent they shuffle around.