Boston Bruins 2023-2024 Roster & Salary Cap Discussion IV

[Dennis Bonvie]

I think Grzelcyk probably has the cleaner skillset in pure hockey terms, no doubt.

I'll say something silly like this. If the regular season is smooth pavement, I'd like to have some heavy duty tires when the road becomes rough. The playoffs are a rough road.

If it came down to it as a choice in the playoffs, who would you play, Grzelcyk or Forbort?

 

[Blowfish]

Zadarov replaces Forbort. And Forbort would go the other way.

That's the guy he's replacing in the lineup. And in a cap world, money in, money out. Sure Gryz makes sense money-wise, but Zadarov is taking Forborts minutes.

Yah that's a big No to Zadorov! For many reasons already explained in this thread.

 

[Hookslide]

I think Grzelcyk probably has the cleaner skillset in pure hockey terms, no doubt.

I'll say something silly like this. If the regular season is smooth pavement, I'd like to have some heavy duty tires when the road becomes rough. The playoffs are a rough road.

Well put.

 

[Kazcram]

i really miss Miller

 

[NeelyDan]

Maybe the Bruins were tough enough to shake off those 3-4 legal hits without throwing a tantrum.

I'm going to take the mod hat off because this next bit isn't going to be well received...

I find the HF Fight Club to be the most sensitive posters on the board. You guys talk about toughness but are borderline hysterical every time someone takes a good hit. There's hitting in hockey, get over it. It's a lot tougher to take a hit to make a play than to run someone in a defenseless position, or jump a guy 4on1 for throwing a big hit.

You guys also blame every playoff loss on toughness. You keep saying "people don't get it." We understand the Bruins were outhit. We understand they lost the physical battle. We just don't think that's the reason they lost.

Don't get me wrong. I like toughness too, I lobbied for Lucic and would love Zadorov at a reasonable number. I also believe physical play and intimidation can be a weapon. I just think it ranks pretty far down the list of what makes/breaks a playoff team. I'd say the dediding factors are more likely...

1. Goaltending,
2. Health
3. 5on5 play
4. Penalty kill
5. Power play
6. Toughness

You can't win a cup without great goaltending, or good health or good 5on5 play. You just can't. You can be a skill team like Colorado or Pittsburgh and win multiple cups. I do believe you can offset some of your weaknesses with toughness. The Bruins 2011 team had goaltending, health and 5on5 play. They also had a great PK, but they had a terrible power play. They off-set their shortcomings with toughness. And I agree, it was so much fun. I know you really want that style to come back. I miss it too. But it's not the only way to win, it's not even a pre-requisite. And it sucks to listen to you guys constantly piss on the Bruins because they're not the 2011 team. It sucks to see Bruins "fans" constantly belittle the Bruins for not playing the way you want them to play.

Apologies to the offended. Apologies to the mods for a very unmod post.

"borderline hysterical" - this is hilarious. Provide even a single example. Just one.

 

[jgatie]

"Per Boston Hockey Now’s Jimmy Murphy, an NHL source told him that he thinks that “Sweeney’s in on Zadorov.” That same source also noted that they “know for a fact Sweeney’s looked into him before.” Now that Zadorov wants out of Calgary, it certainly would be a good time for the Bruins to make a push for him."

Honest question, when a guy goes on the trade market has Murphy ever NOT put out an article saying the bruins are interested? Feel like he has a "source" that says the bruins are interested in literally every single player that is made available. Sports journalism seems like the easiest job in the world.

Don't even give Thin Skins the clicks. Everybody knows he's full of shit.

 

[Sheppy]

If it came down to it as a choice in the playoffs, who would you play, Grzelcyk or Forbort?

I mean, PROBABLY Grzelcyk, but again, he leaves a lot to be desired.

Grzelcyk: 1 goal, 5 points in his last 31 playoff games and is a -14, 18:48 TOI
Forbort: 3 goals, 5 points in his last 32 playoff games and is a -4, 19:01 TOI

 

[Yeti34]

I mean, PROBABLY Grzelcyk, but again, he leaves a lot to be desired.

Grzelcyk: 1 goal, 5 points in his last 31 playoff games and is a -14, 18:48 TOI
Forbort: 3 goals, 5 points in his last 32 playoff games and is a -4, 19:01 TOI

Forborts points are actually better than expected. Where so many goals are decided by the PP I don’t know how you don’t have Forbort in over Gryz. Especially in the playoffs.

 

[BMC]

They had the lead in the 3rd period of game 6 and 7.

So the injured center and injured goaltender were good enough to get them a lead for 50 minutes of game 6 & 7, but then once the team loses the game in the last 10 or so minutes, you blame the coaching and absolve the players of any wrongdoing?

The players choked. You can’t blame the coach for keeping what was working for 50 minutes a game and then blame him when the team crumbles in the last 10 minutes.

I would say we should embrace the power of the word "and": the players AND coaches choked.

 

[DKH]

Refs let the Blues due to same thing to us in 2019

Bruins were tough Blues were dirty puss ez who were taught by top 10 All Time d!bag Steve Ott to not worry about retaliation- just hit shoulder high and keep gloves on

Oskar Sundqvist is like a puppy who’s one career fight was against Providence Bruins Sean Kuraly and realized he should never fight again

The Bruins blew it but they weren’t swept

If you ask 100 posters here what the 2019 series was 80 would say they were swept

 

[PB37]

"borderline hysterical" - this is hilarious. Provide even a single example. Just one.

You should check out Game Day threads. Histrionics are almost a certainty.

 

[Sheppy]

Forborts points are actually better than expected. Where so many goals are decided by the PP I don’t know how you don’t have Forbort in over Gryz. Especially in the playoffs.

Because fancy stats, I guess? I don't know.

I believe Grzelcyk has a better break out, and is a better skater, that's basically it. If a guy is 5'8'' and 175 pounds, he should at least have some offensive ability. But hey. I'm a Neanderthal, I guess.

 

[BMC]

Fair points.

The only thing I’ll say in my personal defense is that I don’t want them to be tougher because I enjoy blood, guts and gore. I want them to be tougher because I’m invested in this team and the players and I don’t enjoy watching players I root for getting roughed up without ramification.

I‘m being sincere when I say this. I like the vast majority of players on this team, just like everyone who will read this.

I don’t like watching them get taken advantage of when vulnerable and when it happens I want the one(s) responsible to pay for it.

If that makes me a knuckle dragging Neanderthal, then so be it.

This ^

I was never a goon vs goon fan and I'm glad they're gone. However few things anger me more than the Bruins refusing/failing/whatever excuse to hold opponents accountable for their actions. No, I don't want a Bruin to jump a player who made a good hit on another Bruin whether it leads to injury or not, that's just stupid.

Otherwise I do want the Bruins to hold opponents accountable for their actions every single time. Never mind the officials (unless they call a penalty obviously) or the NHL taking care of it simply because both are too inconsistent.

 

[Sheppy]

This ^

I was never a goon vs goon fan and I'm glad they're gone. However few things anger me more than the Bruins refusing/failing/whatever excuse to hold opponents accountable for their actions. No, I don't want a Bruin to jump a player who made a good hit on another Bruin whether it leads to injury or not, that's just stupid.

Otherwise I do want the Bruins to hold opponents accountable for their actions every single time. Never mind the officials (unless they call a penalty obviously) or the NHL taking care of it simply because both are too inconsistent.

This is where I'm at too. A lot of stuff I say gets misrepresented as wanting a team full of Trevor Gillies, I don't at all.

I'm pretty happy with the make up of this team currently (with Lucic in the line up) - The one thing I would like to see is a big, mean defenseman on the back end who will assert himself in front of the net and lay the body when opposing teams are forechecking. Someone mentioned Middelton on the bottom pair? Sign me up if Zadorov is a pipe dream.

I do believe this team plays a bit bigger and tougher when you have the toughest guy in the NHL on your 4th line, though. This guy can't come back soon enough for me.

 

[NeelyDan]

This is where I'm at too. A lot of stuff I say gets misrepresented as wanting a team full of Trevor Gillies, I don't at all.

I'm pretty happy with the make up of this team currently (with Lucic in the line up) - The one thing I would like to see is a big, mean defenseman on the back end who will assert himself in front of the net and lay the body when opposing teams are forechecking. Someone mentioned Middelton on the bottom pair? Sign me up if Zadorov is a pipe dream.

I do believe this team plays a bit bigger and tougher when you have the toughest guy in the NHL on your 4th line, though. This guy can't come back soon enough for me.

Most people of our "ilk" fall into roughly the same characterization. For some weird reason, though, it's often misrepresented with intellectually lazy and borderline dishonest viewpoints.

 

[mjhfb]

This ^

I was never a goon vs goon fan and I'm glad they're gone. However few things anger me more than the Bruins refusing/failing/whatever excuse to hold opponents accountable for their actions. No, I don't want a Bruin to jump a player who made a good hit on another Bruin whether it leads to injury or not, that's just stupid.

Otherwise I do want the Bruins to hold opponents accountable for their actions every single time. Never mind the officials (unless they call a penalty obviously) or the NHL taking care of it simply because both are too inconsistent.

The game has changed but whatever they do, having the players simply "take it and play through it" has not worked. Legal hits or not. Too many players have got unnecessarily banged up by continually taking it with no response. Especially come playoff time.
There needs to be a certain amount of "fear" (for lack of a better word) that makes an opposing player think twice before doing something, or at least unconsciously makes him give the Bruin player more time and space.
Perhaps I'm still living in the past, but if Terry O'Reilly and Stan Jonathan could eventually score close to 30 goals in a season, it proved that earning extra time and space on the ice does help.

 

[BruinsFanMike82]

 

[Roll 4 Lines]

Maybe the Bruins were tough enough to shake off those 3-4 legal hits without throwing a tantrum.

I'm going to take the mod hat off because this next bit isn't going to be well received...

I find the HF Fight Club to be the most sensitive posters on the board. You guys talk about toughness but are borderline hysterical every time someone takes a good hit. There's hitting in hockey, get over it. It's a lot tougher to take a hit to make a play than to run someone in a defenseless position, or jump a guy 4on1 for throwing a big hit.

You guys also blame every playoff loss on toughness. You keep saying "people don't get it." We understand the Bruins were outhit. We understand they lost the physical battle. We just don't think that's the reason they lost.

Don't get me wrong. I like toughness too, I lobbied for Lucic and would love Zadorov at a reasonable number. I also believe physical play and intimidation can be a weapon. I just think it ranks pretty far down the list of what makes/breaks a playoff team. I'd say the dediding factors are more likely...

1. Goaltending,
2. Health
3. 5on5 play
4. Penalty kill
5. Power play
6. Toughness

You can't win a cup without great goaltending, or good health or good 5on5 play. You just can't. You can be a skill team like Colorado or Pittsburgh and win multiple cups. I do believe you can offset some of your weaknesses with toughness. The Bruins 2011 team had goaltending, health and 5on5 play. They also had a great PK, but they had a terrible power play. They off-set their shortcomings with toughness. And I agree, it was so much fun. I know you really want that style to come back. I miss it too. But it's not the only way to win, it's not even a pre-requisite. And it sucks to listen to you guys constantly piss on the Bruins because they're not the 2011 team. It sucks to see Bruins "fans" constantly belittle the Bruins for not playing the way you want them to play.

Apologies to the offended. Apologies to the mods for a very unmod post.

As one of the people you refer to, I must say that this is a fabulous post and spot on!

 

[sarge88]

Do people really think Bussi is ready for that?

 

[NeelyDan]

As one of the people you refer to, I must say that this is a fabulous post and spot on!

Nah, it's a giant hyperbolic strawman

 

[Blowfish]

Sign me up if Zadorov is a pipe dream.

I do believe this team plays a bit bigger and tougher when you have the toughest guy in the NHL on your 4th line, though. This guy can't come back soon enough for me.

The bruins are certainly suffering not having him in the line up at the moment. I can't believe they have 1 loss. Brutal!

 

[Chevalier du Clavier]

A wee bit early for this question?

 

[Sheppy]

The bruins are certainly suffering not having him in the line up at the moment. I can't believe they have 1 loss. Brutal!

Yeah, you see, I never understood this stuff.

I'm a big fan of Lucic, I think he will bring an element that they're lacking, 1 loss or not.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

Yeah, you see, I never understood this stuff.

I'm a big fan of Lucic, I think he will bring an element that they're lacking, 1 loss or not.

What's not to understand?

 

[PlayMakers]

"borderline hysterical" - this is hilarious. Provide even a single example. Just one.

Don't have to go far. The GDT's are filled with guys upset over the Bruins not retaliating, or not initiating or 'getting bent over.'

There are multiple posts in this thread (including the post that started this conversation) where people are calling for the Bruins to have 4 or 5 scrums against Buffalo for legal hits where nobody got hurt. In the Buffalo GDT Fire Sweeney is lobbying for the Bruins to play their bottom6 the "rest of the way and goon it up." You yourself called someone "f***ing petty" and "obnoxious" for arguing with you, but it was deleted. The Bruins blew out Buffalo and 3 days later people are still complaining about not 'retaliating' multiple times.

That to me, is hysteria.