- Jan 29, 2003
- 26,975
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And…..everyone except the first liners and top 2 defensemen from every other team in the league sucks.
Hard!
I‘m amazed the league can actually exist with so many guys who are bad at hockey everywhere.
Boston Bruins 2023-24 Roster and Salary Cap Discussion VI
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And…..everyone except the first liners and top 2 defensemen from every other team in the league sucks.
Hard!
I‘m amazed the league can actually exist with so many guys who are bad at hockey everywhere.
MarchysNoseKnows
Big Hat No Cattle
- Feb 14, 2018
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It’s pretty predictable that people seem to crave Logan Stanley but no one brings up Sean Walker
- Jan 29, 2003
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There is a certain % of Bruins fandom (diminishing as it may be) that enjoys having a legitimate tough guy on the team.
Only speaking for myself, but, IMO 70-80% of players in the league have legitimate deficiencies in their game.
Given that, why is it that tough guys are the only ones who seem to be lamented by so many?
I like Steen, I like Lauko, but what do they have? 4 points between them?
Pat Maroon, who reportedly doesn’t skate as well as my 75 year old mother and according to some here should have voluntarily retired 3 years ago because of his abject lack of any discernible usefulness as a hockey player, has 11 himself.
Would this team be better off with Maroon instead of either of those guys?
Who knows?
But the fact remains that they would be tougher and probably more entertaining and edgy, for lack of a better word.
Don‘t want this to turn into the usual toughness debate.
My only point is that teams need a mix of players and TBH, IMO 40-50% of the league is interchangeable and not difference makers.
MarchysNoseKnows
Big Hat No Cattle
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But part of the issue is where you’re playing then - and that’s leaving aside why the other team would trade said player.
The thought of a Forbort-Zadorov or Forbort-Stanley pairing should offend any possible kind of hockey fan. It’s a terrible combination. You don’t find pairings like that in the NHL any more. I’ll dump Forbort in a second and then that RD can be a different kind of guy.
But let’s be honest - how many here have actually watched Logan Stanley play in any meaningful way. People see he’s 6’7 and fights and says why not him? But he’s had trouble even cracking the Winnipeg bottom pair. And he hasn’t figured it out at all. That matters too.
And yeah - Pat Maroon isn’t a guy to look at any more. Given the state of Tampa’s bottom six that should show you something.
- Jan 29, 2003
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What I should have said in my previous post is this.
Many here generalize, overreact, and project way too often.
Time and again, players perform vastly differently from one team to the next. If Maroon is here from day 1 playing the games that either Lauko or Steen (maybe both, since they’ve both missed multiple games) he might have 4, 11 or 14 points and bring something nobody else has…a willingness to hit, intimidate and fight.
There is no way, in my opinion, that him playing those games costs the Bruins even one point in the standings.
In fact, given his production, in comparison, he might be worth a point or two to the positive.
And, just to be clear, I’m not suggesting they trade for Maroon. I‘m just using him as a comparison to a couple of guys, who I actually like, but have produced very little but don’t seem to get a lot of flack for it.
CellyHard
Registered User
I think 4.7 is a little low for him too but at the same time, 6 or 7 is way too high for him. I don't touch JD at anything more than 5-5.5 on a few years but I think he could be better used as a trade chip and then replaced in the summer. I hate to say it but his skillset is replaceable.
I would take a look at someone like Jakub Vrana. Same age. Can play both wings, blazing speed, filthy shot and has the exact same career goals per game as JD and will definitely be cheaper.
I would move Debrusk, Gryz, and Ullmark for a collection of picks to get Hanifin and Lindholm and round out the rest of the roster with some toughness.
Zacha Poitras Pastrnak
Marchand Lindholm Vrana
Frederic Coyle Lysell
Lauko Beecher Geekie
Hanifin McAvoy
Lindholm Carlo
Lohrei ...
Swayman
Bussi
This team is loaded. You could move around that top six...can even make a new Czech line with Vrana
SwayHeyKid
Registered User
- Mar 14, 2022
- 1,976
- 2,258
Yeah I don’t get it. There are plenty of spots to upgrade on this team. I’m not really looking to go all in but who are the untouchables?
DKH
Worst Poster/Awful Takes
- Feb 27, 2002
- 78,014
- 60,454
Would not surprised me if both Lindholm & Hanifin know in a 6 months the Bruins are coming after both
If Hanifin/agent got wind Bruins want and would pay the $7.5 M they decided he would wait to see if Calgary a playoff contender;, I can see him coming sooner
The collective intuition of fans here know they are a bit off but close if they make a move
My view is they make playoffs and first round probably flip a coin they are neither heavy favorite or underdogs - crap shoot
But add a big piece or two they should be a top 2-3 teams going in to win
Mick Riddleton
Tariffs-With Friends Like These, Who Needs Enemas
- Apr 24, 2017
- 14,808
- 16,417
JT Miller is 2nd in pts behind Kucherov. I remember all the chatter about him the last few years. I wish we traded for him. I know this year the Canucks are an offensive-driven team, so his stats are inflated vs playing on a bottom team.
If the rumors about Hanifan wanting to be a Bruin are true they should not waste anything on him this year and take him for free in summer.
If the rumors about Hanifan wanting to be a Bruin are true they should not waste anything on him this year and take him for free in summer.
He's not good and doesn't really fit any where in our lineup. I guess if you can get him dirt cheap to be the 7D come playoffs then I'd be cool with it, but besides that we don't have much use for him.What's the story with oft injured Logan Stanley?
Drafted 18th overall in 2016; Stanley is 25, and he's listed as a 6'7," 225 pd. left shot D on a one year, 1 million contract.
Logan Stanley - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
Can anyone shed light on his play, and whether he might be a fit in Boston?
I have finally come to the time to trade Jake , now I am not saying give him away, I would rather keep him but if he is looking for 6-7 mil unless he starts lighting it up then move on from him. One more thing about DeBrusk, he is playing well right now, but they need some offense. I have to be honest I chuckled when I saw you put Vrana out there ,I was looking at him the other day myself, I think he would be worth a shot, his contract is not awful and maybe Berube just wants him out and they hold a little money. I also think Lysell should be put on the backburner, I just don't believe he is NHL ready, could be wrong, but I don't think so. I also see you have eliminated Heinen and JVR, interesting, I understand why Sweeney signed JVR, but he just not do it for me and he should not be on the PP overCoyle.
If Jake would take six mil per year for ,four years keep him anything more move him
Sheppy
NeelyDan eats corn the long way
You’re quick to toss out “he’s not good at hockey”
Do you watch him play frequently?
MarchysNoseKnows
Big Hat No Cattle
- Feb 14, 2018
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Sheppy
NeelyDan eats corn the long way
Tons.
I just feel you’re not honest with your takes. It’s automatically “This guy sucks” because he plays a specific role.
Repost from AZ postgame thread, if I may,
Reasons Not Excuses Dept.: McAvoy, Zacha and Forbort are out. There's a debilitating, energy sapping bug going round the locker room.
They don't play till Wednesday v. NJ, so at least they'll have some practice time, players will return from injury, and the contagion will fade.
Even so, the team right now is a mess.
They need to keep it simple and work primarily on righting a defensive game that has gone completely off the rails. They can't get out of their own end passing or carrying the puck. They're also getting hemmed in their own zone way, way too often.
As Mick Colageo has pointed out repeatedly,
"If there is a lesson in letting the Panthers off the playoff mat last spring, it has to be that the Eastern Conference’s most-physical team gave 30 other teams a manual for playing the Bruins. Rim the puck hard around the boards and don’t let the Bruins get to Montgomery’s short-pass, puck-moving system. Disrupt with hits and make them pay a price to make strong puck plays. Chaos is the Bruins’ Kryptonite."
From what I can see, the Bruins have no answer for this problem, and it is central to their current defensive woes. Until they do, they're in trouble.
This is a coaching and "systems" issue. There's no reason why a solution can't be found, but Montgomery is either going to have to fix the flaw in his defensive strategy or go back to the drawing board. It's on him and his staff to right the ship.
Overreliance on elite goaltending to save their bacon every night has led to a] sloppy, irresponsible play, "blown assignments," and b] sapped the physical and mental strength of Ullmark and Swayman. The tactic is not working, hasn't for a good while, and will not work in future. The Bruins have to straighten out their defensive game on several levels, and they can start by going back to basics.
Offensively, the fourth and third lines are fine.
Lines one and two -- which is which? -- have not been stable as Montgomery attempts to sort them out. Jake DeBrusk's renewed struggle with inconsistency -- which frankly I did not see coming after a break out season and a chance to cash in with a hefty new contract -- has been a major weakness putting the top six in workable order. FWIW I don't think Brad works with Pavel and David, who should stay together.
It's still relatively early, but clearly, at least to me, the Bruins are in need of significant additions on D and C.
Finally (and you knew I would bring it up), the lack of aggressive attitude, physical intimidation, push back -- how about finishing your checks, ffs? -- is glaringly, absurdly, embarrassingly obvious.
Colageo (who along with KPD addressed the issue in simultaneous columns weeks ago):
"Charlie McAvoy is easily Boston’s best hitter, and his recent four-game suspension for miscalculating on a bodycheck and clipping Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s head has muted the natural physicality in his own game. McAvoy is only now beginning to recapture his mojo.
"Add the left-shooting Matt Grzelcyk back to the top pairing across from McAvoy, and management can similarly begin a season of evaluation regarding the deployment of Grzelcyk versus Derek Forbort pending pace of play versus physicality in Boston’s opponents.
"The best value in compensation for a goaltender may be in a left defenseman bringing the best of both, in-house specialists, and perhaps an ability to hit on a second pairing the way McAvoy can on the first. Is that too much to ask?
"Meantime, a 35-year-old winger less than two years removed from double labrum surgery should not be a Stanley Cup contender’s most aggressive forward. Yes, Trent Frederic and Jakub Lauko are scrappy, and not every forward need be the second coming of Terry O’Reilly.
"But, if Sweeney is compelled to deal one of his number-one goalies and cannot bring back a generational talent like Leon Draisaitl, then the next best thing is a significant upgrade in the toughness department.
"We’re not talking about an enforcer skating 5:00 a game in the playoffs, I mean top-six, game-changing presence, a forechecker/scorer who distracts defensemen going back on retrievals the way a young Cam Neely ran roughshod over the Montreal Canadiens in the late ’80s.
"This kind of prize is far more applicable to the Stanley Cup playoffs than any kind of talent promising a certain amount of point shares.
"Imagine this team with some swagger."
Nor should it.
Reasons Not Excuses Dept.: McAvoy, Zacha and Forbort are out. There's a debilitating, energy sapping bug going round the locker room.
They don't play till Wednesday v. NJ, so at least they'll have some practice time, players will return from injury, and the contagion will fade.
Even so, the team right now is a mess.
They need to keep it simple and work primarily on righting a defensive game that has gone completely off the rails. They can't get out of their own end passing or carrying the puck. They're also getting hemmed in their own zone way, way too often.
As Mick Colageo has pointed out repeatedly,
"If there is a lesson in letting the Panthers off the playoff mat last spring, it has to be that the Eastern Conference’s most-physical team gave 30 other teams a manual for playing the Bruins. Rim the puck hard around the boards and don’t let the Bruins get to Montgomery’s short-pass, puck-moving system. Disrupt with hits and make them pay a price to make strong puck plays. Chaos is the Bruins’ Kryptonite."
From what I can see, the Bruins have no answer for this problem, and it is central to their current defensive woes. Until they do, they're in trouble.
This is a coaching and "systems" issue. There's no reason why a solution can't be found, but Montgomery is either going to have to fix the flaw in his defensive strategy or go back to the drawing board. It's on him and his staff to right the ship.
Overreliance on elite goaltending to save their bacon every night has led to a] sloppy, irresponsible play, "blown assignments," and b] sapped the physical and mental strength of Ullmark and Swayman. The tactic is not working, hasn't for a good while, and will not work in future. The Bruins have to straighten out their defensive game on several levels, and they can start by going back to basics.
Offensively, the fourth and third lines are fine.
Lines one and two -- which is which? -- have not been stable as Montgomery attempts to sort them out. Jake DeBrusk's renewed struggle with inconsistency -- which frankly I did not see coming after a break out season and a chance to cash in with a hefty new contract -- has been a major weakness putting the top six in workable order. FWIW I don't think Brad works with Pavel and David, who should stay together.
It's still relatively early, but clearly, at least to me, the Bruins are in need of significant additions on D and C.
Finally (and you knew I would bring it up), the lack of aggressive attitude, physical intimidation, push back -- how about finishing your checks, ffs? -- is glaringly, absurdly, embarrassingly obvious.
Colageo (who along with KPD addressed the issue in simultaneous columns weeks ago):
"Charlie McAvoy is easily Boston’s best hitter, and his recent four-game suspension for miscalculating on a bodycheck and clipping Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s head has muted the natural physicality in his own game. McAvoy is only now beginning to recapture his mojo.
"Add the left-shooting Matt Grzelcyk back to the top pairing across from McAvoy, and management can similarly begin a season of evaluation regarding the deployment of Grzelcyk versus Derek Forbort pending pace of play versus physicality in Boston’s opponents.
"The best value in compensation for a goaltender may be in a left defenseman bringing the best of both, in-house specialists, and perhaps an ability to hit on a second pairing the way McAvoy can on the first. Is that too much to ask?
"Meantime, a 35-year-old winger less than two years removed from double labrum surgery should not be a Stanley Cup contender’s most aggressive forward. Yes, Trent Frederic and Jakub Lauko are scrappy, and not every forward need be the second coming of Terry O’Reilly.
"But, if Sweeney is compelled to deal one of his number-one goalies and cannot bring back a generational talent like Leon Draisaitl, then the next best thing is a significant upgrade in the toughness department.
"We’re not talking about an enforcer skating 5:00 a game in the playoffs, I mean top-six, game-changing presence, a forechecker/scorer who distracts defensemen going back on retrievals the way a young Cam Neely ran roughshod over the Montreal Canadiens in the late ’80s.
"This kind of prize is far more applicable to the Stanley Cup playoffs than any kind of talent promising a certain amount of point shares.
"Imagine this team with some swagger."
MarchysNoseKnows
Big Hat No Cattle
- Feb 14, 2018
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I’m very honest. He’s a fringe third pair defenseman for Winnipeg and the fans and media there are very unhappy with him.
CellyHard
Registered User
A top six game, game changing power forward are unicorns nowadays. There are only a few in the league and they are all unavailable. I'm thinking like the Tkachucks, Kane, Crouse, Wilson, Benn, Jeannot
The only guy I see possibly available at the TDL or in the summer that could crack a top nine would be Yakov Trenin
The only guy I see possibly available at the TDL or in the summer that could crack a top nine would be Yakov Trenin
MarchysNoseKnows
Big Hat No Cattle
- Feb 14, 2018
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His name is on here a lot but unless they get anywhere near a Jeannot return I don’t know why Nashville would trade him. They can lock him up pretty reasonably I think.
DKH
Worst Poster/Awful Takes
- Feb 27, 2002
- 78,014
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They aren’t dealing a goalie on their roster
Look at last night games
The Flyers are ahead of Carolina
The Sharks are winning
The swagger is their GM but you are living like you have a Jimmy Paige poster bought in the record department at Ann & Hope
Open your eyes and realize bench clearing brawls and bell bottoms are gone - the Bruins are Sweeney & Neely.
Open your heart and let Donny in
Ended up watching the Providence Bruins game last night after the big club won against the Yotes. If Zacha ends up missing games Merkulov should be the call up, he straight up dominated last night. I'd settle for anyone other then Brown, but I want it to be Merk. He looked ready.
dangermike
Registered User
- Jan 24, 2022
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I’ve been feel like this is Jake a little bit as well. If he had just signed the extension that was prolly offered this offseason, I think his numbers look decently different
He's the guy I was hoping would have made the team out of camp, but ended up being barely noticeable.
He was quite the one-man wrecking crew last night with 2G/3A in a 5-1 win. Really pulling for him to be called up as well to give us another sampling.
Maybe spread out the size and skill through the top 9 a little bit.
Frederic-Zacha-Pastrnak
Marchand-Coyle-Debrusk
JVR-Poitras-Geekie
Heinen-Beecher-Steen
Lauko
Frederic-Zacha-Pastrnak
Marchand-Coyle-Debrusk
JVR-Poitras-Geekie
Heinen-Beecher-Steen
Lauko
goldnblack
Registered User
- Jun 24, 2020
- 3,395
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I'm starting to think maybe we see the rare trade of a UFA on a first place team in Debrusk. No real basis for it, just hunch.
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