Open forward spots and who needs youth?

[Shoebottom]

You can't call Brian Boyle and Derek Dorsett huge players and then turn around and say Dan Boyle, Lee Stempniak, and Tanner Glass suck.

My attendance in this conversation is over. If the B's were eastern conference champs, had little turnover on the roster, and weren't being called favorites to win the east..you'd be screaming from the roof at them.

I want the B's to dethrone the Rangers badly, I don't like the Rangers one bit. But, in my opinion, that's who the bullseye is on...not the regular season champs.

Just like how in the west, everyone is looking at Chicago and LA, not the Ducks even though they were the regular season champs.

Good day.

Bullseye should be the champ, LA. If you think the Rags have a better team than the Bruins I bid you good day as well. Tootaloo

 

[member 96824]

You guys suck! Well not Joe, he styx up for me sumtimez

 

[Shoebottom]

Still put up 5 goals in 12 play-off games... or more than Marchand, Krejci, Eriksson and Soderberg combined.

True. Could've used more power in his power forward game in the P/O, but he isn't young anymore. Liked his time in Boston. But what you gonna do? Guy wanted more money. Never know, if Fraser catches fire and puts up20+, Iggi will be replaced.

 

[BoyntBergie]

Bullseye should be the champ, LA. If you think the Rags have a better team than the Bruins I bid you good day as well. Tootaloo

Agreed. Granted I tend to be a glass half full guy, but I think the B's would have got by NYR with relative ease if they had got past the Habs.

 

[Shoebottom]

Agreed. Granted I tend to be a glass half full guy, but I think the B's would have got by NYR with relative ease if they had got past the Habs.

Yup, habs achieved what they wanted, and were spent after that. You take out Subban out of the equation, and the Bs win. CJ should've had someone concentrate on PK, especially the pp.

 

[member 96824]

Agreed. Granted I tend to be a glass half full guy, but I think the B's would have got by NYR with relative ease if they had got past the Habs.

Tough to say. They were struggling offensively...running into Lundqvist and the fire breathing monster that was McDonagh last year wouldn't have helped the case there.

 

[Mr. Make-Believe]

Agreed. Granted I tend to be a glass half full guy, but I think the B's would have got by NYR with relative ease if they had got past the Habs.

I'd agree. Except they SHOULDN'T have struggled against the Habs. So that's an especially tough hypothetical.

 

[DoubleAAAA]

And the Bruins are doing what exactly? I don't believe they're returning the same team to the ice either. They've got plenty of unknowns throughout the lineup.

Rangers added Dan Boyle, Lee Stempniak, Tanner Glass along with those rookies that are impressing at camp. Young guys look to have taken the "next step" and key deadline acquisitions like St. Louis and Klein will have full year of adjustment...or is it only our guys that need time to adjust?

Rangers are eastern conference champs until someone proves otherwise. They have earned that. That's not the "next best thing." That is a proven fact from last year.

I didn't take issue with "team to beat" based on prior year results, although I think it's a bit of a silly notion anyways whether it's the Rags or the B's. I just firmly believe they are not a better team now than they were in the playoffs last year. Even moreso when it comes to the Habs.

And for the record, I think the Bruins are worse off too and I don't think it's debatable. I also think the Bruins have a significantly better roster than either of those clubs.

 

[Ten Thousand Hours]

Exactly! One cup, another final, and a presidents trophy in the last 4 years. That's pretty good.

Hey Ten Thousand Hours, you seem to have a firm grasp of whats going on with this team. What do you think happens with our Dmen? Bartkowski gone? Boychuk gone? McQuaid?

My guess is something happens with Bartkowski, but that's just a guess obviously. It doesn't seem to make sense to carry 8 d and have to make changes up front to be able to keep 13.

Still put up 5 goals in 12 play-off games... or more than Marchand, Krejci, Eriksson and Soderberg combined.

One empty netter. 3 tips. One shot. A goal's a goal, but Gagne is probably about as likely to reproduce that good fortune as Iginla or anyone else. He wasn't creating anything. He wasn't making his teammates better. He wasn't helping much.

 

[Shoebottom]

My guess is something happens with Bartkowski, but that's just a guess obviously. It doesn't seem to make sense to carry 8 d and have to make changes up front to be able to keep 13.



One empty netter. 3 tips. One shot. A goal's a goal, but Gagne is probably about as likely to reproduce that good fortune as Iginla or anyone else. He wasn't creating anything. He wasn't making his teammates better. He wasn't helping much.

I hear ya. Thanks.

 

[ReggieMoto]

This thread got me thinking: shouldn't there be a pre-season poll asking how how folks think the Bruins will finish? I would do it but the last couple of times I tried to create a poll it failed. Don't know why but I gave up.

Don't make the playoffs.
First Round elimination.
Second Round elimination.
Third Round elimination.
Stanley Cup playoff loss.
Stanley Cup winners.

Something like that? Close it before the first game starts so no changes. See how well people's crystal balls work.

 

[Artemis]

This thread got me thinking: shouldn't there be a pre-season poll asking how how folks think the Bruins will finish? I would do it but the last couple of times I tried to create a poll it failed. Don't know why but I gave up.

Don't make the playoffs.
First Round elimination.
Second Round elimination.
Third Round elimination.
Stanley Cup playoff loss.
Stanley Cup winners.

Something like that? Close it before the first game starts so no changes. See how well people's crystal balls work.

Thank you! Just popping for a moment looking for a place to post this, from the great and funny Sean McIndoe (aka Down Goes Brown):

Boston Bruins

Last season: 54-19-9, league-leading 117 points, won the Presidents’ Trophy, lost in the second round of playoffs

Offseason report: The Bruins have been playing salary-cap roulette for years, and this summer it cost them a chance to re-sign Jarome Iginla. They also lost Shawn Thornton and Andrej Meszaros, while not really adding anything of consequence (although getting Dennis Seidenberg back to full health will give them a boost).

Outlook: The loss of Iginla hurts, but this is still the East’s best team, and maybe by a long way. No team is better at taking away the other team’s top threat, thanks to the Bruins’ holy trinity of center Patrice Bergeron, defenseman Zdeno Chara, and reigning Vezina winner Tuukka Rask. And unlike other strong defensive teams, Boston can actually put the puck in the net, too.

Their cap situation is still tight, and with some good young players emerging from rookie deals, they may not be able to keep the core together much longer. But for now, they’re a powerhouse … for one more year, at least.

Key stat: Plus-84 — the Bruins’ goal differential last year, a full 27 goals better than the next best teams’. They were the first team to top the plus-80 mark since 2010. They were good.

Best case: Pretty much exactly what we saw last year, without the whole “blowing a series to the hated Habs” thing.

Worst case: It’s honestly tough to come up with a scenario where the Bruins struggle that doesn’t involve a crush of injuries. In theory, they could have some sort of lingering hangover after the Montreal meltdown, Chara is old enough that his game could drop off significantly at some point, and maybe Rask is finally due for an off year. If all that happens and some other team surges, maybe the Bruins plummet down the Atlantic standings all the way to … second? That’s about the best I can do.

Bold prediction: The Bruins return to the Stanley Cup final, rolling through the Eastern Conference bracket in 15 games or fewer.

http://grantland.com/the-triangle/2014-15-nhl-preview-the-contenders/

Back to hiatusland. Cheers.

 

[TMac21]

Agreed. Granted I tend to be a glass half full guy, but I think the B's would have got by NYR with relative ease if they had got past the Habs.

Agreed, 5-6 games max...but them's the breaks.

 

[doc5hole]

Mick and Ali,

I'm not being sarcastic, but was this even a question? The B's have 9 d-men up and only 1 (Dougie) is waiver exempt, so we all know that at least two D are going.

I don't know how many times it has to be explained, the reason people want Kelly gone is not because of the player, it's because of the salary. I think we all had a pretty good idea that there was no way Clode was going to lose both Kelly and Campbell, and now it looks like he loses neither. Personally, I think Kelly is much better than Campbell, but he is not a $3m player, and hasn't been for the last couple of years.

In my opinion, $3M for Kelly when he was healthy (and had been for a long time) was a good contract under that cap. The Bruins had no reason at the time to believe that the cap would come down like it did, that he would break his leg in consecutive seasons and then have back surgery.

The back thing is the potential game changer, but Chiarelli can't trade him until potential suitors get at least a month of healthy hockey to scout. So I never thought Kelly was going until the season is several weeks old.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

In my opinion, $3M for Kelly when he was healthy (and had been for a long time) was a good contract under that cap. The Bruins had no reason at the time to believe that the cap would come down like it did, that he would break his leg in consecutive seasons and then have back surgery.

The back thing is the potential game changer, but Chiarelli can't trade him until potential suitors get at least a month of healthy hockey to scout. So I never thought Kelly was going until the season is several weeks old.

Mick,

I'm wondering if with the lower than expected signings by Krug and Smith, Kelly is not in danger at all, and that perhaps Campbell should be the worried one. I get the sense that Clode would like to keep them both, which wouldn't surprise me in the least.

 

[member 96824]

"We're going to have to move a defender"

It is now 5 days before opening night. Sigh

 

[DKH]

Thank you! Just popping for a moment looking for a place to post this, from the great and funny Sean McIndoe (aka Down Goes Brown):



http://grantland.com/the-triangle/2014-15-nhl-preview-the-contenders/

Back to hiatusland. Cheers.

You mean back to listening to an endless loop of Hotel California while watching reruns of the Twilight Zone with the sound off-taking a break only to check on the Salisbury steak TV diner in your toaster oven you bought in 1975 from Lechmere

 

[GloryDaze4877]

You mean back to listening to an endless loop of Hotel California while watching reruns of the Twilight Zone with the sound off-taking a break only to check on the Salisbury steak TV diner in your toaster oven you bought in 1975 from Lechmere

Does that come with the Brownie or Apple pie dessert?

 

[Numbah4]

Even just in terms of uncertainty though...

We don't know what's happening with one of the team's staples in the Merlot line.

We don't know who is taking over on the third line with our awesome center in Soderberg.

We don't know who is going to be the TOP line's RW. And even if Eriksson is in that slot, if he'll do what we need him to in that role.

We don't know what's happening with the blueline with all of the extra bodies there.

We haven't added in a single solitary attribute (speed, intimidation) that most agreed were opportunities for this team to improve.

We're still facing a deadly cap situation that allows for very little versatility through the season without divvying up a major piece of the lineup.

We still don't have a single RH shot on the right side of the ice.

And I'm sure others could add to this list. There is a LOT of uncertainty here and it goes beyond just the loss of a couple of players.

By most metrics The Merlot Line was one of the worst in hockey last year. Hard not to improve on that. I think Kelly on that line brings Paille someone who can actually keep up with him. Wouldn't be shocked if the 4th piece of this line arrives in a trade this week.

Loui had 10 goals last year. How can we be worried about his production slipping? If he sticks on the first line all year, I'd guess 25 or so sounds right. Gagne is basically replacing his production if he plays with Soderberg. Not Iggy's 30.

We may not know what's happening with the blueline. But, how can that be a negative? It's the best in the league.

The salary cap won't be a big deal because our replacements will come from within when someone gets injured. You put the injured play on LTIR and bring up the kids from Providence to replace them. The money saved gives you room to make a deadline deal. Pittsburgh has been doing this for 3-4 years. Hasn't worked for them. They just haven't traded for the right players. But, have had room to make a deal because of injuries.

Would definitely like to add speed up front. Losing iggy and Thornton helps right there. Gagne and Loui are much better skaters. Trading Campbell and replacing him with Kelly is a step up in the spped department too. Would like to add a 4th line banger who can skate and hit. Don't care about fighting any more. It's irrelevant.

Everybody keeps telling me last year's record doesn't matter because we lost to Montreal. Well, when this team falls out of the playoff race then those critics can start griping. Because, according to their logic there is nothing that can be done before the playoffs that matters.

LA doesn't win it without Gaborik last year. We may have to make a move for a scorer at the deadline. We certainly have the pieces to get a scorer; Subban, Koko, Morrow, etc.

Right now is the best time to be a Bruins fan since the 70's. I don't get all the angst. And, in the late 70's there was that team in Quebec who was better than us no matter what we did or how much you liked our team.

 

[doc5hole]

Mick,

I'm wondering if with the lower than expected signings by Krug and Smith, Kelly is not in danger at all, and that perhaps Campbell should be the worried one. I get the sense that Clode would like to keep them both, which wouldn't surprise me in the least.

I can see that.
Julien loved Thorty, too, but they let him go because he lost a step and couldn't get the puck out of the zone in the playoffs. Had zero to do with a changing game -- nice spin by the Bruins, I ain't buying.
If Campbell can get his wheels back better than last season, then they'll go through the season with him and, if Koko's NHL-ready during the Calder Cup playoffs, they'll let Campbell walk.
The other guy we're not talking about here is Paille. If he's not scoring and Florek looks good in Providence, I can see that as much or more because Paille never really got off the fourth line like he should have last year after his 2013 playoffs, and the team tends to lose veteran wingers that it does not extend ahead of time. He's UFA also and easily the most marketable veteran winger that they're not truly invested in. If I'm him, I'm a goner if I'm on the fourth line on opening night unless Kelly is the center and it becomes not the fourth line via performance.
As for Kelly, he has two years so it depends on how well he comes back from injury, how much he can help the team on the wing, Soderberg (if he ever gets hit on that blind side, Kelly's back in his old spot) -- lotta moving parts here. Plus, Soderberg is UFA at season's end so there's that, too. If they extend Soderberg in season, then Kelly is gone -- just a matter of when/where.
The one trade scenario I wondered about is: let's say Kelly is meandering about as third-line, non-scoring LW, Campbell is fine and there are other PK options and things are not going great on RW. Then you call Lou Lams if they need center depth and talk about a Ryder comeback. Your cap goes up $500K and you get out of the second year. But IMO a healthy Kelly would add so much pop to this team like in 2013. Teams hated playing against him.

 

[Alicat]

I just want to state that as much as I love Kelly, I would trade him as long as it is for a decent return ie: low 2nd or hight 3rd rounder.

I would also wait until the deadline and if the B's look like they have a great shot at a deep Cup run, I wait until July 1.

Chiarelli tried for over a year to land Kelly plus the 2nd we gave up, Shane Prince, hasn't made an impact enough to crack the NHL.

 

[BMC]

I'd agree. Except they SHOULDN'T have struggled against the Habs. So that's an especially tough hypothetical.

I think the Habs got into the Bs' heads more than anything else. You look at that roster and outside of Price & Subban the Bruins had them cold in terms of physical talent/skill. It was the mental game where the Bruins really struggled IMO.

 

[bp13]

I can see that.
Julien loved Thorty, too, but they let him go because he lost a step and couldn't get the puck out of the zone in the playoffs. Had zero to do with a changing game -- nice spin by the Bruins, I ain't buying.
If Campbell can get his wheels back better than last season, then they'll go through the season with him and, if Koko's NHL-ready during the Calder Cup playoffs, they'll let Campbell walk.
The other guy we're not talking about here is Paille. If he's not scoring and Florek looks good in Providence, I can see that as much or more because Paille never really got off the fourth line like he should have last year after his 2013 playoffs, and the team tends to lose veteran wingers that it does not extend ahead of time. He's UFA also and easily the most marketable veteran winger that they're not truly invested in. If I'm him, I'm a goner if I'm on the fourth line on opening night unless Kelly is the center and it becomes not the fourth line via performance.
As for Kelly, he has two years so it depends on how well he comes back from injury, how much he can help the team on the wing, Soderberg (if he ever gets hit on that blind side, Kelly's back in his old spot) -- lotta moving parts here. Plus, Soderberg is UFA at season's end so there's that, too. If they extend Soderberg in season, then Kelly is gone -- just a matter of when/where.
The one trade scenario I wondered about is: let's say Kelly is meandering about as third-line, non-scoring LW, Campbell is fine and there are other PK options and things are not going great on RW. Then you call Lou Lams if they need center depth and talk about a Ryder comeback. Your cap goes up $500K and you get out of the second year. But IMO a healthy Kelly would add so much pop to this team like in 2013. Teams hated playing against him.

Interesting post.

The one piece that struck me was moving Paille. I'd be concerned about that for two reasons:

1. The PK struggled a bit last season compared to prior years and he's excellent on the PK. I know they have other options now, like Loui, but I don't hang my hat much on him at this point. I'd actually be surprised if he sees the playoffs in a Bruins uni. So with an aging Chara and a recovering Seidenberg, not sure I want to weaken my PK any more.

2. Bigger issue - speed! I really wonder how this team could afford to get any slower, let alone lose their fastest player. I hate the thought of that.

 

[doc5hole]

Interesting post.

The one piece that struck me was moving Paille. I'd be concerned about that for two reasons:

1. The PK struggled a bit last season compared to prior years and he's excellent on the PK. I know they have other options now, like Loui, but I don't hang my hat much on him at this point. I'd actually be surprised if he sees the playoffs in a Bruins uni. So with an aging Chara and a recovering Seidenberg, not sure I want to weaken my PK any more.

2. Bigger issue - speed! I really wonder how this team could afford to get any slower, let alone lose their fastest player. I hate the thought of that.

Agreed. Not suggesting, just speculating.

 

[OutspokenMinority*]

A 4th line with Paille and Kelly is already the best 4th line in the league. Campbell? meh. I'd move him if possible. Question is who would be a good fit for the right wing? Funny thing is Loui would probably work beautifully with Kelly. It'd be an expensive 4th line but it'd be the best by far! lots of lefties though.