Boston Bruins 24-25 Roster/Cap thread VII

[The don godfather]

Frederic for krebs?

 

[BiteThisBurrows]

It did seem to me like they tried to change the Dzone system early on. There was so much confusion and guys were running around... it also seemed like things turned around (if you can call it that) when they went back to what they have always done. At least things settled down defensively. Still, there's an adjustment for Zadorov and Lindholm who came from more high pressure systems.

They definitely need some young guys. Young legs are huge in the regular season.

I honestly can't tell if the D system changed deliberately or if Zadorov simply can't grasp the system so they are trying to tweak things to find a way to work him in. He just seems so out of step with everything.

Young legs for sure and ultimately a lot of this falls on Lysell not stepping up and grabbing DeBrusk's spot. If Lysell was NHL decent we wouldn't be having this conversation.

Frederic for krebs?

Buffalo fans would love that.

 

[bbfan419]

Frederic for krebs?

No, but I would take Peterka

 

[LouJersey]

It's called Bruins. Making playoffs every year is the primary goal and all else must be subservient to that. To give Sweeney credit, he's done a decent job turning over the list and transitioning from the 2010s core while keeping it at least vaguely competitive. There is obviously some long-term planning at work, in some tough circumstances. But all that is still compromised by the franchise's obsession with qualifying year in year out. Paucity of high draft picks and your prospect pool gets weaker and weaker, so then you're overpaying for external guys and JAGs and the challenge of staying competitive gets more difficult every season. The talented kids you do have get sacrificed or at least marginalised because you're always chasing points and there's limited room for development and growing pains.

Diminishing returns and an on-ice product that's becoming increasingly stale and staid. But here we are.

I have without a doubt shifted my focus from Sweeney to the company edict. I really wish they would have won for us in 19 or 23 and for Sweeney.

They are the new Penguins, without the superstars. I hope I'm wrong and when they get in they make a run, but this forward group overall is just so devoid of talent and I certainly don't want them making investments in this team as the expense of futures.

 

[Dizzay]

I would see if the Ducks would do Frederic + Geekie for Zegras. If nothing else, just for am injection of new blood. I'd be putting Lysell on the top line with Zacha and Pasta or with Lindholm and Marchy. Gotta be better than Brazeau or Geekie, christ!

 

[Aussie Bruin]

I have without a doubt shifted my focus from Sweeney to the company edict. I really wish they would have won for us in 19 or 23 and for Sweeney.

They are the new Penguins, without the superstars. I hope I'm wrong and when they get in they make a run, but this forward group overall is just so devoid of talent and I certainly don't want them making investments in this team as the expense of futures.

To be fair to both Sweeney and the owners, while the former made his share of mistakes and the latter's system has inherent drawbacks, as you allude to the Bruins were in a position and undoubtedly good enough to win it all in both 2019 and 2023. They didn't, and that history is in the books, but a tip of the cap to both parties for their helping to create very good opportunities.

But that is the past and I fear now that both the existing management and model are no longer fit for purpose. No team can stay at or even near the top forever, and it may well be that by trying to cling on for too long the Bruins are only going to dig themselves a deeper hole that will take that much longer to get out of. The Pens are in a very similar situation. And are Sweeney and Neely still the right people to lead the franchise into this new era? They've had a fair run, Cam especially, and Sweeney has had another offseason, and definitely not the first, where what he's talked about in the lead up and the kind of roster moves he's made do not align. Everything wears out eventually and new ideas and a new direction may well be timely.

The Bruins are an inherently conservative organization, and they won't give up on landing another playoffs spot lightly, but I hope if it comes to it they dare to be a bit bolder and make some hard decisions. I'm not yet saying they should blow it all up - it's only mid November - but they should at least be starting to think about what the future looks like if the team's current malaise can't be rectified.

 

[Aussie Bruin]

The amazing part to me is they seemingly made the moves they did to counter Florida. And it’s the exact opposite of how you do it. You need speed and skill and defensemen who can move the puck up the ice. The opted for Zadorov and any other player over 6’4 they could find - in Boston, Providence, and the draft.

At the start of the offseason Sweeney and Neely spoke about the Bruins needing more of at least 4 things - speed, hardness, secondary scoring and a greater ability to win puck battles. He was not wrong. (Where he was wrong was in claiming that Bruins were right there with the Panthers and could have forced a G7 with just a little more finish, which both the eye test and the numbers show to be false, but that's another story)

But what we got instead were adds that have barely moved the needle on any of those fronts except for the production of Kastelic and Koepke which while pleasing is not sustainable, and the team is soft, slow, offensively challenged and middling at best on pucks. And frankly much as we can bemoan too many guys playing well below their best, I'm not sure any of those things can be a surprise with this roster.

Start of pre-season camp, Sweeney said, "Early on, (Montgomery) is going to want training camp to be a certain pace. If bigger guys can't keep up, they're not going to play.'' And there were other similar comments. But that pace has never materialized. So often the case that the GM's words and actions do not match. For all the things he's got right over the years, that remains a troubling and problematic trait.

 

[BruinDust]

Everything wears out eventually and new ideas and a new direction may well be timely.

I'm not yet saying they should blow it all up.

It's hard to justify tearing everything down when you just signed your 25-year old No.1 goalie to a 8 year deal and your franchise forward is 28 and also signed for many more years. Not to mention your top D-man is 26 and also signed long-term. And your best center is 29 and signed for 7 years.

So what is the alternative? Just changing coaches seems like a half-measure.

After this past off-season, it seems much more likely that this franchise needs a new set of eyes up top making personnel decisions. We are approaching a decade now of Sweeney and Neely's vision for this team. Some of the teams issues (lack of overall speed, mediocre shooting ability) have been the same issues for several years now. The fact they didn't mention shooting or primary scoring as a major need is concerning. If the Bruins end up sellers at the deadline and miss the playoffs, should Sweeney and Neely get the opportunity to re-tool this roster next off-season?

 

[BigGoalBrad]

Could we do something like Freddy for Brandon Saad with money retained?

 

[yazmybaby]

No, but I would take Peterka

So would I.
Adams is not that stupid?

 

[yazmybaby]

Could we do something like Freddy for Brandon Saad with money retained?

Saad has a NTC, highly doubt he would agree to be traded.

 

[kdog82]

Brandon Saad would be a backwards trade.

 

[Hookslide]

Could we do something like Freddy for Brandon Saad with money retained?

Why ?

 

[yazmybaby]

All good points.
IMO, we need to make minor tweaks here and there and gradually improve the team with more speed and skill.
There are good forwards out there, DS and company need to be creative to acquire some.
I think the days of trading top six players, one for one are long gone, due to so many restrictions, like cap space and NTC.
Draft better, develop the kids, make some trades involving bottom six forwards.
The organization needs to figure out if we are going to sign UFA's Freddy/Brazeau and Koepke sooner than later.

It's hard to justify tearing everything down when you just signed your 25-year old No.1 goalie to a 8 year deal and your franchise forward is 28 and also signed for many more years. Not to mention your top D-man is 26 and also signed long-term. And your best center is 29 and signed for 7 years.

So what is the alternative? Just changing coaches seems like a half-measure.

After this past off-season, it seems much more likely that this franchise needs a new set of eyes up top making personnel decisions. We are approaching a decade now of Sweeney and Neely's vision for this team. Some of the teams issues (lack of overall speed, mediocre shooting ability) have been the same issues for several years now. The fact they didn't mention shooting or primary scoring as a major need is concerning. If the Bruins end up sellers at the deadline and miss the playoffs, should Sweeney and Neely get the opportunity to re-tool this roster next off-season?

 

[HustleB]

So stupid. We’re playing Tyler freaking Johnson over developing this kid. It’s asinine.

I think there choosing to develop him in the AHL at this point rather then in the NHL.

I believe that Poitras development is the driving factor in this move.

Johnson playing in the spot he was in is just a domino effect.

 

[Caper Bruins fan]

Something to note is that their defensive play 5-on-5 is improving from the start of the season as they are now around league average or above in most defensive categories with save percentage being well above average. On the other hand, their offense is bottom 10 and sometimes bottom 5 in ALL categories.

So with that said, does it really make sense to send a guy like Poitras down without at least calling up another offensively minded player? I just can't see the return of Morgan Geekie jumpstarting any sort of scoring.

There was a stretch last year where Geekie was playing well ( maybe January) . I think he was playing with Frederic. He can really shoot a puck if he gets a chance. He’s been abysmal this year but I hope he can turn it around.

I'm not over rating Lindholm. He's a solid 2C on any hockey team. You don't think so?
The problem is Bruins want him to be 1C and he's not that.

So you think the issue with this team is they are playing centers at the wing. Is that it? No offense, but I think that's absurd. The team is SLOW. That's the biggest problem.

He hasn’t played like a 2C from what I’ve seen this year. Most nights he is invisible. I’d love if he could play like a 2C .

 

[BigGoalBrad]

Why ?

Freddy is gone next year and we get a servicable 40 point wing with some size this year and next.

 

[BruinDust]

All good points.
IMO, we need to make minor tweaks here and there and gradually improve the team with more speed and skill.
There are good forwards out there, DS and company need to be creative to acquire some.
I think the days of trading top six players, one for one are long gone, due to so many restrictions, like cap space and NTC.
Draft better, develop the kids, make some trades involving bottom six forwards.
The organization needs to figure out if we are going to sign UFA's Freddy/Brazeau and Koepke sooner than later.

Right now I think as an organization they should take any extensions for upcoming UFAs off the table until get a better sense of how this season will play out. On pace for 82 pts. that's well below what will likely be needed to make the playoffs.

 

[Hookslide]

Freddy is gone next year and we get a servicable 40 point wing with some size this year and next.

Are you sure Freddy is gone, I am not.

 

[PB37]

- Fix the special teams

- players need to play with more pace and energy

- shoot the puck more

 

[BruinDust]

Are you sure Freddy is gone, I am not.

I have no doubt Sweeney wants him extended. Me? I'd trade Frederic tomorrow if I could.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

At the start of the offseason Sweeney and Neely spoke about the Bruins needing more of at least 4 things - speed, hardness, secondary scoring and a greater ability to win puck battles. He was not wrong. (Where he was wrong was in claiming that Bruins were right there with the Panthers and could have forced a G7 with just a little more finish, which both the eye test and the numbers show to be false, but that's another story)

But what we got instead were adds that have barely moved the needle on any of those fronts except for the production of Kastelic and Koepke which while pleasing is not sustainable, and the team is soft, slow, offensively challenged and middling at best on pucks. And frankly much as we can bemoan too many guys playing well below their best, I'm not sure any of those things can be a surprise with this roster.

Start of pre-season camp, Sweeney said, "Early on, (Montgomery) is going to want training camp to be a certain pace. If bigger guys can't keep up, they're not going to play.'' And there were other similar comments. But that pace has never materialized. So often the case that the GM's words and actions do not match. For all the things he's got right over the years, that remains a troubling and problematic trait.

Talk is cheap.

Sweeney may point out what the team needs, but that doesn't mean there are any deals or FAs to acquire that will accomplish that. Especially considering the Cap. He's gone for broke a couple of times, as he should have, and that has impacted the pipeline considerably. So not much to deal any more.

I still think this should be a solid playoff team. Top players need to start playing like it matters to them.

 

[bruins cup]

I would see if the Ducks would do Frederic + Geekie for Zegras. If nothing else, just for am injection of new blood. I'd be putting Lysell on the top line with Zacha and Pasta or with Lindholm and Marchy. Gotta be better than Brazeau or Geekie, christ!

They would laugh and hang up

 

[BigGoalBrad]

Are you sure Freddy is gone, I am not.

Didn't take the next step in his development and is the type of player that could fall off rapidly around age 30 if he loses a step. Like most of the current roster a different org is in his best interests.

Get a sure thing 40 point winger for him that has another year on his deal IMO.

I mean if he wants to take 3 years 9 million you have to give it to him but I expect his agent gets him more this summer.

 

[mar2kbos]

I have without a doubt shifted my focus from Sweeney to the company edict. I really wish they would have won for us in 19 or 23 and for Sweeney.

They are the new Penguins, without the superstars. I hope I'm wrong and when they get in they make a run, but this forward group overall is just so devoid of talent and I certainly don't want them making investments in this team as the expense of futures.

They remind me of the last days of the Wings reign. The slow non retaining and retiring of all the cup winning players. We are witnessing the aging star Zetterberg and the younger star Larkin (Marchand and Pasta) with a not so good prospect pool outlook and middling players. Bruins are probably in a bit better shape, but they are trending downward