Composition of the defense...

[Bruinswillwin77]

Not saying you guys are wrong but didn't Chara become Chara pretty much when we signed him at 29 years of age? Obviously I'm not saying he can become Chara but his defensive game can still improve with experience I think anyway.

 

[BruinDust]

Thank you.

Claiming that Trotman actually has upside is laughable. He would be so lucky to have a career that Matt Irwin has had already.

And why is that. He's a big body, a decent skater, makes a good first pass and has a bomb of a shot.

He's made steady progression each year since he was drafted. Even his improvement from Nov. of last year to his call-up in March/April was significant.

I'm not saying he's going to be a stud No.1 or 2 D-man. But he's got the tools to be a very solid player once he gains more confidence and experience at the NHL level.

Just because he was a late round pick doesn't mean he can't turn into a pretty decent NHL player. Every guys progression curve is different. For every player like Trotman whose made steady incremental improvements to eventually becomes an NHL player, there's a 1st/2nd rd. pick whose development stalls or peaks at a earlier age.

 

[Alberta_OReilly_Fan]

I find the addition of Irwin interesting because, like Franson, he's a big body who's kind of a stay-home puck mover (as opposed to a Krug-like rover), who puts up points by getting his shot through and on net. Chara also has the ability to put up points from the backend while playing more of a stay-home role...

Chara - ????
???? - Franson
Irwin - ????

If they're able to compliment those guys with quick, offensive types like Krug and C.Miller, you could create a really dynamic defense that not only supports the offense, but could help drive it. For example...

Chara - Spurgeon
Krug - Franson
Irwin - C.Miller

No big names or big contracts on that defense (other than Z) but every one of those guys is a capable puck mover who could put up 30+ points. It's that kind of push from the backend that helped revitalize Calgary this year.

I know a lot of the current regulars aren't in that picture but could this be the kind of composition Sweeney is building towards?

Edit: Carlo and Zboril also fit that composition.

as I look at the current names on defense I start to think it might actually work... of course so much depends on chara/Seidenberg bouncing back from last seasons struggles. I believe last season was related to injury so I can see it happening.

macquaid/krug are being paid as second pair guys even though both are better viewed as 'specialists.' im guessing they compliment each other and will probably be played together for the most part at even strength.

Irwin will undoubtedly get one the remaining starting spots... but who will he play with? im guessing he will be with Seidenberg. It could turn out to be a decent pairing if Seidenberg has bounced back.

then we have chara needing a partner and we got kevan miller/Zach trottman/colin miller as the three guys most likely battling for this spot since they are righty's

joe morrow seems to be the guy on the outs unless the team pulls the trigger on a krug trade.

if franson is signed than one of krug/Seidenberg must get moved to free up the cap room for him.

in my wildest imagination I could see Seidenberg AND Krug moved... franson slips into Seidenberg's spot... morrow slits into krug's spot... it saves us a little cap room and possibly makes us better. it should be enough to get us back something pretty decent.

 

[Colt.45Orr]

And why is that. He's a big body,

The AHL is littered full of big dudes.

a decent skater,

Decent, but nothing special.

makes a good first pass

Meh.

and has a bomb of a shot.

2 goals in the AHL last year says otherwise and I didn't see anything special there in his time up in Boston. Not saying he doesn't, but the results say otherwise.

He's made steady progression each year since he was drafted. Even his improvement from Nov. of last year to his call-up in March/April was significant.

Disagree --still seeing some lack-of-hockey-IQ plays the whole way through.


I'm not saying he's going to be a stud No.1 or 2 D-man. But he's got the tools to be a very solid player once he gains more confidence and experience at the NHL level.
[/QUOTE]

Disagree. I would like to be wrong though but I think there is just a lot of interest in Trotman that isn't warranted IMO.

 

[DitClapper]

“They traded for me coming out of junior, gave me opportunities to develop and stuck with me through some unfortunate period of times where I wasn’t able to play,” McQuaid said. “I feel like I owe a lot to that organization and that team.”

Now that's a Boston Bruin. **** Dougie and his fairy play.

 

[DitClapper]

as I look at the current names on defense I start to think it might actually work... of course so much depends on chara/Seidenberg bouncing back from last seasons struggles. I believe last season was related to injury so I can see it happening.

macquaid/krug are being paid as second pair guys even though both are better viewed as 'specialists.' im guessing they compliment each other and will probably be played together for the most part at even strength.

Irwin will undoubtedly get one the remaining starting spots... but who will he play with? im guessing he will be with Seidenberg. It could turn out to be a decent pairing if Seidenberg has bounced back.

then we have chara needing a partner and we got kevan miller/Zach trottman/colin miller as the three guys most likely battling for this spot since they are righty's

joe morrow seems to be the guy on the outs unless the team pulls the trigger on a krug trade.

if franson is signed than one of krug/Seidenberg must get moved to free up the cap room for him.

in my wildest imagination I could see Seidenberg AND Krug moved... franson slips into Seidenberg's spot... morrow slits into krug's spot... it saves us a little cap room and possibly makes us better. it should be enough to get us back something pretty decent.

I think you are over thinking this a bit. Even if we sign Franson, I still say both Seidenberg and Krug stay. In what situation do you see them moving on from Krug? It just doesn't make any sense considering who they just traded. Krug's going to get a fresh new deal from Sweeney in the offseason. They'll lock him up.

As for Seidenberg, I just don't see them moving him either. You actually have a worse defense than before, with Franson in and Seids out. The defenseman I see moved is Kevan Miller, what makes that more obvious is the addition of Matt Irwin. Also see Kelly or Talbot moved as well.

Chara-Franson
Seidenberg-Trotman
Krug-McQuaid
Irwin

With Colin Miller and Joe Morrow in the pipeline waiting to make the jump.

 

[BB88]

Not saying you guys are wrong but didn't Chara become Chara pretty much when we signed him at 29 years of age? Obviously I'm not saying he can become Chara but his defensive game can still improve with experience I think anyway.

Has Trotman been anything special in the AHL?
His points aren't, has he been one of the best D's in the AHL? Has he been all star level D?
He'd have to be if we want to expect anything from him in the NHL and expect him to make it in our top4.
I can't see AHL games but I didn't see anythin special in the NHL from him.

C.Miller was last year and I much rather pay the price with him whom I see in our future plan and not with Trotman who I can't see.
We aren't going to win next year so pay the price with the players who will be with us in the future too and not have them as rookies when we can fight and then they'd be learning their game/NHL play.
C.Miller+Carlo+Zboril+O'Gara+Linus will be pushing into lineup soon, there just isn't a spot for Trotman and next year would seem almost pointless if we play rookies/vets who aren't in our plans over guys who are. Trotman doesn't fit into our future D style.

I'm dreaming that C.Miller has a crazy pre season, he'd be entertaining to watch.

 

[RedeyeRocketeer]

Not saying you guys are wrong but didn't Chara become Chara pretty much when we signed him at 29 years of age? Obviously I'm not saying he can become Chara but his defensive game can still improve with experience I think anyway.

He was elite in Ottawa. That's why we gave him the amount of $ we did. He was nominated for a Norris in Ottawa and was an all star.

 

[Tampbear]

I expect Seidenberg to be worse, but I think McQuaid will be a decent #4 next to Krug, which won't be a scary 3/4 but I think they will get the job done. The 5/6 positions are where we are going to see if the season is lost or if the young guys can take the next level and solidify our top 6. If Trotman can take a good step forward and someone else can step up I think we look alright. With that I'm going to give an optimist top 6 with C. Miller showing he's too good for the AHL.

Chara-Seidenberg (Hopefully these guys still have wheels)
Krug-McQuaid (Both of these guys need to take a big step forward)
Trotman-C. Miller (Could anchor the D or could be a carousel of D)

 

[Tampbear]

He was elite in Ottawa. That's why we gave him the amount of $ we did. He was nominated for a Norris in Ottawa and was an all star.

He definitely had his best years in Boston and was breaking out right before, he took a very long time to make it. Ottawa still didn't think of him as their top D, they let him go in favor of Redden. If he was thought of as a perennial Norris contender he probably would have gotten more. Although I think he wasn't too far from the max contract at the time anyway.

 

[Ice Nine]

I expect Seidenberg to be worse, but I think McQuaid will be a decent #4 next to Krug, which won't be a scary 3/4 but I think they will get the job done. The 5/6 positions are where we are going to see if the season is lost or if the young guys can take the next level and solidify our top 6. If Trotman can take a good step forward and someone else can step up I think we look alright. With that I'm going to give an optimist top 6 with C. Miller showing he's too good for the AHL.

Chara-Seidenberg (Hopefully these guys still have wheels)
Krug-McQuaid (Both of these guys need to take a big step forward)
Trotman-C. Miller (Could anchor the D or could be a carousel of D)

I think the wheels fell off last year, and rolled down the hill. Don't bother looking for them, they're lost in a ditch somewhere. Gone.

 

[Tampbear]

I think the wheels fell off last year, and rolled down the hill. Don't bother looking for them, they're lost in a ditch somewhere. Gone.

I'm with you, but the season hasn't started so I'll let myself be a little optimistic. Don't need to go full gloom and doom all summer.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

I expect Seidenberg to be worse, but I think McQuaid will be a decent #4 next to Krug, which won't be a scary 3/4 but I think they will get the job done. The 5/6 positions are where we are going to see if the season is lost or if the young guys can take the next level and solidify our top 6. If Trotman can take a good step forward and someone else can step up I think we look alright. With that I'm going to give an optimist top 6 with C. Miller showing he's too good for the AHL.

Chara-Seidenberg (Hopefully these guys still have wheels)
Krug-McQuaid (Both of these guys need to take a big step forward)
Trotman-C. Miller (Could anchor the D or could be a carousel of D)

That's two righties, it won't happen.

 

[Colt.45Orr]

Bruins should trade for Eric Gelinas -- NHL rookie at 22 two years ago scoring at a 41pt pace.

He had a bit of a rough sophmore year last year but will bounce back with a more stable coaching situation and more talent (players and coaches) to surround him.

6'4 -215pds, good skater with one of the best shots from the blue-line in the NHL.

Good news: New Jersey actively looking to move a D to improve Fs.
Bad news: He will likely cost you a Ryan Spooner.

Massive upside on him though...

 

[Sturm]

Chara
Seidenberg
Krug
McQuaid
---------------
Trotman (I'm not enamored with him, never really have been)
K. Miller (ideally 7th Dman)
----------------
C. Miller (love to see him get a shot with the Bruins, probably starts in the AHL)
Morrow (AHL)

Bady need a top 4 D to get guys slotted where they should be.

 

[BMC]

“They traded for me coming out of junior, gave me opportunities to develop and stuck with me through some unfortunate period of times where I wasn’t able to play,†McQuaid said. “I feel like I owe a lot to that organization and that team.â€

Now that's a Boston Bruin. **** Dougie and his fairy play.

Amen.

I love McQuaid. I just wish he could stay healthy and I'm sure he does too.

 

[Colt.45Orr]

He definitely had his best years in Boston and was breaking out right before, he took a very long time to make it. Ottawa still didn't think of him as their top D, they let him go in favor of Redden.

They only could afford one and the thought pattern back then was that the better skater (Redden) would stay elite longer and if Chara lost a step as a big man he would quickly become a pylon (ie Hal Gill).

 

[Colt.45Orr]

“They traded for me coming out of junior, gave me opportunities to develop and stuck with me through some unfortunate period of times where I wasn’t able to play,†McQuaid said. “I feel like I owe a lot to that organization and that team.â€

Now that's a Boston Bruin. **** Dougie and his fairy play.

McQuaid (and his agent) knew he was leaving money on the table as a UFA. Love the Lone Wolf.

 

[Jean_Jacket41]

Bruins should trade for Eric Gelinas -- NHL rookie at 22 two years ago scoring at a 41pt pace.

He had a bit of a rough sophmore year last year but will bounce back with a more stable coaching situation and more talent (players and coaches) to surround him.

6'4 -215pds, good skater with one of the best shots from the blue-line in the NHL.

Good news: New Jersey actively looking to move a D to improve Fs.
Bad news: He will likely cost you a Ryan Spooner.

Massive upside on him though...

If Spooner shows that he can keep on putting numbers like he did on his 2nd call-up last year when he scored close to a point per game, than he will price himself out on his next contract. I can certainly see him being shoped for a great young D and so we can give the #3C spot behind Bergy-Krejci to another of our skilled prospect (Koko-Heinen-etc) at low cost.

Don't know if Gelinas would be my target but that's along what I think will happen with Spooner. Unless they decide to move Krejci instead and keep him...

 

[Bmessy]

That's two righties, it won't happen.

It's the 3rd pairing! Who cares! Oh know everything is ruined we don't have all L/R combos. no one does. its doesn't need to be. I hope Julien isn't that stubborn

using lesser talent because of handedness might be the dumbest thing i've ever heard

 

[ODAAT]

It's the 3rd pairing! Who cares! Oh know everything is ruined we don't have all L/R combos. no one does. its doesn't need to be. I hope Julien isn't that stubborn

using lesser talent because of handedness might be the dumbest thing i've ever heard

I think your taking for granted how difficult of a position D-man is when your on the correct side

 

[Roll 4 Lines]

Not saying you guys are wrong but didn't Chara become Chara pretty much when we signed him at 29 years of age? Obviously I'm not saying he can become Chara but his defensive game can still improve with experience I think anyway.

This is correct.

Before then he was Truman Capote.

I'm not ready to write Trotman off yet, but take the whole "1st Pairing" designation with a grain of salt.

If he does get paired with Big Z, that doesn't mean he's the 2nd best D-man, as much as it means that the coaches think it may put him in the best position to succeed.

 

[BB88]

If Spooner shows that he can keep on putting numbers like he did on his 2nd call-up last year when he scored close to a point per game, than he will price himself out on his next contract. I can certainly see him being shoped for a great young D and so we can give the #3C spot behind Bergy-Krejci to another of our skilled prospect (Koko-Heinen-etc) at low cost.

Don't know if Gelinas would be my target but that's along what I think will happen with Spooner. Unless they decide to move Krejci instead and keep him...

This is why it's important to have golden prospects pool.

1) You have replacements in the system ready to step up if someone becomes too expensive
2)You have ton of prospects who you can push into the lineup with ELC contracts so you can allow to pay for top players.

Great thing is that Rask-Krecji-Bergeron are signed longterm, they won't get some new crazy 10M contracts which is great for us.

 

[BB88]

This is correct.

Before then he was Truman Capote.

I'm not ready to write Trotman off yet, but take the whole "1st Pairing" designation with a grain of salt.

If he does get paired with Big Z, that doesn't mean he's the 2nd best D-man, as much as it means that the coaches think it may put him in the best position to succeed.

I just can't get into this Trotman train, he hasn't been a star in the AHL and I can't see him with us after 1-2years, too many talented D players pushing into the lineup. Players that have either great shutdown potential with skating or elite skating offensive prospects, and not to mention if we sign/trade for someone. With these we can create a Sweeney style and I would love to see that.

Same goes sadly for Morrow, last year was his time to shine, probably 3 left handed D prospects pushing hard into the lineup after next season and Krug+Chara aren't going anywhere probably.

 

[GordonHowe]

Sweeney Still Looking for D Help

Per eei & DJ Bean:

http://bigbadblog.weei.com/sports/b...ins-still-talking-to-free-agent-defensemen/er

Still don't think Franson will be coming here because of the price tag. And not sure Don Sweeney thinks CE is worth bringing in on a one year contract if he's attempting to build the back end long term.

Would anyone take a flyer on Christian Ehrhoff? The Wings are looking at him.