BE A GM Thread - Part III (NHL 18/NHL 17/whatever)

[Duke16]

....

 

[JohnJamieson]

2016 -2017 PLAYOFFS, ROUND 1​

Heading into the playoffs...

Boston|91 OFF|92 DEF|94 GOA|87% CHEM
Providence|82 OFF|77 DEF|81 GOA|83% CHEM

Matthews(86)|Bergeron(91)|Nichushkin(86)
Marchand(86)|Krejci(88)|Okposo(88)
Beleskey(84)|Spooner(85)|Griffith(84)
Ott(82)|McClement(81)|Rinaldo(80)
McLaren(77)||

Krug(87)|Burns(90)
Yandle(87)|McQuaid(83)
Morrow(83)|Bieksa(83)
Schenn(80)|Miller(79)

Rask(93)
Subban(85)

Apr. 13, 2017

BOSTON

(42-33-7) vs. PITTSBURGH

(49-22-11)

BOSTON-91 OFF-92 DEF-94 GOA
PITTSBURGH-92 OFF-90 DEF-91 GOA​

The Bruins snuck into the playoffs on the season's final day after a miracle 7 game win streak. Meanwhile the Penguins recorded 109 points, tops in the East. For the Bruins it's been a season about proving they can be an impact team after missing the playoffs twice in a row and finishing near the bottom of the standings last year, whereas Pittsburgh ran off another fine season in a long stretch of fine seasons. Pittsburgh ranked 3rd in both goals for and against this year, while Boston ranked 9th and 14th respectively. The two teams had a trade back on Jan. 16 which sent Kevin Bieksa to Boston and Brandon DeFazio to Pittsburgh. Bieksa was having a poor season in Pittsburgh and it was starting to look like it could be all over for him. He recorded 3 assists in 37 games since joining the Bruins on their third pair and while his offensive game is nowhere near what it used to be the aging D-man has been very useful to Boston and his game seems to have gotten stronger late in the season. Meanwhile DeFazio has recorded 3 goals and 9 assists in 38 games since joining Pittsburgh on their fourth line- including a goal against Boston in their only meeting since the trade.

Pittsburgh are heavily favoured to win this series even though Boston won all 3 regular season matchups. Boston scored by committee this year with 10 players recording 14 goals or more. Their 3rd line was especially strong as the season wore on as the Beleskey/Spooner/Griffith combo gelled and each surpassed the 40 point mark. The team sports solid depth without truly obvious weaknesses but the Pens have star power and offensive skill in their top 6 that Boston can't claim to match. Their 3rd and 4th lines leave something to be desired as they are very top heavy, but they have Sidney Crosby- who had 94 points this year, good for third in the league. And of course the names Malkin, Kessel, and Letang should ring a bell. Malkin had 38 goals which ranked 4th in the NHL.

Trading Bieksa enabled the Penguins to bring talented young D-man Derrick Pouliot up from the AHL, but he will miss game 1 of the series with an ongoing shoulder issue. He is considered day-to-day and expected to return during the series at some point. The Pens will be without D Justin Schultz for at least another month with a broken foot. Meanwhile, David Krejci will be in the lineup for the Bruins, after missing the final 3 games of the season with a hand injury sustained blocking a shot against Tampa. He might not be 100% but all hands are on deck for Boston as the playoffs begin.​

GAME 1

Brent Burns takes an elbowing penalty just 18 seconds into the game and the Bruins will be a man down right away to start the game. Malkin gets a good look from the slot on the PP that Rask is able to stop but it's the only shot on goal they would register on their man advantage. Eric Fehr wins a faceoff back to Trevor Daley in the Pittsburgh zone shortly after the penalty ends but Beleskey gets right on him and pokes the puck away. He fires the puck to the front of the net where Ryan Spooner has eluded detection and he smacks home the first goal of the game before Fleury knew what hit him. The crowd is shocked and it gets even quieter when David Krejci scores at just 4:36 for a 2-0 Bruins lead. The Pens call timeout and try to regroup. They're able to put their bad start behind them and the teams grind out a feisty, physical affair for the rest of the period, with Eric Fehr cutting the B's lead in half late in the period.

The second sees more of the same, but Beleskey crosses the line when he gets his stick up on Olli Maatta about 4 minutes in and he's sent to the bin for 2. He stayed for only 1:13 as Trevor Daley's power play goal tied the game. There would be no more scoring in the period, but Boston got some good momentum late in the period and lead in shots 24-20 entering the 3rd.

The Bruins pressed early in the period again but Bergeron was absolutely robbed on a great chance down low with a scintillating pad save as Fleury slid across the crease to take away a sure goal. At 4:34 Kunitz lights up the audience when he bangs home a Beau Bennett rebound and the Penguins have made the comeback and lead 3-2. After that the ice tilted distinctly as Pittsburgh took control and Kessel would make it 4-2 with 11 minutes left on a beautiful wrist shot over Rask's glove rushing down the right side. Brandon DeFazio would add an empty netter as a promising start for the Bruins was negated by Pittsburgh's superior offensive skill and the Pens win 5-2.​

GAME 2

​

Pouliot returns for Pittsburgh tonight in game 2 of the series. Bryan Rust gets Pittsburgh on the board early when he digs a puck out in the corner and fires it on net from a bad angle. It gets through Rask somehow and he looks none too happy about it. 30 seconds later Crosby takes a penalty and Bergeron puts up a game tying PP marker at the 2:58 mark. Boston crank up the pressure and the shots are 14-5 Boston at the end of the first but the score remains tied.

The second sees Pittsburgh get back in to the flow of things and the two teams open up and trade chance after chance until Kunitz scores his second of the series at 8:13 for a 2-1 PIT lead. Fleury is on fire again tonight and makes 27 saves through two periods as he looks to stake his club to a 2-0 series lead. His mission would be aided by Kris Letang who beats a screened Rask with a hard slapper at 2:49 of the third and Pittsburgh have a 3-1 cushion. Boston get a long 5-on-3 midway through the period and Fleury is at his acrobatic best, making several huge saves that garner him a rousing response from the home crowd. Boston continue to pepper him with shots as Pittsburgh hold on and win largely based on his stellar 42 save performance. Boston outshot Pittsburgh 43-23 in the loss and trail 2-0 in the series as they head home to Boston.​

GAME 3

Game 3 begins as a tight-checking affair that sees just 6 shots in the first 10 minutes. Letang gets whistled for elbowing on an open ice hit on Bergeron. The hit draws a big crowd as Bergeron hits the deck and although no one drops the gloves, the bad blood is evident and there is some concern Letang could be suspended for the hit as he made contact with Bergeron's head on the play. Bergeron was alright and stays on the ice for the power play but Fleury turns all efforts aside and the period ends scoreless.

Boston finally break the tie late in the second when Torey Krug jumps in on the rush and cleans up a Kyle Okposo rebound for Boston's first goal in over 90 minutes of hockey. Evgeni Malkin replied shortly after for Pittsburgh who have an edge in shots for the first time so far in the series; 18-16 through 2. The defensive adjustments Pittsburgh made ahead of tonight's contest continue to serve them well and they control play in the third. Trevor Daley makes it 2-1 Pens with a slapshot that re-directed off Bieksa in front and snuck between Rask's legs. Brandon DeFazio and Sidney Crosby would add goals in the final minute as Pittsburgh take a 3-0 series lead.​

GAME 4

​

The Bruins face elimination tonight after playing fairly well and being stymied by Fleury in games 1 and 2 and simply looking beaten in game 3. The team have nothing to lose now and come out hot, outshooting Pittsburgh to the tune of 8-1 in the game's first 7 minutes. They always seem to be one step ahead as Pittsburgh have no answer for the B's hustle. Play is stopped shortly after the 8 minute mark as former teammates DeFazio and McQuaid get into it following a hard check on McQuaid on a dump in. They exchange shoves and have words for a moment before they drop the gloves. McQuaid gets the better punches in but DeFazio holds his own and provides a spark for his team. Pittsburgh get the flow of play turned around and get a few chances of their own before the period ends in a scoreless tie.

The second period is eerily quiet for the first 12 minutes or so until Boston turn on the jets. They come with an onslaught of offensive pressure but Marc-Andre Fleury just continues to shine as he has been the best player in this series. He makes 15 saves in the 2nd period alone as the teams head to third with the score still 0-0. The Bruins are oushooting Pittsburgh 33-12 when Carl Hagelin gives the Penguins a 1-0 lead at exactly 8:00 of the third. He gets a little jump through the neutral zone when Nick Bonino recovers the puck in their D zone and hits him with a hail mary and he makes no mistake on his breakaway chance. The Bruins are 12 minutes away from seeing their season and unlikely playoff appearance end. The Hagelin goal broke the Bruins will and Marc-Andre Fleury records a 36 save shutout to lead his team to a first round sweep of the Bruins. He had an incredible SV% of .971 and a GAA of just 1.00 as he faced 139 shots in the 4 game series compared to just 100 for Rask. Boston mounted a ton of pressure in the series and showed promise this season but they will have work to do in the off-season to improve their consistency as they were a very streaky team this year.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

END OF SEASON REPORT​

​

At year's end...

Boston|91 OFF|91 DEF|93 GOA|70% CHEM
Providence|79 OFF|77 DEF|80 GOA|82% CHEM

​

May 22, 2017

The Bruins finished their season with a playoff appearance and were swept by the Pittsburgh Penguins. The year saw David Krejci more than double his point total from his awful outing last season, a 44 point rookie campaign for Auston Matthews, an excellent 53 point year for Ryan Spooner on the third line, a return to form for Matt Beleskey, and strong efforts by rookies Joe Morrow and Malcolm Subban. Val Nichushkin and Seth Griffith perhaps did not deliver quite as much as the team had hoped, but both fared better toward the end of the season as the team's overall play improved and the forward lines solidified.

The Bruins added a big name near the deadline in Brent Burns, who they surely hope to re-sign in the offseason after parting ways with talented young winger David Pastrnak to acquire him. The Bruins are still a very young team and could look much the same next year, while hoping the extra year of experience translates to better results.​

​

* "possession +/-" determined by takeaways minus giveaways.

|GP|G|A|PTS|PIM|+/-|HITS|POS+/-*
Bergeron|81| 31 |33| 64 |17|+2|40| +24
Krejci|79|17| 43 |60|10|+3|35|+20
Okposo|82|20|34|54|46|-2|150|+2
Spooner|82|17|36|53|9|+8|38|+14
Nichushkin|82|15|31|46|8|-2|32|+20
Matthews|78|15|29|44|6|+1|42|+1
Beleskey|82|18|25|43|47|+9|125|-10
Burns|79|14|28|42|50| +19 | 205 |-25
Griffith|75|12|28|40|4|+10|30|+5
Marchand|79|9|29|38|56|+17|149|+6
Yandle|82|17|20|37|4|-1|36|-32
Krug|82|14|20|34|12|-1|25|-27
McClement|82|4|13|17|22|-17|86|-37
Vatrano|62|6|7|13|2|-13|18|-5
Ott|78|9|3|12|40|-13|86|-7
Morrow|82|4|7|11|64|-1|125|-32
McQuaid|82|2|5|7| 236 |+15|192|-63
Bieksa|77|1|4|5|63|-5|135|-24
Miller|42|1|3|4|6|-7|17|-23
Rinaldo|15|0|1|1|21|-1|8|-1
McLaren|12|1|0|1|12|-4|4|+1
Schenn|11|0|0|0|10|-4|24|-1

|GP|W|L|OTL|GAA|SV%|SO
Rask|58|30|21|3|2.33|.925|3
Subban|30|14|12|0|2.65|.917|1
Kollejan|1|0|1|0|2.05|.889|0

David Pastrnak recorded an inauspicious 14 points in 39 games since joining the Sharks. Loui Eriksson, who signed with Nashville in the offseason had a career worst year with just 10 goals and 27 points. Dennis Seidenberg, who the Bruins traded to Dallas last year had the NHL's second best +/- mark at +30. Eriksson and Seidenberg went on to meet in the Western Semi-Finals, where Nashville ousted Dallas in 6 games. Nashville would go on to be swept by the Rangers in the Cup Final.

Malcolm Subban did a good job this year when he was pressed into heavy action after Rask went down with injury. Rask is signed through 2020-21, and his no movement clause changes this upcoming season to allow the Bruins to ask him for an 8 team trade list. Meanhwhile, Subban is a pending RFA this year. Could one of them be considered a potential trade chip?

Pending UFAs: Brent Burns, Brad Marchand, Jay McClement, Zac Rinaldo, John-Michael Liles, Frazer McLaren, Joonas Kemppainen, Noel Acciari.

Pending RFAs: Alexander Khoklachev, Malcolm Subban, Ryan Spooner, Austin Czarnik, Zane McIntyre, Linus Arnesson, Colton Hargrove.

Unsigned Rookies: Nathan Noel, Patrik Laine.

The salary cap will remain at $75.785 million for the upcoming season which leaves the Bruins roughly $17 million dollars to work with. 7 roster players from last year were on expiring deals, and reports indicate that Kevin Bieksa will announce his retirement later today.

Patrice Bergeron won his 4th consecutive Selke trophy this year and Adam McQuaid led all players in PIM with 236. Tyler Seguin (49 G, 113 PTS) won the Hart, Rocket Richard, Art Ross and Lady Byng trophies as he had a monster year. Michael Dal Colle (19 G, 73 PTS) was this year's Calder winner and Erik Karlsson (22 G, 61 PTS) took home the Norris. Corey Crawford (2.10 GAA, .928 SV%, 11 SO) won the Vezina, and Henrik Lundquist won the Conn Smythe as he led the Rangers to their first Stanley Cup since 1994 with an unbelievable playoff performance that saw him record a GAA of just 1.76, a SV% of .941 and 4 shutouts.​

​

AHL REPORT​

The Providence Bruins went very young this year and ultimately regressed but finished strong and reached the Eastern Conference finals before being eliminated by Syracuse in 6 games. It was a thrilling series featuring 4 OT games, including 2 that went to double OT. The team faced numerous injuries in the playoffs but performed well nonetheless as Khoklachev, Vatrano, Connolly and Dzingel were standout offensive players while they steamrolled through the first 2 rounds with a pair of sweeps. Rookie D Brandon Carlo had 13 goals on the year in his debut, while hot prospect LW Jake DeBrusk had 22. Young players Carlo, DeBrusk, Ryan Dzingel, Martin Osmik, Linus Arnesson and Fabian Heldner all made great strides this year and the team figures to be even stronger next year as those players develop.​

​

PROVIDENCE CATEGORY LEADERS

G |CONNOLLY|29
A |KHOKLACHEV|57
PTS |KHOKLACHEV|78
PIM |BELLEMORE|75
+/- |TROTMAN|+17
PPG |CONNOLLY|10
GWG |DEBRUSK|6
HITS |BELLEMORE|259

AHL GOALTENDING STATS

|GP|W|L|OTL|GAA|SV%|SO
Visentin|56|30|18|5|2.23|.919|4
McIntyre|21|11|8|1|2.19|.917|1
Kollejan|4|0|3|1|5.77|.789|0

TEAM STATISTIC REPORT

TEAM | W | L | OTL | PTS | GFPG | GF RANK | GAPG | GA RANK | PP% | PP RANK | PK% | PK RANK BOSTON |42|33|7|91|2.66|9TH|2.60|14TH|14.7|26TH|83.3|11TH
PROVIDENCE |40|28|8|88|2.91|3RD|2.50|13TH|17.1|6TH|84.5|17TH

 

[JohnJamieson]

2017 NHL ENTRY DRAFT
​

The Bruins have just 5 picks this year; 1-3rd rounder, 2-4th rounders, 1-6th rounder, and 1-7th rounder. They are unlikely to make any kind of big splash this year to trade up and it figures to be a quiet day for Bruins GM John Jamieson.

Daniel Sedin was moved at the draft for the 2nd year in a row as the Wings moved him to Montreal, for a couple picks and a prospect. Mike Cammalleri was also moved from New Jersey to MInnesota for a similar return. Detroit saw Datsyuk and Zetterberg retire this offseason and with the Sedin trade it appears they are going to go into rebuild mode. Let's take a look at all of the Bruins draft selections today.​

ROUND|PICK #|PLAYER|AGE|HT|WT|POS|TYPE|POTENTIAL|OVERALL
3|83| Jacob Paquette |18|6'3"|203|D|DFD| MED AHL TOP 2 D |50
4|94| Tommy Grantham |20|6'1"|189|LW|PWF| LOW BOTTOM 6 F |69
4|105| Vladimir Alexeev |18|5'11"|178|C|PLY| MED TOP 9 F |66
6|165| Ondrej Prochazka |19|6'2"|172|LW|TWF| MED AHL TOP 6 F |70
7|195| Benjamin Gagne |18|5'11"|179|D|TWD| MED AHL TOP 2 D |52

It's safe to say this year's draft was nothing like the last, but the Bruins did add some needed depth at left wing, and both Grantham and Prochazka could have what it takes to get a starting gig in the bottom 6 in Providence this year. It should be noted that Prochazka has blistering speed on the left wing and if he could develop some other areas of his game, he could be a solid pro. Grantham is a strong north/south guy who could stand to fill out his frame a little more to make his net drives even more effective. Both defensemen the Bruins drafted are young kids and long term projects. Alexeev was a nice pick. He's still 18 but he already plays smart and sees the ice well. The Bruins add no elite talent but have some decent projects to work on with this year's picks.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

RE-SIGN PHASE​

PLAYER|AGE|POS|TYPE|OVERALL|POTENTIAL|YEARS|AAV|2 WAY?
Brent Burns |32|D|TWD|88| TOP 4 D |3|5.4|
Brad Marchand |29|LW|TWF|86| TOP 6 F |2|4.5|
Malcolm Subban |23|G|HYB|86| MED ELITE |4|1.6|
Alexander Khoklachev |24|C|PLY|85| HIGH TOP 6 F |2|2.05|
Ryan Spooner |25|C|PLY|84| HIGH TOP 6 F |3|3.225|
Austin Czarnik |24|C|PLY|80| LOW BOTTOM 6 F |2|0.925|
Zane McIntyre |25|G|HYB|78| HIGH BACKUP |2|0.85|
Linus Arnesson |22|D|TWD|77| MED 7TH D |3|0.675|
Nathan Noel |20|C|PLY|70| LOW TOP 9 F |3|0.825|YES
Patrik Laine |19|RW|TWF|69| MED BOTTOM 6 F |3|0.80|YES
Vladimir Alexeev |19|C|PLY|68| MED TOP 9 F |3|0.775|YES

Retired: Kevin Bieksa(82).

Departing UFAs: Jay McClement(80), Zac Rinaldo(80), John-Michael Liles(78), Frazer McLaren (77), Joonas Kemppainen(75).

Non-tendered RFAs: Colton Hargrove(72), Noel Acciari(72).
​

FREE AGENT SIGNINGS

PLAYER|AGE|POS|TYPE|OVERALL|POTENTIAL|YEARS|AAV|2 WAY?
Stefan Matteau |23|LW|PWF|82| MED TOP 6 F |2|1.8|
Dennis Yan |20|LW|SNP|72| HIGH TOP 6 F |3|0.90|YES

DEPTH CHART (NOT INCLUDING UNSIGNED ROOKIES)
C:9
LW:8
RW:10
D:14
G:5​

Changes in potential from last year noted as we reach the preseason:

• C Nathan Noel went from Low Bottom 6 F to Low Top 9 F.
• LW Dennis Yan went from High Top 6 F to High Elite.
• RW Max Talbot went from Exact AHL Top 6 F to Exact AHL Bottom 6 F.
• RW Anton Blidh went from Low Bottom 6 F to Low AHL Top 6 F.
• RW Patrik Laine went from Med Top 9 F to Med Bottom 6 F.
• RW Zachary Senyshyn went from Med Bottom 6 F to Med AHL Top 6 F.
• D Brent Burns went from Exact Elite to Exact Top 4 D.
• D Linus Arnesson went from Med 7th D to Med AHL Top 2 D.
• D Fabian Heldner went from Med AHL Top 2 D to Med 7th D.
• D Benjamin Gagne went from Med AHL Top 2 D to Med AHL Top 4 D.
• G Felix Kollejan went from Med Backup to High Backup.

The best jumps in overall rating were for Jake DeBrusk, who went from 71 to 79 over the last year, Brandon Carlo who went from 71 to 78, Martin Osmik who went from 72 to 78, Linus Arnesson who went from 71 to 77, and Felix Kollejan who went from 70 to 76.

Stefan Matteau was an RFA signing who had been tendered by the Canadiens and the Bruins had to give this year's third round pick as compensation for signing him. He's a big, physical winger and is expected to skate on the big squad this year.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

SEASON 3 BRUINS OPENING DAY ROSTER (2017-2018)

Matthews(88)|Bergeron(91)|Okposo(88)
Marchand(86)|Krejci(88)|Nichushkin(86)
Matteau(85)|Spooner(84)|Griffith(85)
Beleskey(83)|Khoklachev(85)|Connoly(81)
Ott(81)||

Yandle(87)|Burns(88)
Krug(85)|Morrow(83)
McQuaid(82)|Schenn(82)
|Bellemore(79)

Rask(92)
Subban(86)

• The Bruins cap hit is at $73.5 mil. This leaves the team $2.285 mil of space. Enough for a decent move closer to the deadline, but a bit of a squeeze for making anything significant happen, especially earlier on in the year.
  
• The average age of our NHL roster is 27.3, and the team now sports 3 F, 3 D and 1 G 30 years of age or older out of the 22 players on the roster to start the season.
  
• Jeremy Lauzon, Jakub Zboril, Zach Senyshyn and Jesse Gabrielle will all make the jump to the pros this year with Providence. It appears Zboril will form the top D pair with Brandon Carlo to start the season.
  
• The Bruins have 4 open contract spots.
  
• The B's brought back their best pending FA's but due to salary cap issues missed an opportunity to take a swing at the biggest prizes this year, including heavily sought after Victor Hedman, who landed in New Jersey on a 6 year, $6.75 mil dollar deal. Word out of Colorado says Brandon Gormley still wants out and rumours linked him to Boston last season, though a deal never ultimately came through. Rickard Rakell was also linked to the B's a couple of seasons ago and has demanded a trade out of Anaheim after dressing for just 18 games over the past 2 seasons.
  
• Spooner and Khoklachev were re-signed, but is it really appropriate for the Bruins to use both of these offensively talented players as their bottom 6 centres? Both have strong defensive games as well but perhaps they would get top 6 ice time in another city. It's probable the Bruins will eventually have to pick one and deal the other as both got nice raises this year and figure only to increase their value going forward. We'll see how this situation goes as Boston could still like to upgrade their D this season.
  
• The Bruins brought up a couple key AHL performers as their minor league squad gets even younger again. Providence have just 6 players 25 or older on the squad. Colin Miller and Frank Vatrano will play in the AHL again this year after seeing lots of NHL action last year. Both players were OK but the feeling was that they stopped progressing so more polished players Brett Connolly and Brett Bellemore join the big squad this year in their stead. The door to a return is not closed to either young player and other strong candidates for promotion this year or next include C Ryan Dzingel, RW Martin Osmik, LW Jake DeBrusk and D Brandon Carlo.
  
• Pending UFAs on the NHL roster this year: Luke Schenn, Steve Ott, Brett Bellemore.
  
• Pending RFA on the NHL roster this year: Joe Morrow.
  
• The Bruins went 5-1-1 in the preseason and look to have improved again entering the new season. The team averaged nearly 3.5 goals per game and gave up just under 2.25. The penalty kill was excellent but the power play failed to record a goal; the Bruins tinkered with it but will need to find combinations that work if they hope to improve on last year's 26th ranked PP. The Matthews/Bergeron/Okposo line combined for 23 points in the pre-season. Only Adam McQuaid and Luke Schenn failed to record a point, and they both had the team's sole negative +/- marks. Newcomer LW Stefan Matteau was terrific, recording 4 goals alongside Spooner and Griffith.

 

[JohnJamieson]

Heading into the season...

Boston|93 OFF|91 DEF|94 GOA|85% CHEM
Providence|80 OFF|80 DEF|80 GOA|82% CHEM

SEASON OPENER

Oct. 8, 2017
TORONTO

(0-0-0) vs. BOSTON

(0-0-0)​

After failing to produce a single PP goal in the pre-season Boston strike at just 2:51 of the first period when Matt Beleskey takes advantage of a Leo Komarov penalty to find some space in the slot and bang home the first Boston goal of the year. Burns hooked Joffrey Lupul on the rush around the 8 minute mark but never made it to the box as Van Riemsdyk scored just a few seconds later before Boston could touch the puck. Freddy Gauthier gives the Leafs a 2-1 lead just a couple minutes later then Morgan Rielly scores short-handed while Gardiner sits for high sticking.

Early in the second Peter Holland scores on the power play and Toronto lead 4-1. Boston get numerous chances in the period but Antoine Bibeau turns them all aside until Beleskey scores again with 1:58 left in the 2nd to cut the lead to 4-2. At 6:20 of the 3rd David Krejci makes it a one goal game when he takes a Nichushkin pass out of the corner, peels off the half wall and sends a wrist shot through Bibeau's pads.

Shortly after Joffrey Lupul thinks he is funny or something and drops the gloves with McQuaid before receiving several punches which promptly serve as a reminder why he should not do such a thing. The crowd go into a frenzy as it has been announced all fans in attendance will receive a coupon for a free "McQuaid's Knuckle Sandwich" from Subway each time he receives a fighting major on home ice this year. Boston would go on to outshoot Toronto 40-31 but lose 5-3 after Leo Komarov adds an empty netter in a disappointing start to a promising season.​

Oct. 10, 2017
TAMPA BAY

(0-1-0) vs. BOSTON

(0-1-0)​

Boston strike first again when Patrice Bergeron scores at 7:37. Keith Yandle hits Coburn in the neutral zone and separates him from the puck. Bergeron swoops in and carries it down the left wing before firing a dart into the top corner, short side for a 1-0 Boston lead. The Bruins continue to pressure and Seth Griffith makes it 2-0 with 7:23 to go when he whistles a hard drive from the high slot after a nice pinch by Burns drew the defenders' attention away from him. Cedric Paquette challenged McQuaid to a fight with 4 minutes to go in an effort to spark his team but was dispatched summarily as McQuaid lit into him with a ferocious serious of punches that sent Paquette to the ice in a heap. The camera cuts to a man with a sign that says: "Tickets for the game for me and the kids: $250. Sandwiches after the game: Make em free Quaider!"

The second period is breakneck action with the teams skating hard in transition and both getting their share of chances, though neither goalkeeper can be solved. Boston outshoot Tampa 27-22 through 2. Nichushkin takes a delay of game penalty as soon as the 3rd starts but the Bruins make the kill. New player Stefan Matteau is on the 2nd PK unit and made a great play clearing the puck as he saw the punishment coming but made the play anyway when Callahan smoked him along the boards deep in the Boston zone. Torey Krug unleashes a hellacious clapper from the top of the left circle with 6 and a half remaining to give the Bruins a 3-0 lead which they hold to the final buzzer to deliver their first win of the year.​

Oct. 11, 2017
NEW YORK

(1-0-0) vs. BOSTON

(1-1-0)​

Tonight the Bruins take on the defending Cup Champion Rangers, and Malcolm Subban makes his first start of the year on the second half of this back-to-back. Burns takes a penalty early and the Rangers take a couple after but no good chances are to be had for either side as the teams lock each other down- Boston outshoots NY 3-2 through the first 10 minutes. Shots would eventually finish 8-7 in favour of the Rangers as play opened a little in the still scoreless second half of the period.

Boston get another power play opportunity early in the second but can't convert and they regret it soon after when Eric Staal gives the Rangers a lead at 5:38 of the second. Krug gets Boston on the board halfway through the period but J.T. Miller replies just a minute later to stake New York to a 2-1 lead that would hold to the end of the second. The 3rd sees Boston unable to get much traction until midway through the frame when a couple nice offensive sequences eventually led to Torey Krug's second goal of the evening when he was able to get some space at the point and walk in with a hard wrist shot that beat Lundquist low blocker side through traffic. Ryan McDonagh took up the McQuaid challenge shortly after, and the Bruins faithful are thankful- there will be sandwiches tonight! The Bruins get several good chances late in the period on a power play stemming from a Miller high sticking penalty but Lundquist saved the day and the game would live to see overtime.

Miller would go on to score halfway through overtime to secure the extra point for the Rangers. His 2 goals including the game winner easily made up for his pair of minor penalties and awful 7-for-23 performance in the dot. Khoklachev, Beleskey and Krug have 4 points each through the team's first 3 games but are the only B's with multiple points so far. McQuaid has 3 fighting majors in 3 games. We'll give things a little time and check in on the team a little later.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

HALFWAY REPORT​

​

After 41 games...

Boston|92 OFF|91 DEF|94 GOA|87% CHEM
Providence|80 OFF|80 DEF|81 GOA|82% CHEM

​

Jan. 6, 2018
​

At the halfway mark the Boston Bruins are 2nd in the Atlantic and 3rd in the East. The team already have a concerning 9 OTL but are on pace for a very good 98 point season. The team has been consistently good offensively but have been awful in OT and SO games. A recent 7-1-2 stretch has left them in good shape for the second half. Providence are 5th in their division and 8th in the East. They had a tough start, then a long hot stretch but have cooled recently and are 5-5-0 in their last 10.

Val Nichushkin is having a very strong season and ranks second on the team in scoring with 32 points. Auston Matthews has shown improvement, adding 8 goals and 21 assists so far. Burns, Yandle, and Krug have added a total of 31 goals as the top 3 from the D crew have been very consistently good in the offensive zone all year. Boston's bottom 6 started the year incredibly hot and pulled some wins out of their hat but have been quiet lately and no doubt the team would like to see them return to their early season form. Over the past couple of seasons the team has greatly improved their offensive talent. They have some excellent defensive prospects in the pipeline who are beginning to near NHL readiness. Is there a way for them to improve without dealing any of their best prospects? Let's recap the team's trade clause situation.


Krejci, Okposo, and Yandle have full no movement this year.

Bergeron and Burns may be asked for a 3 team list.

Rask may be asked for an 8 team list.

Marchand may be asked for a 15 team list.

Beleskey may be asked for a 23 team list.

It's unclear what the Bruins would be willing to give up via trade right now. They are having a good season and don't want to lose their D squad of the future that is developing in Providence. One of Khoklachev or Spooner could still be on the table because they are ideal for the same role, but Boston might like to keep that depth since it's looking like a strong season. Subban is perhaps not able to develop ideally being behind Rask in the NHL and playing a backup role. We've said before this could make one a candidate for a deal, but that is looking less likely right now. With a good season on the line and no candidate internally to replace one of them a deal would have to bring another goalie in return, which seems to make a Rask or Subban deal pointless.​

BOSTON CATEGORY LEADERS

G |BERGERON, BURNS, KREJCI, KRUG|11
A |BERGERON|25
PTS |BERGERON|36
PIM |MCQUAID|75
+/- |BERGERON|+9
PPG |MATTHEWS, BURNS|3
GWG |BERGERON, BURNS|4
HITS |BURNS|107

PROVIDENCE CATEGORY LEADERS

G |DZINGEL|13
A |CZARNIK|18
PTS |DZINGEL|30
PIM |CARLO|37
+/- |CZARNIK|+12
PPG |DEBRUSK|6
GWG |FERRIERO|4
HITS |CARLO|114

TEAM STATISTIC REPORT

TEAM | W | L | OTL | PTS | GFPG | GF RANK | GAPG | GA RANK | PP% | PP RANK | PK% | PK RANK BOSTON |20|12|9|49|2.93|5TH|2.61|12TH|19.0|9TH|85.3|6TH
PROVIDENCE |19|16|1|39|2.58|13TH|2.28|7TH|15.2|14TH|89.6|6TH

 

[JohnJamieson]

TRADE DEADLINE REPORT​

​

At the deadline...

Boston|92 OFF|91 DEF|94 GOA|88% CHEM
Providence|80 OFF|81 DEF|81 GOA|83% CHEM

​

Mar. 4, 2018
​

At the trade deadline the Bruins' record is 34-22-9. They are 5th in the East, and just 3 points behind Florida who claim the top spot. Auston Matthews is out right now with an elbow injury but the team's offense is on fire lately, especially Seth Griffith who has been dominating with 15 goals in his past 24 games. The Bruins made no moves at the deadline. Rumour has it they were close to a deal for Marc-Edouard Vlasic with the Sharks but couldn't get the deal finished and later talks with Tampa for Hamhuis stalled when Tampa insisted on a return of Khoklachev and a pick. Multiple teams came calling for Ondrej Prochazka but the Bruins were unwilling to part with last year's 6th round pick. Vlasic was eventually shipped off to Buffalo for a monster return of a 1st round pick, a 2nd round pick, and 2 prospects. Other notable deals saw Brian Elliott sent to Colorado and Eddie Lack to Arizona.

Providence have gone an absolutely incredible 19-3-1 since the halfway mark and have climbed atop the AHL Eastern Conference. With so many talented first and second year players in Providence there were some growing pains but as the team gelled and the young defense began making adjustments to the pro game the results have been phenomenal. Jake DeBrusk unfortunately suffered a terrible concussion last week and is not expected to be back anytime soon. The 21 year old left winger leads the team with 53 points (22 G, 31 A) and has been replaced in the lineup by Zach Senyshyn.​

​

 

[JohnJamieson]

2017 -2018 PLAYOFFS, ROUND 1​

Heading into the playoffs...

Boston|94 OFF|91 DEF|94 GOA|88% CHEM
Providence|82 OFF|82 DEF|81 GOA|83% CHEM

Matthews(88)|Bergeron(92)|Nichushkin(87)
Marchand(86)|Krejci(89)|Okposo(88)
Matteau(85)|Spooner(85)|Griffith(86)
Beleskey(83)|Khoklachev(84)|Connolly(81)
Ott(81)||

Yandle(88)|Burns(89)
Krug(86)|McQuaid(83)
Morrow(83)|Schenn(82)
|Bellemore(79)

Rask(93)
Subban(86)
Kollejan(77)

Apr. 13, 2018

BOSTON

(43-30-9) vs. NEW YORK

(49-27-6)

BOSTON-94 OFF-91 DEF-94 GOA
NEW YORK-91 OFF-90 DEF-89 GOA​

The Bruins ultimately wound up with the first wild card spot after a mediocre end to their season that saw them drop in the standings somewhat. They faced numerous injuries and elected to rest Tuukka Rask quite a bit at the end of the year. They sat 2nd in the Atlantic for quite a while but Florida and Ottawa got hot and passed the Bruins en route to a first round matchup against each other. The Bruins picked up RW Sebastian Collberg on waivers from the Islanders in the last week of the season and he has joined Providence in the AHL. The defending Cup Champion Rangers face an upstart Bruins squad who showed flashes of brilliance this season and hope to improve on last year's first round sweep at the hands of the Penguins.

The Rangers first line was excellent as Rick Nash, Derick Brassard, and Mats Zuccarello were all near a point per game. Daniel Paille, longtime 4th line stalwart for the Bruins and Stanley Cup winner with the team in 2011 skates for the Rangers now. Like last year, Boston scored by committee. 10 players had 40 points or more and every regular forward had at least 20 points. The team had only 4 players fall on the negative side of the +/- category as they greatly improved their goal differential this season. The 2nd seed Rangers are favoured in this matchup, but 7th seed Boston appear to be a talented young team on the rise and hope to build on last year's playoff experience.​

GAME 1

5-2​

The game starts out just a little nasty right away. McQuaid lands a good hit on Nash in the neutral zone on the first shift, then Luke Schenn hammers Brady Skjei along the boards in the Boston zone while the teams fight for possession. Bergeron takes a slashing penalty at 2:29 but Rick Nash negates the power play just 15 seconds later for holding. 4-on-4 ensues and Matt Beleskey comes up with a big goal at 3:20 when he tips in a Marchand shot from the half wall. Less than a minute later McQuaid and Brassard drop the gloves down low in the Boston zone and Brassard escapes with his life somehow. Eric Staal gets sent off for slashing just 15 seconds later and the Bruins PP record 5 shots as they swarm looking for a 2 goal lead but Lundquist says no. Staal walks out of the box and receives a terrific stretch pass from Stepan and converts over Rask's glove on a breakaway to tie the game. Beleskey gets sent off for slashing at 7:16 and the Bruins manage to kill it but the Rangers build some strong momentum that lasts for most of the period. Boston come back with some pressure of their own late in the frame and the period ends 1-1 with the shots 12-12.

When the second starts Dan Girardi gets sent off for high sticking and Auston Matthews hits Paille in the corner and comes up with the puck. He peels to the net, fights through the traffic, and when his initial shot is stopped he bangs in the rebound for a 2-1 Boston lead. Bergeron wins a faceoff in the offensive zone, heads to the net and tips in a Burns slap shot at 3:32. Soon after Marchand makes a dazzling move crossing the blue line to get some separation then drives hard to the net and drops the puck into the slot where Krejci picks it up and wires it high blocker side for a 4-1 Bruins lead. Lundquist gets pulled in favour of Antti Raanta and the pace slows down a little while but Zuccarello and Bergeron add to the score and it's 5-2 after 2.

Burns gets a double minor for high sticking early in the third when he tries to lift Stepan's stick and winds up bloodying his mouth behind the Boston net. The PK come through and kill the long penalty as Rask makes 7 saves to keep the score where it is. Yandle would take a hooking penalty halfway through the 3rd against his former team but Boston kill that off too and a scoreless third period sees Boston walk away with a game 1 win on the road. Bergeron wih 2 goals, Rask with 31 saves, and Nichushkin with 3 assists are the 3 stars of the game.​

GAME 2

4-2
​

Paul Martin sustained an injury late in game 1 and will be out tonight. The timetable for his return is not yet known. Game 2 starts with the Rangers on a mission to physically impose themselves upon the Bruins. They ring up several big hits early, including 3 on Bergeron and Boston are on their heels early on. McQuaid would take a penalty early that the Bruins managed to kill, but when Kyle Okposo gets sent off with 5 and a half to go Bergeron rings up a short-handed goal and the Bruins would lead 1-0 after 1.

McQuaid gets sent off early in the second as well but the Bruins PK stymies New York again as Rask didn't face even one shot on the Ranger power play. The game continues to be an intensely physical battle as Boston try to respond to the barrage of hits the Rangers have been laying on them. Shots and chances are few and far between but when Brett Connolly gets an opportunity with 5 minutes left he doesn't waste it. He follows Khoklachev into the zone and takes the drop pass on the rush. He skates into the low slot and fires the puck past Lundquist to give Boston a 2-0 edge.

When the 3rd starts Marc Staal is soon sent off for hooking and Kyle Okposo gives the B's some breathing room when he tips in a Burns clapper on the PP. Zuccarello replies with the Rangers' first goal of the contest 2 minutes later and the score is 3-1 Boston with 15 minutes to go. Boston would kill another penalty assessed to Marchand and Bergeron drives a nail in the coffin with his 2nd of the night and 4th of the series already with 5 minutes left. Nash makes it 4-2 with just 40 seconds left but that's how the game ends and Boston have taken the first 2 on the road against the defending Cup champs.​

GAME 3

1-4​

The word on Paul Martin says he will not be available tonight but could still return in this series as he is considered day-to-day. Play starts nervously in game 3 as both teams turn the puck over repeatedly in the neutral zone and neither team can find a way to get their offense set up for any decent stretch of time. Nash gets sent off for slashing 8 minutes in, the first of 3 minor penalties for NY in the period. Boston look unimpressive and register just a single shot on goal on their first two power plays. They will enter the second in a scoreless game with 40 seconds remaining on a Marc Staal minor.

Boston seem to get in a nice groove early in the second and get some good looks but Lundquist makes a few very nice saves to bail his team out and J.T. Miller would break the scoreless tie 7 minutes in for the Rangers' first lead of the series. Boston fight back desperately and Stefan Matteau is rewarded for his efforts with his first career playoff goal with just 3 minutes to go in the 2nd.

Boston continue to dominate play and just 2:44 of the 3rd Burns puts them in the lead when he slides down from the point and rips a cross ice Bergeron pass by Lundquist from the hash marks. Matt Beleskey makes it 3-1 just a minute and a half later and the crowd is driven into a frenzy. Each team would kill a penalty but there is no more scoring until Krejci pots an empty netter in the final minute. Boston outshoot New York 43-22 in a game that Lundquist held the Rangers in for quite some time and are just a game away from advancing to the 2nd round.​

GAME 4

4-2
​

Paul Martin is back tonight for New York as they try to hang in there in their first round matchup with the Boston Bruins. The game starts and right away David Krejci gets the B's on the board in the first minute when he bangs home the rebound of Okposo's shot and the crowd response is deafening. Key PK man Matteau would be sent off 4 minutes in but Boston dug in and made the kill. The Rangers are able to maintain possession much more than in game 3 but are unable to solve Rask and the first period finishes 1-0.

Burns gets sent off 30 seconds into the 2nd and New York get 3 shots on the power play including a great chance for Nash at the side of the net but they can't get one past Rask. Miller comes through for the Rangers at the 5 minute mark to tie the game. Midway through the period Boston get a power play and Nichushkin gets robbed by Lundquist, who dove across the crease and batted what looked like a sure goal out of the air with his stick to keep the game tied.

Calle Andersson and Ryan McDonagh score back to back early in the third to stake the Rangers to a 3-1 lead. Auston Matthews makes it 3-2 with 12:52 to go when he takes Bergeron's pass in the slot and rips a hard shot off the left post and in. Nash replies for the Rangers just 2 minutes later and the final score is 4-2 as New York manage to send the series back home.​

GAME 5

1-3
​

Mats Zuccarello makes it 1-0 NY just 28 seconds into game 5 when he tips Stepan's shot in the slot past a screened Rask and the Rangers continue to exhibit life with their season on the line. The two goalies would lock things down from there and Rask made several great saves when McQuaid served a double minor for high sticking late in the period.

The Bruins take 4 minor penalties in the span of just 1:32 near the start of the second but the PK unit comes up huge and they escape any damage as a result of their undisciplined play. They had to kill another penalty 8 minutes in and succeeded, but when Nash gets whistled for slashing the Rangers are made to pay for it when Bergeron makes a great drive to the net down at the goal line drawing the defense and leaving Auston Matthews open in front to tie the game at 1.

Boston pour it on in the 3rd as they have nearly every game this series but Zuccarello scores his second of the night with 8:38 to go and New York take a lead they will not relinquish. Girardi added another with 5 minutes left and the final score is 3-1 New York. Boston outshot the Rangers 33-23 in the game and 13-7 in the third but New York force game 6 back in Boston.​

GAME 6

1-3
​

Boston get out to a good start and Brent Burns gets them on the board at 6:11 when he rifles a point shot through traffic and into the back of the net. New York would gain some momentum as the period went on but it remains 1-0 through 1. Each team killed 3 penalties in the second and though the defenses were excellent on both sides the score moves to 2-0 with 3 minutes left when Brad Marchand nets his first of the playoffs.

Burns makes it 3-0 on the power play while J.T. Miller sits in the box for hooking early in the third. Chris Kreider spoils Rask's shutout with just 1:48 remaining but Boston get the victory and move on to the second round. New York showed great heart and made it interesting but in the end the 3-0 series deficit was too much for them to overcome. Boston outscore New York 19-13 in the series and their special teams were a key to victory- they recorded 4 power play goals on 15 chances (26.7%) while succeeding in killing 22 of 23 penalties (95.7%). Bergeron scored 4 goals in the first 2 games, which was still enough to lead the team. Val Nichushkin continued his strong play this year and recorded 8 assists in the series to lead the team in points despite not recording a goal.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

2017 -2018 PLAYOFFS, ROUND 2​

​

Apr. 28, 2018

BOSTON

(43-30-9) vs. COLUMBUS

(45-29-8)

BOSTON-94 OFF-91 DEF-94 GOA
COLUMBUS-89 OFF-93 DEF-83 GOA​

Columbus come into the series with some key injuries following a gruelling 7 game series win over Pittsburgh in the first round. Sergei Bobrovsky is out for the remainder of the playoffs with a hip injury suffered in game 7 that requires surgery, leaving rookie goalie Oscar Dansk to start in his place. Brandon Saad will also be absent tonight and is not expected to return for about 2 weeks with a lower-body injury. Columbus finished 3rd in the Metro Division and are the 5th seed in the Eastern Conference. Like the Rangers, the Blue Jackets also have a member of Boston's 2011 4th line- centre Gregory Campbell.​

GAME 1

8-1
​

Val Nichushkin scores his first of the playoffs when he beats Dansk blocker side from the circle with a perfect snipe to the short side top corner at just 4:36 and Boston lead. Columbus grant the Bruins a 5-on-3 and the Bruins reply with 2 PP goals by Okposo and Matthews for a 3-0 lead at just 13:15 into the game. Seth Griffith makes it 4-0 3:23 into the second with first goal of the playoffs after a very quiet first round for the third line. Just over a minute later Brad Marchand scores and Boston have taken a 5-0 lead and some fans are leaving the arena already as the home team is just getting embarrassed. Dansk is replaced by fellow rookie Elvis Merzlikins but Connolly solves him with 8 minutes to go to make it 6-0.

David Krejci makes it 7-0 with 14:41 to go in the game. Oliver Bjorkstrand finally gets the Jackets on the board at 9:18 of the third on the power play to spoil Rask's shutout effort. Matthews adds his 2nd of the game and team-leading 5th of the playoffs with 4:45 to go in a blowout 8-1 Bruins victory. The Blue Jackets lack of goaltending depth was exposed tonight and it looks like they are in tough for this series.​

GAME 2

3-1
​

Oscar Dansk gets the start again for Columbus tonight and he gets tested early and often as he puts up a 15-save effort in the first period. Cam Atkinson stakes Columbus to an early lead with his 5th of the playoffs and despite Boston outshooting Columbus 15-9 the Jackets exit the first with a 1-0 lead. The Bruins press fiercely in the 2nd as they hope to recapture the scoring magic of game 1 and Bergeron nets his first goal in 6 games to tie it up midway through the second. Adam McQuaid spots Boston to a 2-1 lead late in the second on a crushing slap shot from the point- on what is Boston's 32nd shot of the game already.

Ryan Spooner makes it 3-1 Boston at 7:20 of the third and while that is the final score rookie Oscar Dansk made a great turnaround from game 1; he made 44 stops in the loss as Columbus fall down 2-0 in the series.​

GAME 3

2-1
​

The first period of game 3 in Boston sees Columbus working hard to limit the Bruins' opportunities after the B's put 47 shots on net in the last game, and had 8 goals in game 1. Alex Chiasson gets sent off for roughing 6 minutes in but Columbus are able to hold off Boston's red hot power play unit and the first ends scoreless, with Boston enjoying a 10-8 edge in shots.

The game starts to get a little chippy in the second. Griffith was shaken up on a hit in the neutral zone by Alex Chiasson a minute in and would not return to the game. Okposo hauls down Alex Wennberg at 5:06 and gets sent off for tripping but the Columbus PP accomplishes nothing before Brandon Dubinsky receives a double minor for high sticking just 51 seconds later when he cut open Brad Marchand's lip along the boards during a battle for the puck. Columbus manages a shot during 4-on-4, then Boston register 5 during their 3:09 of PP time but neither team would score. Not long after, at the 10:32 mark Beleskey is sent off for slashing when he gives Jack Johnson a solid whack on the hands on the forecheck. The game's first goal is finally scored short-handed when Brad Marchand strips Seth Jones of the puck at Boston's blue line and goes end-to-end, performing a dazzling deke to the backhand that leaves Dansk down and out for a 1-0 Boston lead that nearly brings the house down. Columbus would fight to stay in it, and Cam Atkinson equalizes the game with 3 and a half to go in the second with a lethal wrist shot to Rask's blocker side from the slot that the Boston keeper had no chance on.

Boston get 2 power plays in the third but can't convert on either as Columbus limit them to just one shot on each try. The Jackets seem to get the better of Boston in this period and get a couple great chances to take the lead when Stefan Matteau takes an elbowing penalty for a bad hit on Ryan Murray in the offensive zone with just 4 minutes to go. Atkinson and Bjorkstrand each had a grade A chance from the slot but were denied by Rask. Bjorkstrand's shot hits Rask's pand and the rebound bounces out in front and all kinds of bodies come crashing into the crease, but the puck winds up under Rask and the whistle blows. Joe Morrow drops Atkinson with a cross check from behind as he was digging for the puck and gets tackled by Nick Foligno. A scrum ensues and everybody is mad at somebody for something during the net front melee but eventually tempers settle and Morrow and Foligno are both sent off for 2. Tortorella is furious that Boston don't have an extra penalty on the play and Dalton Prout has an awful lot to say to the Bruins bench. The atmosphere turns distinctively violent but the game goes on and the 3rd ends with the teams still deadlocked. Boston will have their first OT game of the playoffs on their hands.

Ryan Murray doesn't return to the bench for the extra period and the Bruins seem to turn the tide at the start of OT and take control of the puck and get a couple good chances. However, Foligno recovers Prout's dump in and at the 9:10 mark he cuts to the net just in front of the goal line and beats Rask over his shoulder from a sharp angle to cut the Jackets' series deficit to 2-1. Coach John Tortorella had some choice words about Boston's physical play crossing the line. He's very angry about the Matteau hit that injured Murray and the Morrow hit on Atkinson and torches them in the media after the game. When Morrow is asked by reporters for his response he says: "What am I supposed to do, just let him keep whacking away at Tuukka? Am I supposed to let him score? No. I did my job and took him out of the play, plain and simple. This was a 1-1 game in the playoffs with 3 minutes left. I did what I had to do."​

GAME 4

2-5
​

We receive word that Murray will not be available for Columbus tonight in Game 4. There is no update on his condition or future availability. Seth Griffith remains in the lineup tonight for Boston after leaving Game 3 early in the second with an undisclosed injury. Boston come out red hot on the heels of their loss and outshoot Columbus 11-3 in the first 10 minutes but Dansk has been great after his game 1 debacle and he makes several strong saves on good Bruin chances to keep the door shut. The bad blood from game 3 has been set aside for now as Columbus struggle to keep their head above water. The game remains tied until Keith Yandle lights the lamp with 3:41 to go with a rocket from the point that Dansk never saw through Bergeron's screen. Boston outshoot the Jackets 16-5 in a dominant period.

Boston continue to dominate play in the second but it is Josh Anderson who scores next, tying the game just after the halfway mark of the period. Bergeron puts the Bruins back in the lead with 5:07 left when he tips in a shot by Nichushkin and the score is 2-1 for the home team entering the 3rd. Boston will be on the power play after Columbus goal scorer Anderson gets whistled for holding with just 7 seconds to go when he tried to stop Auston Matthews from cutting to the net from the corner.

Columbus kill the penalty and get their own power play shortly after when Joe Morrow gets called for holding. At the end of the penalty David Krejci dumps the puck down the ice and the puck takes a very funny bounce over Jack Johnson's stick and bounces back out in front where Brad Marchand picks it up and shoots it through Dansk's pads just a second after Morrow leaves the box for a 3-1 Boston lead on a very fortuitous bounce. When McQuaid gets sent to the box for interference near the 8 minute mark Tortorella deploys enforcer Dalton Prout on his power play and has him stand in front of the net in a bid to shake up the Bruins and Rask in particular. He gives Rask a couple bumps and settles into a heavy battle with Morrow. Rask makes a glove save that stops play and Prout gives him a whack on the hand and all hell breaks loose. Rask slashes him back and Morrow drops the gloves and starts firing away as everybody on the ice head to the crease for a piece of the action. Once Prout gets his gloves off he fires back at Morrow and the 2 go rock 'em, sock 'em style in an entertaining battle that would see Prout eventually drop Morrow with a big bomb. Brandon Dubinsky and Matteau drop the gloves as well and Dubinsky gets the better of that fight too as Columbus get some frustration and anger out on the Bruins. Sacco and Tortorella are seen having a very animated discussion at the benches and Prout gets an extra minor on the play to necessitate 4-on-4. Torey Krug scores with 5 minutes left, with Nichushkin recording his 3rd assist of the evening. Greg Campbell replies shortly after and the score is 4-2 Bruins with 3:13 to go. Torts pulls Dansk early but Beleskey finds the open net and the Bruins win 5-2.​

GAME 5

1-3
​

Kyle Okposo is out for tonight's game as the series moves back to Columbus. We're not sure when he got hurt in game 4 or whether this is something that's been lingering but Steve Ott will dress in his place and Matt Beleskey will skate with Matthews and Nichushkin on the top power play unit in his place tonight. Ryan Murray and Brandon Saad remain out for Columbus but the team is hopeful that both could return for game 6 if the Jackets can win tonight.

Just a minute into the game Greg Campbell drops the gloves with Joe Morrow as it appears Columbus are not done with him just yet. It looked like Morrow might have gotten the better shots in but Campbell opens a cut over Morrow's eye from the Prout fight last game and he bleeds profusely to the home crowd's delight. Prout gets sent off with 8:15 left in the first when he gives Morrow a hard slash to the back of his knee and Morrow limps to the dressing room in obvious pain. Shortly after the penalty expires Matteau picks Gregory Campbell out of a scrum in front of the Jackets net and shows his displeasure with the treatment of his teammate Morrow in a way that only a pair of fists can. Once again Boston heavily outshoot Columbus 15-6 in the first but nary a goal was seen.

Morrow returns to the game in the 2nd and Burns scores a power play goal to make it 1-0 4:42 into the period. Not to be outdone Foligno ties it up with a gritty drive to the net on the rush less than 2 minutes later and the score is 1-1 after 2. Kerby Rychel gives Columbus the lead early in the 2nd and the Bruins are unable to reply on a power play shortly after. Wennberg makes it 3-1 Columbus with 13:23 to go. Boston are outshooting Columbus 31-16 at this point but Dansk is holding the potent Boston offense at bay. It's all Boston after that as well and they outshoot Columbus 8-1 over the rest of the game but Columbus hang on to stay in the series. Dansk left the game after going down awkwardly making a save with just 2:38 left. The Jackets will surely hope he is able to come out for game 6 as the rookie netminder has been sensational over the past few games.​

GAME 6

3-2
​

Ahead of game 6 comes news that Oscar Dansk is OK and will remain in goal for the Jackets. Ryan Murray and Brandon Saad also return to the lineup for Columbus and Kyle Okposo returns for the Bruins after missing game 5. The Bruins want to end the series and the Jackets are fighting hard for their playoff lives back in Boston. Bodies are flying everywhere as the teams exchange a series of vicious checks near the start of the game. The main event finally happens as McQuaid and Prout drop the gloves off a faceoff 5 minutes in and meet at the Jackets blue line. They grab hold of each other and at first neither player can get loose. McQuaid pops off Prout's lid but eats a strong right hand for his trouble. Quaider sneaks a left in then goes under with the right to the body and then a hard uppercut to Prout's chin. Prout is unfazed and lands 2 big bombs with his right that knock McQuaid's helmet off. They circle towards the boards and McQuaid gets a left in as they wind up side by side along the boards. It turns into a good old-fashioned donnybrook as both players let loose with a serious of vicious punches until they finally tire themselves out and are separated. Neither team gives the other any space to work with and shots are just 1-1 through the first 9 minutes of play. However, on just their third shot of the game Columbus take a 1-0 lead on a goal by Josh Anderson. Shots would finish just 5-4 in favour of Columbus through 1.

Kyle Brodziak gives the Jackets a 2-0 lead early in the 2nd and the Boston crowd is silenced. However, Matt Beleskey responds for the B's just 2 minutes later to cut the lead back to 1. The Jackets redouble their efforts and control play for the rest of the period, outshooting Boston 12-4 in the second stanza while maintaining their 2-1 lead. Game 6 stands in stark contrast to the rest of the series as the Bruins took 30+ shots in every other game and have just 8 through 40 minutes.

Elvis Merzlikins steps into the Columbus crease to start the 3rd and Dansk is nowhere to be seen. Dansk didn't see much action tonight but whatever caused him to leave Game 5 in the 3rd is clearly still an issue and the Bruins hope to have better luck against the Columbus backup. Columbus are just 20 minutes away from tying the series and sending it back home to Columbus for Game 7, a possibility the Bruins would not like to see at all. Boston get into the game and start gaining some traction and offensive zone time but David Savard makes it 3-1 with just 6:37 to go when he floats a seeing eye wrister from the point that evades Rask through traffic. Stefan Matteau cuts the lead to 3-2 with a hard drive to the net down the left wing on the rush and Boston have 4:36 left to try to tie it back up. They can't manage and game 7 in Columbus looms large.​

GAME 7

1-4

​

Kyle Okposo and Brandon Saad will both miss tonight's crucial game 7 after aggravating previous injuries in game 6. Boston led this series 3-1 but Columbus gutted out a couple huge victories to bring the series back home for game 7. Oscar Dansk will start in net for Columbus after leaving both of the last 2 games in the third period with an undisclosed injury. In stark contrast to Game 6 the teams come out flying end-to-end and trading chances throughout the first period. Jack Johnson gets the Jackets on the board first at 12:08 and Columbus had a clear edge on the visiting Bruins, outshooting them 15-12 and outhitting them 11-6 in a first period that was played at a terrific pace and the score is 1-0 after 1.

Johnson gets sent off for hooking at 4:15 of the second and Torey Krug comes through on the power play to tie the game. Foligno takes a slashing call shortly after and Krug nearly scores again when his point blast deflects off a Columbus stick in front of the net and goes off the post. Kyle Brodziak scores for the second game in a row with 4 minutes left and Coumbus will head to the third with a 2-1 lead.

Kerby Rychel adds to the lead 2:28 into the third and despite Boston's best efforts they are unable to score in the third and Nick Foligno's empty net goal seals Boston's fate in the final minute. It's a horribly disappointing end to the season for Boston who seemed to be well on their way to an Eastern Conference Finals berth when they took a 3-1 lead in this second round matchup against Columbus. Boston outscored the Blue Jackets 21-16 in the series, but lost 3 straight to be eliminated. Like the first round they scored 4 PP goals and only gave up one. Nichushkin led Bruins scorers in the playoffs with 16 points.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

END OF SEASON REPORT​

​

At year's end...

Boston|91 OFF|90 DEF|94 GOA|75% CHEM
Providence|82 OFF|82 DEF|80 GOA|83% CHEM

May 11, 2018​

The Bruins finished their season with a 2nd round playoff exit. A better performance than their first round sweep at the hands of Pittsburgh last year to be sure but being ousted by the Blue Jackets after having a 3-1 series lead is a bitter pill to swallow.​

​

* "possession +/-" determined by takeaways minus giveaways.

|GP|G|A|PTS|PIM|+/-|HITS|POS+/-*
Bergeron|82|18| 42 | 60 |9|+7|53|+15
Krejci|82|19|40|59|16|+10|35|+4
Griffith|82| 26 |29|55|15|+8|24|+15
Nichushkin|82|14|36|50|10|+4|39|+8
Burns|80|19|28|47|76|+11| 213 |-34
Matthews|79|14|31|45|12|+6|35|+7
Yandle|82|19|23|42|14|+8|50|-23
Okposo|76|16|26|42|35|+3|116|+26
Spooner|82|8|32|40|0|+7|17|-2
Krug|80|20|20|40|10|-5|33|-22
Marchand|82|9|18|27|40|+1|166|+14
Matteau|82|11|16|27|66| +13 |137|-2
Beleskey|82|13|11|24|40|+2|130|-10
Connolly|70|7|14|21|6|+3|16|-10
Khoklachev|72|4|16|20|0|-5|13|+4
Morrow|82|3|7|10|31|+8|139|-48
Ott|31|4|3|7|28|-1|32|-5
Schenn|82|2|3|5|44|+8|197|-51
McQuaid|82|3|2|5| 199 |+11|142|-49
Bellemore|5|0|0|0|4|-1|8|-5

|GP|W|L|OTL|GAA|SV%|SO
Rask|64|36|21|4|1.97|.936|8
Subban|20|7|10|2|2.79|.907|1
Kollejan|1|1|0|0|2.06|.917|0

Both Spooner and Khoklachev incredibly made it through the entire season without taking a single penalty- though Spooner finally recorded a minor in the first round of the playoffs against the Rangers. Spooner saw a drop in productivity this year as he fell from 53 points to 40. Khoklachev's deal runs out after this year. Will the Bruins be compelled to move him?

The Bruins will head into the 2018-2019 season hoping that some of their brightest youngsters will be able to make the team out of training camp this year as several of Don Sweeney's 2015 picks could potentially be NHL ready this year.

Pending UFAs: Joe Morrow, Luke Schenn, Steve Ott, Mark Visentin, Brett Bellemore, Max Talbot.

Pending RFAs: Austin Czarnik, Frank Vatrano, Sebastian Collberg, Anton Blidh.

Unsigned Rookies: Tommy Grantham, Ondrej Prochazka, Jacob Paquette, Benjamin Gagne.

The salary cap will increase to $76.61 million for the upcoming season which leaves the Bruins $5.25 million dollars to work with. 4 roster players from last year were on expiring deals, but the Bruins may be able to promote some youngsters on cheap deals this year which would give them some extra cap space.

Columbus wound up going all the way to the Finals after sweeping Montreal but were defeated in 5 games by the St. Louis Blues, who finally won their first Stanley Cup.

Patrice Bergeron won his 5th consecutive Selke trophy this year and Tuukka Rask took home his 2nd career Vezina. Sidney Crosby took home the Hart and the Art Ross with his league leading 92 points. Mikko Rantanen took home the Calder on the strength of his 47 point season and John Klingberg (53 PTS) took home the Norris. Alex Galchenyuk (what?!) won the Lady Byng with his 88 points and 6 PIM. Alex Ovechkin paced the league in goals with 44 to take home the Rocket Richard Trophy and Jake Allen won the Conn Smythe as his Blues won the cup on the back of his stellar 2.09 GAA, .934 SV%, and 3 SO playoff performance.​

​

AHL REPORT​

The Providence Bruins went on a tremendous hot streak in the second half but after Jake DeBrusk's season ending concussion they simply fell apart at the seams. They went on an awful slide to end the season and were ousted in the first round by the Portland Pirates in 5 games.​

​

PROVIDENCE CATEGORY LEADERS

G |DEBRUSK|22
A |VATRANO|36
PTS |VATRANO|54
PIM |CARLO|88
+/- |VATRANO|+33
PPG |DEBRUSK|9
GWG |DEBRUSK|6
HITS |CARLO|248

AHL GOALTENDING STATS

|GP|W|L|OTL|GAA|SV%|SO
Visentin|60|36|18|3|1.88|.929|11
McIntyre|20|10|9|1|2.39|.912|2

TEAM STATISTIC REPORT

TEAM | W | L | OTL | PTS | GFPG | GF RANK | GAPG | GA RANK | PP% | PP RANK | PK% | PK RANK BOSTON |43|30|9|95|2.79|7TH|2.29|1ST|18.6|8TH|88.2|1ST
PROVIDENCE |46|26|4|96|2.88|3RD|2.11|1ST|14.2|16TH|87.3|12TH

 

[JohnJamieson]

2018 NHL ENTRY DRAFT
​

The Bruins have 6 picks this year; 1-1st rounder, 2-4th rounders, 1-5th rounder, 1-6th rounder, and 1-7th rounder. Rumours are swirling around 30 year old Bruins winger Brad Marchand. After 2 straight extremely disappointing seasons word is he's on the block and there seems to be a good chance Boston GM John Jamieson will deal him this year as his contract is set to expire after next season. Marchand has reportedly been asked to provide the team with a 15 team trade list.

Rumour also has it that Buffalo are shopping around C Nolan Patrick. It sounds bizarre as Buffalo selected him with last year's number 1 overall pick and they missed the playoffs again this year. What's gone wrong that they are willing to part with him? You can be sure it would take a sizable return to land him in any case. The Sabres ask is something along the lines of 2 good NHL roster players and a high draft pick according to those in the know. The team is not looking to make an exchange of prospects and want to bring in NHL talent in the hopes of having a stronger season.​

Mike Smith was moved to Columbus at the draft which is a bit surprising after their backup, rookie Oscar Dansk took them all the way to the Cup Finals. Do they plan to trade him while his value is high? Or could they be planning to trade Sergei Bobrovsky and let Dansk take the starting job this year? The other big move at the draft saw Boston's Brad Marchand moved to the Philadelphia Flyers with Boston's 4th round pick in exchange for Philly's 2nd rounder this year and next year's 3rd round selection. Marchand played all 9 seasons of his career thus far in Boston but after back-to-back seasons of just 9 goals it seems it was time for both sides to move on. Nolan Patrick generated a ton of interest around the league but he remains a Sabre for now. Let's look at the Bruin's selections this year.​

ROUND|PICK #|PLAYER|AGE|HT|WT|POS|TYPE|POTENTIAL|OVERALL
1|18| Kyle Bellamy |19|5'11"|183|LW|SNP| MED ELITE |66
2|38| Ian Leighton |18|6'0"|185|C|PLY| MED TOP 9 F |65
4|111| Benjamin Gleason |20|6'0"|174|D|TWD| MED AHL TOP 4 D |60
5|138| Brendan Harrogate |20|6'1"|180|C|SNP| LOW AHL TOP 6 F |62
6|168| Vladimir Galiev |18|6'2"|200|G|HYB| MED AHL STARTER |61
7|198| Jaeger White |20|6'1"|170|C|TWF| MED AHL TOP 6 F |73

Overall it seems to be a fairly successful draft for Boston. Kyle Bellamy is a terrific goal-scoring prospect and fell a couple spots to Boston at the draft. He was ranked at #15 and when Nashville selected Marcus Nylander at #17 the Bruins brass were visibly happy that they would get to call Bellamy's name. Ian Leighton was selected with the first of two picks Boston received for Brad Marchand in today's trade. Leighton played in the US National Development League and has great vision with the puck, skates well, and has good strength for such a young player. He'll need to learn to use that strength better in the defensive end and has some work to do but at just 18 he looks like a solid prospect. Benjamin Gleason of the Hamilton Bulldogs of the OHL has terrific foot speed and a great shot. He has work to do in his own end and is considered a project. If his defensive acumen ever approaches his offensive ability he could be a special player. Harrogate comes from Mississauga of the OHL. He is a centre with great wheels and a good shot. It remains to be seen if he has the work ethic and the hockey sense to hang in the pros but if he does- he'll score goals. Galiev is a prospect out of Russia who was unranked by the pundits. He's just 18 and while he needs to work on his rebound control, he is a very athletic netminder with good size. Jaeger White is a very interesting 7th round pick. He was overshadowed by some high profile teammates on the Brandon Wheat Kings and already displays great speed and a blistering wrist shot. He's not a pure scorer but some further development on his defensive game and some work on his conditioning could make him look like one of the best draft steals of the year.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

Boston acquired D Casey Nelson and a 2019 4th round draft pick from Buffalo in exchange for C Vladimir Alexeev and both of Boston's 3rd round picks (BOS, PHI) in the upcoming draft. They also traded Brendan Harrogate to the Hurricanes for their 2019 4th round pick.
​

RE-SIGN PHASE​

PLAYER|AGE|POS|TYPE|OVERALL|POTENTIAL|YEARS|AAV|2 WAY?
Joe Morrow |25|D|TWD|83| MED TOP 6 D |2|3.225|
Mark Visentin |26|G|HYB|80| LOW BACKUP |1|0.85|
Frank Vatrano |24|LW|PWF|78| HIGH BOTTOM 6 F |2|0.75|
Sebastian Collberg |24|RW|SNP|78| HIGH BOTTOM 6 F |2|0.75|
Jaeger White |20|C|TWF|73| MED AHL TOP 6 F |3|0.85|YES
Tommy Grantham |21|LW|PWF|72| LOW BOTTOM 6 F |3|0.825|YES
Ondrej Prochazka |21|LW|TWF|72| MED AHL TOP 6 F |3|0.85|YES

Departing UFAs: Luke Schenn (82), Steve Ott (80), Brett Bellemore (78), Max Talbot (77).

Non-tendered RFAs: Austin Czarnik (80), Anton Blidh (76).
​

FREE AGENT SIGNINGS

PLAYER|AGE|POS|TYPE|OVERALL|POTENTIAL|YEARS|AAV|2 WAY?
Alex Petrovic |26|D|DFD|79| HIGH 7TH D |2|0.95|

DEPTH CHART (NOT INCLUDING UNSIGNED ROOKIES)
C:8
LW:8
RW:9
D:14
G:5​

Changes in potential from last year noted as we reach the preseason:

• C Nathan Noel went from Low Top 9 F to Bottom 6 F.
• LW Tommy Grantham went from Low Bottom 6 F to Low AHL Top 6 F.
• LW Kyle Bellamy went from Med Elite to Med Top 6 F.
• RW Martin Osmik went from Med Bottom 6 F to Med AHL Top 6 F.
• D Keith Yandle went from Exact Top 4 D to Exact Top 6 D.
• D Adam McQuaid went from Exact Top 6 D to Exact 7th D.
• D Brandon Carlo went from High Top 4 D to Med Top 4 D.
• D Fabian Heldner went from Med 7th D to Med AHL Top 2 D.
• G Tuukka Rask went from Exact Elite to Exact Starter.
• G Felix Kollejan went from High Backup to High Fringe Starter.

The best jumps in overall rating were for Dennis Yan, who went from 72 to 81 over the last year, and Jesse Gabrielle who went from 70 to 77.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

SEASON 4 BRUINS OPENING DAY ROSTER (2018-2019)

Heading into the season...

Boston|93 OFF|91 DEF|95 GOA|85% CHEM
Providence|80 OFF|82 DEF|82 GOA|79% CHEM

Okposo(88)|Matthews(90)|Nichushkin(86)
DeBrusk(82)|Bergeron(89)|Krejci(88)
Matteau(84)|Spooner(85)|Griffith(85)
Beleskey(83)|Khoklachev(84)|Connoly(81)
Ott(81)||

Yandle(86)|Burns(87)
Krug(86)|Nelson(85)
Morrow(83)|Carlo(81)
|McQuaid(82)

Rask(93)
Subban(87)

• The Bruins cap hit is at $71.945 mil. This leaves the team $4.665 mil of space.
  
• The average age of our NHL roster is exactly 27 this year. With core pieces Rask, Bergeron, Burns, Krejci, Yandle, and Okposo all over 30 years old you'd have to think the time to win is now. Bergeron and Burns have both noticeably lost a step. Will their regression kill the team's hopes of winning it all this year?
  
• Jake DeBrusk and Brandon Carlo will both start the season with Boston. Both are just 21 years old, but could be expected to play a big role on the team this year.
  
• The Bruins have 4 open contract spots.
  
• Boston also signed their 1st and 2nd round picks from this year- Kyle Bellamy and Ian Leighton. Both will play in Providence this year.
  
• Pending UFAs on the NHL roster this year: Ryan Spooner, Adam McQuaid, Brett Connolly.
  
• Pending RFAs on the NHL roster this year: Auston Matthews, Seth Griffith, Alexander Khoklachev, Stefan Matteau, Jake DeBrusk, Brandon Carlo.
  
• How many of those guys will Boston be able to fit under the cap next year? Here's a hint- not all of them. Boston will be forced to make some trades rather than lose a boatload of young talent to free agency.
  
• The Bruins went 5-2-0 in the preseason and things are looking up heading into the season. Summer acquisition Casey Nelson has been a very pleasant surprise. The 26 year old had been playing limited minutes for Buffalo for a few years and was unhappy with his role on the team. He will play in the top 4 in Boston. Nelson has 7 goals in 102 career games.

 

[JohnJamieson]

BRUINS TRADE PAQUETTE

Oct. 19, 2018
​

Today the Bruins traded their 2019 2nd round pick, 3rd round selection from last year, D Jacob Paquette and their 6th round pick from this year, G Vladimir Galiev to Philadelphia in exchange for Philly's 2019 2nd round pick and their 2020 3rd round pick.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

HALFWAY REPORT​

​

After 41 games...

Boston|93 OFF|91 DEF|89 GOA|85% CHEM
Providence|81 OFF|84 DEF|81 GOA|83% CHEM

​

Jan. 18, 2019
​

At the halfway mark the Boston Bruins are 3rd in the Atlantic and 9th in the East, as the Metropolitan Division looks to be a much tougher Division this year. The B's have as many as 4 games in hand on some teams they follow closely and could move up in the standings soon. Boston had an absolutely terrible start to the year but have played much better of late. They have had some scoring issues this year and their special teams haven't performed as well this year compared to last, even though personnel hasn't changed much. Through their first 19 games they were 5-11-3 and one had to wonder whether they were going to pull it together. Since then the team have run off an impressive 15-5-2 stretch but we know the team is going to need to make some trades and the question is- how will they affect the team's recent success?

Tuukka Rask suffered a broken ankle two weeks ago against Montreal and the team called up Felix Kollejan, who won his only start since then as Malcom Subban has gone 3-1-1 as their number 1 guy right now. Rask is not expected back until at least mid-February. Longtime D-man Adam McQuaid has been the odd man out this year and has played just a few games when Casey Nelson was injured. The third pairing of Joe Morrow and rookie Brandon Carlo (5G, +9)has been excellent and there is no reason for the team to dress McQuaid in either's place. Carlo in particular will need to keep getting minutes to develop his game. McQuaid has expressed displeasure with his playing time. He's a leader of the team and the Bruins don't want to trade him but they may have to. Alex Petrovic is a suitable veteran option for their 7th D man who is down in Providence right now. Otherwise they mave have to give McQuaid some ice time and scratch Joe Morrow for a while in the hopes of keeping McQuaid happy. At 26, Morrow is 6 years younger than McQuaid and while his offensive game never blossomed like some thought it would for the former Penguins first round pick, he has been a very reliable 3rd pair defender for Boston over these past few seasons. McQuaid's contract is over following this season and Boston will have to make a decision regarding him since McQuaid will be unwilling to re-sign with the team if he will not be an every day player. Trade him and get some value but risk upsetting the locker room? Or keep him as a 7th D man for a playoff run in case of injury and see him walk after the season?

Frank Vatrano was recalled from Providence early in the season and has been pressed into action on a few occasions with some small injuries to Bruins' forwards. Boston's 3rd line of Matteau, Spooner, and Griffith have been sensational this year, and Spooner leads the team with 30 points. The top 6 have not been particularly productive, but some juggling of the top 2 lines has brought better results from them lately. Rookie LW Jake DeBrusk has recorded 7 goals in his first half season skating alongside Krejci and Okposo. Let's revisit the Bruins trade clause situation for this year.

Krejci and Okposo have full no movement this year.

Bergeron may be asked for a 3 team list.

Rask may be asked for an 8 team list.

Yandle and Burns may be asked for a 15 team list.

Beleskey may be asked for a 23 team list.

There a few notable trade candidates for Boston this year. Spooner looks too good this year to let go, so Alex Khoklachev is a strong candidate to be moved. Khoklachev will be an RFA for the last time next year and will probably be wanting to go to a new team where he would be higher up on the depth chart sooner rather than later. He has done his part and there has been no indication that he is unhappy with his role but you'd have to think he'd like to go on to bigger and better things. The hard part for the Bruins would be replacing him this year as he is such a strong player for a 4th-liner. Matt Beleskey has been decent but he carries a $3.8 million dollar cap hit for two more seasons and Boston could use that money towards new contracts for Matthews, Carlo, and Griffith among others. If Khoklachev or Beleskey were moved, you could see Ryan Dzingel or Dennis Yan getting a call from the big club. Torey Krug has a limited no trade clause that kicks in next year and Jakub Zboril and Jeremy Lauzon both look close to making the jump this season or certainly next- Zboril has been especially good this year. Could the younger Krug or one of veterans Yandle or Burns be moved to make way for the young ones?

Providence are looking good again- they are a true scoring machine. The left wing was once a weak spot in the organization but they have an embarassment of riches on the left side now with Gabrielle, Yan, and Bellamy in the minors. Gabrielle and Yan could both be ripe for promotion in the near future. There are a few prospects down in Boston's system who seem to be failing to live up their potential, including 2015 first round pick Zach Senyshyn, who has had trouble staying in the AHL lineup. He and/or others could be shipped out to teams willing to give them a second chance if the Bruins wish to clean house for the next wave of youngsters.​

BOSTON CATEGORY LEADERS

G |BERGERON|11
A |SPOONER|25
PTS |SPOONER|30
PIM |NELSON,OKPOSO|37
+/- |MATTEAU|+20
PPG |OKPOSO|5
GWG |DEBRUSK|3
HITS |NELSON|111

PROVIDENCE CATEGORY LEADERS

G |GABRIELLE|17
A |NOEL|22
PTS |NOEL, COLLBERG|30
PIM |PETROVIC|58
+/- |LAUZON|+18
PPG |YAN, ZBORIL|3
GWG |GABRIELLE, COLLBERG|3
HITS |PETROVIC|130

TEAM STATISTIC REPORT

TEAM | W | L | OTL | PTS | GFPG | GF RANK | GAPG | GA RANK | PP% | PP RANK | PK% | PK RANK BOSTON |20|16|5|45|2.49|22ND|2.39|7TH|14.8|26TH|82.1|15TH
PROVIDENCE |22|12|4|48|3.16|2ND|2.21|6TH|16.3|17TH|84.5|17TH

 

[JohnJamieson]

MCQUAID TRADED
​

Feb. 24, 2019​

With ten days to go until the deadline the Bruins have traded longtime defense mainstay and tough guy Adam McQuaid to the Winnipeg Jets. McQuaid's role was limited this year and it led to frustration in the locker room preceding the trade. Along with McQuaid went former first-round pick Zach Senyshyn, who has begun to look like a bust after a very promising junior career and Boston's 4th-round selection at this year's draft. In return the Bruins received RW prospect C.J. Clarke and Winnipeg's 5th round pick. Clarke is a 6'3", 207 lb. gritty power forward type winger. He plays on his off wing and the Jets thought highly enough of him to select him in the 2nd round in 2017. Since then his progress has slowed a little and Boston will hope to get him on track next year in Providence after he finishes his junior career.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

TRADE DEADLINE REPORT​

​

At the deadline...

Boston|93 OFF|90 DEF|95 GOA|82% CHEM
Providence|82 OFF|79 DEF|84 GOA|82% CHEM

​

Mar. 6, 2019
​

At the trade deadline the Bruins' record is 26-25-9. They are 13th in the East, and 7 points out of a playoff spot, though they have played the fewest games of any team in the conference. The team suffered an awful cold stretch in February in which they lost 10 in a row as the team continues to run hot and cold. The Bruins made 2 trades with Chicago in the last week, all in all sending D Joe Morrow, LW Frank Vatrano, AHL LW Ondrej Prochazka, a 3rd round pick, and a 4th round pick in exchange for C Marcus Kruger, RW Vinnie Hinostroza, and AHL D Shawn Betts. The Hawks needed cap relief and an NHL quality D-man for their playoff run as both Keith and Hjalmarsson are currently out with injury. Betts is an excellent quality prospect who has joined Providence on the second pair. Meanwhile, the Bruins recalled 21 year old Jakub Zboril to take Morrow's place and Dennis Yan has joined the big club as well. The club made numerous attempts to acquire Victor Hedman, and sources say there were several attempts to move Val Nichushkin, whom the Bruins appear to be growing impatient with. Other trades at the deadline saw Cory Schneider join the Leafs and Martin Hanzal shipped to the Isles.

Providence have gone 13-5-1 since the halfway mark and are now second in the AHL Eastern Conference. Felix Kollejan has excelled in his first year as the team's first string netminder, going 20-9-2 thus far with a GAA of 2.14 and a SV% of .920.​

​

 

[JohnJamieson]

2018 -2019 PLAYOFFS, ROUND 1​

Heading into the playoffs...

Boston|94 OFF|90 DEF|94 GOA|86% CHEM
Providence|83 OFF|80 DEF|84 GOA|85% CHEM

Matthews(90)|Bergeron(89)|Griffith(85)
DeBrusk(84)|Krejci(88)|Okposo(89)
Matteau(85)|Spooner(86)|Nichushkin(86)
Yan(84)|Khoklachev(84)|Beleskey(83)
|Kruger(82)|Connolly(81)

Krug(87)|Burns(88)
Zboril(82)|Nelson(85)
Petrovic(80)|Carlo(82)

Rask(92)
Subban(87)

Apr. 17, 2019

TORONTO

(43-34-5) vs. BOSTON

(41-30-11)

BOSTON-94 OFF-90 DEF-94 GOA
TORONTO-92 OFF-93 DEF-86 GOA​

The Bruins caught fire again and closed the season 15-5-2 to vault themselves all the way up to second in the Atlantic, and the team will start a playoff series with home-ice advantage for the first time in the GM JJ era. The Bruins had some key performances from their rookies on their way to a playoff spot. Jake DeBrusk scored 16 goals in his first season, while Carlo added 11 from the blue line. Late season call up D Jakub Zboril was outstanding as he recorded 14 points in his first 22 career NHL games after the deadline. Dennis Yan had joined the team just a few games before and has added 13 points in 26 games as he has provided some nice offensive spark to the teams 4th line, and even skated a few games on the first line when Bergeron went down with a wrist injury.

The Maple Leafs boast plenty of fine young talent of their own and this series figures to be played at warp speed. The Leafs high profile acquisiton, goaltender Cory Schneider tore a groin muscle just 2 games after the Leafs traded for him and is still not expected to be back for at least a month. Nevertheless, Jonathan Bernier had a very good season and will be backed up by Antoine Bibeau. Meanwhile, the Bruins will be without Keith Yandle, who suffered an undisclosed injury in the season finale. There is not yet a timetable for his return.​

GAME 1

1-4​

The teams seem to come out a little nervous and Nazem Kadri takes a penalty for delay of game just 2 minutes in when he fires the puck over the glass in the defensive end. Toronto would manage to kill the penalty off and each team would kill 2 further power plays after that in quick succession. The teams finally settle down and the first ends scoreless with shots at 11 each. The teams look very evenly matched and the goaltenders each did a great job of keeping things from getting out of hand while the players in front of them made some mental mistakes and took some bad penalties early on.

The Bruins come out flying in the second and Torey Krug gives them a 1-0 lead just 36 seconds in. Auston Matthews made a nice pass back to the point from the hash marks and Krug had space to take a step in and drill a powerful slap shot by Bernier glove side, lighting up the Boston crowd. The Bruins largely control the period, and outshoot Toronto 15-7 in the frame.

Leo Komarov ties it for the Leafs 5:26 into the third when he stuffs in a rebound of Josh Leivo's shot, but a few minutes later he is called for hooking and Torey Krug scores his second of the night on the PP off a nice Kyle Okposo feed just 8 seconds after Komarov is sent off. 2-1 Boston with 11:58 remaining. At 11:01 Dennis Yan scores on the power play in his first career playoff game to the raucous delight of the crowd, then Khoklachev stakes the B's to a 4-1 lead mere seconds later. The Bruins really took control and outshot Toronto 30-17 in the last 2 periods. Bernier made 37 saves and held Toronto in there for quite a while but ultimately Boston's pressure was too much. Auston Matthews had 3 assists in the victory.​

GAME 2

2-0​

​

Pre-game reports indicate Keith Yandle is suffering from a knee injury and could be back in about a week. Game 2 begins with a distinctly physical edge, and the Bruins especially land a few nice hits on the forecheck. Toronto would kill the period's lone penalty; a hooking call on Jared Cowen. However, much like game 1 the teams dug their heels in and the opening stanza finishes scoreless with Boston having a 10-9 edge in shots. The second is much the same as the first and the best excitement of the period is when Jared Cowen lays a nice hit on Burns in the neutral zone and picks up the puck only to be levelled right back by rookie Jakub Zboril. The two teams have fought to a gritty and tenuous 0-0 tie after 40 minutes.

Shortly into the 3rd Malcolm Subban is forced to take the crease for Boston when Rask goes down awkwardly stopping a shot down low by Micael Grabner. No one knows what happened to Rask but it could be a very damaging blow to the team if the injury proves to be serious. The relentless 2-way pace of the game continues and halfway through the third Toronto seize control of the puck and under a constant wave of pressure Subban cracks when Komarov lifts a wrist shot over his blocker from low in the slot with just 4:28 remaining. James Van Riemsdyk adds an empty netter as the Leafs tie the series.​

GAME 3

4-1​

The good news for Bruins fans is that Tuukka Rask will be playing in game 3 at the Air Canada Centre. He suffered a lower body injury in game 2 but will play tonight. The bad news is that Matt Beleskey is out after spraining his ankle late in game 2. Brett Connolly will dress in his place and Keith Yandle is not yet ready to return. Ryan Spooner gets the B's on the board right away with a nice tip on a Brent Burns point shot. Seth Griffith makes it a 2-0 Boston lead when Bergeron hits him with a nice stretch pass in the neutral zone. Griffith turns on the jets and flat out beats Connor Carrick down the wing before a nifty deke let him flip one over Bernier at the 10:35 mark.

Boston get a pair of power play opportunities early in the second, but both man advantages are ended shortly after they began by Kyle Okposo penalties. The Leafs start turning it on and outshoot Boston 10-5 in the first half of the second period but the score remains 2-0. Just 35 seconds into the third Nazem Kadri gets the Maple Leafs on the board and the home crowd into the game when he makes a pretty deke down low, gets in close and beats Rask five-hole. Patrice Bergeron restores the B's 2-goal cushion at the 7 minute mark when a strange play off a faceoff sees him find the puck loose in the circle. He turns and fires it at the same time while falling to his knees and the puck finds it's way through Bernier's midsection for a goal. Brent Burns adds the empty netter and the Leafs fall 4-1, with Rask returning from injury to post a 37 save performance.​

GAME 4

0-2
​

Both Yandle and Beleskey will return tonight for Boston as they return to full strength and hope to take a 3-1 series lead on the road. For the 3rd time in 4 games the first period is scoreless, but Toronto get the better of play and the shots favour them 10-6. Toronto continue to press early in the second but around the halfway mark Boston start to come alive and get some time in the offensive zone. Nylander spoils their momentum with a laser beam from the right circle with just over 3 minutes left, then Gauthier makes it 2-0 with 1:07 to go in the 2nd.

Neither team could score in the third and the Leafs tie the series on Bernier's second shutout of the round. Both Bruins wins in the series have been by the score 4-1, and both Leaf wins by a score of 2-0. Strange!​

GAME 5

0-1
​

Boston come out hot back at home for game 5 and early on they have some great chances to score on the power play but Bernier stymied them with several tough saves. Toronto get torched early on but get it turned around a little later on in the period and escape the first without damage after being outshot 9-6, and 8-1 at one point in the period.

The Bruins pepper Bernier with shots in the second but they just can't beat the red hot goaltender. He makes 16 saves in the period as the teams head into the third scoreless in game 5. Toronto get some good chances early in the 3rd, but Boston take control again and dominate play through the latter phase of the period. After 60 minutes neither goalie has been beaten and Boston have outshot Toronto 34-27.

At 5:10 Seth Griffith scores the OT winner for Boston when Bergeron steals the puck down low from Kadri and passes it back to Matthews, who finds Griffith streaking in to the slot. Griffith notches his second of the series to give Boston a 3-2 series lead in a nailbiter that saw only 2 minor penalties called all game long. It was the first goal relinquished by Bernier in over 6 periods of play.​

GAME 6

5-2
​

Game 6 is back in Toronto as Boston hope to punch their ticket to round 2 on the road. Bergeron helps the cause when he opens the scoring at 9:21 of the first. Torey Krug pinched and blocked former Bruin Matt Irwin's clearing attempt along the boards, then Seth Griffith moved it to Bergeron in the right circle where he crushed a one-timer through Bernier's pads. Bergeron would score his second of the game at 5:14 of the second period, followed shortly after by Jakub Zboril's first career playoff goal for a 3-0 Boston lead. Michael Grabner replies for Toronto just before the halfway mark of the period and the teams hit the dressing room with the score 3-1 Bruins.

Just 16 seconds in to the 3rd period Beleskey gives Boston some breathing room when he carries it in on the wing and lets one fly from the circle that beats Bernier low, far-side. Bernier probably should have had that one and with his team's playoff life on the line he hangs his head in shame. Stefan Matteau adds his first of the playoffs just over a minute later and the game seems to be all but over. Matteau takes a penalty a few minutes later and Van Riemsdyk scores a power play goal to make it 5-2 with 14 minutes to go. It's the final goal of the series and Boston will advance to the 2nd round for the second straight season. Tuukka Rask was incredible in the series, recording a GAA of 1.07 and a SV% of .963, not to mention his overtime shutout in game 5 when the series was still tied. Every Boston forward chipped in at least a point in the series, even though the team only had 14 goals. Auston Matthews led Boston scorers with 7 points- all assists.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

2018 -2019 PLAYOFFS, ROUND 2​

​

Apr. 30, 2019

BOSTON

(41-30-11) vs. MONTREAL

(51-28-3)

BOSTON-93 OFF-91 DEF-94 GOA
MONTREAL-93 OFF-94 DEF-96 GOA​

Montreal led the Atlantic Division with 105 points in the regular season. They defeated the Penguins in 6 games in their first round matchup. 38 year old Daniel Sedin led the squad with 72 points during the season, and Carey Price was phenomenal as always, posting a 2.03 GAA and a SV% of .933. Price posted numbers in the first round nearly as gaudy as Rask's and the goaltending matchup is of particular intrigue in this series. Tim Bozon will be returning to the lineup for Montreal wearing a full cage after breaking his jaw near the end of the season.​

GAME 1

2-1
​

Both teams dish out 8 hits in the first period, and record 8 shots as well. Charles Hudon took a holding penalty halfway through the period but Montreal's PK unit did a great job and Boston couldn't register a shot on their opportunity. Scoreless after one. Max Pacioretty gets called for tripping at 1:07 and 5 seconds off the next faceoff Auston Matthews nets his first of the playoffs, supplying the B's with a 1-0 lead. The pace picked up as the period went on and Montreal was particularly physical, landing 11 hits in the frame. They also outshot Boston 13-10 but Matthews' goal stands as the only so far through 2.

Pacioretty takes another penalty 19 seconds into the 3rd and once again Boston reply immediately as Bergeron beats Price from the dot at the left side at the 0:30 mark. Pacioretty gets some redemption and puts the Canadiens on the board at 4:55 when he knocks down Burns' clearing attempt out front and beats Rask blocker side in an instant. Boston decide the best defense is a good offense and outshoot Montreal 7-0 over the final 8:09 as they hang on for a game one victory over the heavily favoured home team.​

GAME 2

2-1
​

Game 2 at the Bell Centre starts off at a frantic pace, with both teams dishing out hits while Boston does a good job keeping Montreal hemmed in their own zone. Val Nichushkin takes advantage of the early pressure and pots one when he shakes loose from his man at the half well and barrels in on net, lifting one over Price short side and Boston are in the lead at 6:05. Montreal make 2 penalty kills in the period and escape down just one goal after being outshot 14-4 in the first period.

Brandon Carlo is sent off for hooking early in the second and Daniel Sedin steps up for Montreal and evens the score on the power play. Carlo takes another hooking penalty later in the period but Boston escape further damage. Montreal really got things turned around in the second but the game is up for grabs in the third.

Casey Nelson is sent to the box for interference midway through the third but Tuukka Rask comes up big on the PK, making 3 saves including 2 in a row on Galchenyuk who was on the doorstep. Neither goalie could be beaten in the third and the 2 long-time rivals head to overtime, and at 5:11 of OT Auston Matthews comes up with the winner for Boston and the underdogs will head home leading the series two games to none. The Bruins dominated the faceoff circle, winning 49 draws to Montreal's 34, which helped them to a 32-27 edge in shots in a very close game.​

GAME 3

2-1
​

Game 3 is back in Boston and the B's strike early again, as Dennis Yan joins the rush on a line change and cleans up Spooner's rebound to put the home team ahead at just 2:14. Daniel Sedin equalizes at 5:09 to quiet the home crowd, though their Bruins have controlled the majority of the action in the early minutes. Montreal would gain momentum for a while and the first comes to a close at 1-1, with the Bruins having a slight edge in shots; 12-11.

Rask made 3 stellar saves early in the second as Montreal threatened to take the lead but Boston settled down and would get the better chances for the remainder of the period. They threw their weight around at every opportunity and outhit the Candiens 8-4 over the last half of the 2nd, while the score remained tied at 1. Montreal would control the majority of the 3rd and Brendan Gallagher finally breaks the tie with just 4:24 remaining to give Montreal their first win of the series.​

GAME 4

1-5
​

The first period of game 4 is an end-to-end affair that sees both teams getting plenty of looks at the net but neither goalie cracks and we head to the second scoreless. Montreal take control early in the second and Jeff Petry notches his 1st of the playoffs to give Montreal a 1-0 lead as they strive to tie the series. Alex Khoklachev replies for Boston less than a minute later as the tense battle continues. The 4th line strike again as Matt Beleskey scores with 6 minutes to go in the second off a nifty pass by Casey Nelson who absolutely hammered Phillip Danault along the boards just moments before. Stefan Matteau gets in on the action and makes Boston's lead 3-1 with 4 and a half to go in the third when he bangs in the rebound of a Nichushkin shot. The period comes to a close and Boston are just 20 minutes away from securing a 3-1 series lead.

Spooner scores for Boston at 2:11 of the third while Scherbak sits for hooking and the B's have scored 4 unanswered for a 4-1 lead. Rookie Dennis Yan adds his 3rd goal of the playoffs, and his 3rd point of the night on the power play with 7:43 remaining for your final score; 5-1 Boston. The Bruins are up in the 2nd round by 3 games to 1 for the second straight year, but last year Columbus made the comeback against them on the strength of some heroic play by their backup goaltender, whom the B's shelled early in the series. It's a painful memory the team would surely like to expunge as they head back to Montreal for game 5.​

GAME 5

3-1
​

Auston Matthews scores his 3rd of the series on the first shot of the game just 28 seconds in when his shot from the top of the right circle beats Price far side along the ice through traffic and the home crowd is stunned. Boston make a huge push to increase their lead but cannot do so and the first period ends 1-0, though the B's outshot their opponents 12-5.

Boston get right back on it in the 2nd and when Jamie McGinn heads to the box for elbowing Brent Burns tallies a power play goal to make it 2-0 Boston. Montreal finally wake up and Galchenyuk cuts the lead in half with 7 and a half to go in the second. The Bruins outshoot Montreal 10-7 in the period and hold a one goal lead heading into the third with their sights set on the Eastern Conference Finals.

The third period sees Boston strongly in control again, and they maintain the lead and the lion's share of possession. But with 3:27 left in the third Keith Yandle is penalized for slashing. 31 seconds later who should score but... Brandon Carlo! The rookie defenseman scores his first career playoff goal- a huge short-handed goal in a series-deciding game against his team's greatest rival. The Bruins hold on and will advance to the 3rd round. Tuukka Rask continued his beyond exceptional play, allowing just 6 goals in the 5 game series. He has unheard of marks of 1.12 GAA and a SV% of .960 through 2 rounds of playoff action. Ryan Spooner led the team with 6 points in the series (1G, 5A), and Matthews and Bergeron lead the team with 11 points each through the playoffs so far.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

2018 -2019 PLAYOFFS, EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS​

​

May 14, 2019

BOSTON

(41-30-11) vs. COLUMBUS

(49-24-9)

BOSTON-93 OFF-92 DEF-94 GOA
COLUMBUS-91 OFF-94 DEF-91 GOA​

It's a rematch of last year's second round, in which the Bruins led the series 3-1 but blew the series lead and had their season end. Both teams are healthy this year and Columbus' number 1 netminder Sergei Bobrovsky will be between the pipes this time as last year's hero Oscar Dansk has spent this year in the AHL following the team's acquisition of Mike Smith.​

GAME 1

2-5
​

There's no love lost from last year as the two teams exchange penalties early in the first. Burns goes off for a hard slash on Foligno, the penalty is killed, then Dubinsky gets 2 for tripping when he gives Seth Griffith a nice can opener on the forecheck that drew a crowd when the whistle went. Boston take control of play and it's Griffith who opens the scoring at 12:19. Dubinsky lost the faceoff to Bergeron, then Carlo moved the puck to Griffith who drilled a hard shot through Goalie Bob's pads. Griffith is staring down Dubinsky as his teammates come to congratulate him but Dubinsky heads to the bench and pretends he doesn't notice. However, Cam Atkinson scores with 2:30 left, then Bjorkstrand with just 0:22 left in the first and Columbus claim a 2-1 lead despite being heavily outshot in the first.

Brandon Saad scores 1:35 into the second and Columbus have scratched out a 3-1 lead that holds for the rest of the period. Saad scores again 3:26 into the third. Dennis Yan brings it back to 4-2 with 10:24 remaining. Dubinsky scores 2 minutes later and the final is 5-2 Columbus. Boston was outshooting Columbus 12-2 at one point in the first period but shots finished 28-27 in favour of the Jackets. Rask gave up 6 goals in 5 games against Montreal, but 5 games in game 1 tonight. A very tough loss for the Bruins who will need to find a way to dig deep and answer in game 2.​

GAME 2

1-3
​

Kyle Okposo has been very quiet of late but he starts the scoring in game 2 at 4:11 on the power play. Cam Atkinson equalizes just 2 minutes later and the rest of the period is a battle of attrition as neither team can gain any real advantage. 1-1 after 1. Boston look good to start the second but get in trouble when Matthews takes a penalty for hooking. Rask bails him out and the second ends without further scoring. Boston have outshot Columbus 19-16 through 2.

The Bruins take several penalties early in the third and Saad strikes again on the power play to give Columbus the lead. Bjorkstrand adds another with 10:51 to go and the final is 3-1 Columbus as they take a 2-0 series lead.​

GAME 3

1-3
​

The series shifts to Boston and Columbus get it going in the first period, severely outshooting Boston right away. However, Matthews scores at 14:22, then Spooner adds another at 17:39 and Boston exit the first with a 2-0 lead despite being outshot 16-9. Columbus continue to own the puck in the second but Rask holds the fort and the 2-0 lead is preserved heading into the 3rd period.

Columbus go all out in the third and Rask makes save after save before Brandon Saad scores his 4th of the series with just 3:14 left to give his team hope. However, Okposo would add an empty netter to seal the deal and the Bruins scrape out a game 3 victory despite being outshot 42-26.​

GAME 4

5-3
​

Seth Griffith opens the scoring for Boston early in the 1st but Brodziak replies shortly after. Nick Foligno scores short-handed with 7:22 remaining in the first and the Jackets take a 2-1 lead into the second. Early in the second Foligno gets sent off for holding and Bergeron comes through to tie the game for Boston, then stakes them to a 3-2 lead during 5-on-5 play just under 2 minutes later. Alex Chiasson scores a clutch goal for Columbus with just 47 seconds remaining in the second to the tie the game.

Former Bruin Gregory Campbell scores at the outset of the third, then Kerby Rychel adds another 7 minutes in as the Jackets continue to torch the B's for goal after goal. 5-3 is your final and the Bruins are at the brink of elimination.​

GAME 5

2-0
​

The Bruins come out fighting for their playoff lives, and Bobrovsky gets hurt 12 minutes into the first when he saves a Krug shot, then Nichushkin gets cross-checked into him by Dillon Heatherington. He goes down hard and is left clutching his left leg before being skated off by trainers. Jake DeBrusk scores the first goal of the game, and his first career playoff goal just 2 minutes later against Columbus backup Mike Smith with 5:38 to go in the first. Shortly into the second David Krejci makes it 2-0, then the B's manage to kill a Matteau penalty. They go on to control the majority of play in the second and head to the third maintaining their 2 goal cushion. The team hold and earn the right to play game 6 back in Boston.​

GAME 6

4-0
​

Bobrovsky returns for game 6 and Brandon Saad opens the scoring early as Columbus pile up a ridiculous 19-4 shot advantage in the first. With their season on the line, Boston will have to dig deeper than this. Saad is proving to be a pure Bruin killer as he scores yet again early in the second to improve Columbus' lead to 2-0. The Jackets are dominating and have outshot the Bruins 31-12 through 2. The Bruins have one period to get back in it, but Cam Atkinson scores twice in the third and Columbus outshoot Boston 46-20 en route to a Stanley Cup Final berth.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

END OF SEASON REPORT​

​

At year's end...

Boston|93 OFF|91 DEF|94 GOA|73% CHEM
Providence|82 OFF|80 DEF|84 GOA|83% CHEM

May 24, 2019​

The Bruins were eliminated by the Blue Jackets for the second year running. The team have improved their performance incrementally in each year of the GM JJ regime, but have yet to truly join the league elite. The hope is that this is the year.​

​

* "possession +/-" determined by takeaways minus giveaways.

|GP|G|A|PTS|PIM|+/-|HITS|POS+/-*
Spooner|82|11| 48 | 59 |10|+21|35|+4
Krejci|82|10|45|55|12|+9|34|+33
Okposo|82|18|34|52| 74 |+2|171| +38
Begeron|75| 20 |26|46|14|-10|49|-10
Griffith|82|18|24|42|10|+16|26|0
Yandle|82|10|32|42|4|+9|40|-12
Matthews|76|13|27|40|4|-17|45|+12
Nichushkin|82|15|23|38|12|-20|34|-3
Burns|80|16|20|36|56|+2|217|-45
Krug|81|11|22|33|6|-1|33|-18
Khoklachev|82|12|19|31|6|0|15|-5
Matteau|80|16|12|28|56| +32 |160|-22
DeBrusk|82|16|8|24|6|-3|36|-12
Kruger|69|7|16|23|14|-4|44|-31
Beleskey|82|4|16|20|45|+4|115|-2
Connolly|56|6|9|15|2|-1|17|0
Carlo|82|11|3|14|63|+14|191|-70
Zboril|22|3|11|14|2|+5|16|-20
Yan|26|6|7|13|0|-2|12|-1
Nelson|80|4|5|9|63|-1| 244 |-48
Petrovic|2|0|0|0|4|+1|3|-1

|GP|W|L|OTL|GAA|SV%|SO
Rask|53|25|21|4|2.81|.908|3
Subban|32|15|12|4|2.31|.921|4
Kollejan|3|2|0|1|1.91|.934|0

Tuukka Rask had a subpar season after his Vezina winning season the year before. Subban's numbers were better and he is 25 and being paid a quarter of what 32 year old Rask is. However, Rask was incredible in the first two rounds of playoff action before faltering in the Eastern Conference Finals. Could there be some kind of change in the Bruins crease this year? With Subban becoming the starter and Rask becoming the backup or trade fodder?

Auston Matthews has not scored as much as anyone thought he would. He has yet to crack 50 points in his 3 seasons thus far. The Bruins will need to find a way to give him what he needs to be more successful offensively.

Pending UFAs: Ryan Spooner, Brett Connolly, Ryan Dzingel, Marcus Kruger, Mark Visentin, Zane McIntyre, Landon Ferraro, Colin Miller, Zach Trotman.

Pending RFAs: Auston Matthews, Seth Griffith, Alex Khoklachev, Stefan Matteau, Brandon Carlo, Jake DeBrusk, Felix Kollejan, Martin Osmik, Fabian Heldner.

Unsigned Rookies: Benjamin Gleason, Benjamin Gagne.

The salary cap will increase to $78.5 million for the upcoming season which leaves the Bruins about $23 million dollars to work with. Matthews, Carlo, Debrusk, Spooner, Khoklachev, and Griffith are all up for new contracts. It remains to be seen how much this will cost Boston, but there is hope that they will have cap room to bring some talent in via free agency this year.

Columbus went to the Finals again but this time lost in 6 to the Minnesota Wild, for the first Cup in team history.

Jonathan Toews broke Bergeron's streak of 5 consecutive Selke trophy wins, while Carey Price won his 2nd career Vezina. John Tavares (53 G, 40 A)took home the Hart, Art Ross, and Rocket Richard trophies. His teammate Michael Dal Colle won the Lady Byng with 88 points and just 12 PIM. Ryan Murray (22 G, 45 A) of the Cup finalist Blue Jackets won the Norris while Gene Ekblad (18 G, 39 A) of the Blackhawks won the Calder as the league's top rookie. Devan Dubnyk won the Conn Smythe as he backstopped the Wild to a Cup victory with a wonderful playoff performance that saw him post a 1.93 GAA and a .934 SV%, while recording 3 shutouts.​

​

AHL REPORT​

The Providence Bruins saw key contributors Ryan Dzingel, Sebastian Collberg and Zach Trotman injured just before and during the playoffs and went out with a whimper, being swept by the Bridgeport Sound Tigers in the first round after a strong season.​

​

PROVIDENCE CATEGORY LEADERS

G |GABRIELLE|26
A |OSMIK|37
PTS |GABRIELLE|51
PIM |HELDNER|52
+/- |GABRIELLE|+24
PPG |BETTS|6
GWG |OSMIK,YAN|4
HITS |HELDNER|157

AHL GOALTENDING STATS

|GP|W|L|OTL|GAA|SV%|SO
Kollejan|46|26|14|3|2.39|.914|2
Visentin|27|18|8|1|2.15|.918|3
McIntyre|4|2|2|0|2.51|.911|1

TEAM STATISTIC REPORT

TEAM | W | L | OTL | PTS | GFPG | GF RANK | GAPG | GA RANK | PP% | PP RANK | PK% | PK RANK BOSTON |41|30|11|93|2.74|14TH|2.71|18TH|14.5|28TH|80.4|25TH
PROVIDENCE |46|23|7|99|3.03|4TH|2.38|5TH|15.8|19TH|85.0|11TH

 

[JohnJamieson]

2019 NHL ENTRY DRAFT
​

The Bruins have 6 picks this year; 1 in each round except the third. Their 2nd round pick initially belonged to Philadelphia, and their 4th round pick initially belonged to Carolina. There hasn't been too much trade chatter surrounding the Bruins but Matt Beleskey seems like a candidate to be moved. He has a partial no-trade clause that allows him to submit a list of 23 teams he would accept a trade to. He is entering the final year of a deal that pays him nearly 4 million dollars.​

The Bruins traded away their first round pick (#27 overall) this year to Florida for Florida's 2nd and 3rd round picks (#33 and #63). Cup winners Minnesota acquired Jiri Hudler and Thomas Vanek as they appear to be bolstering their team for another deep run. The Islanders acquired Cody Franson from Buffalo as well but the big shocker was Mark Giordano being shipped from Calgary to Chicago in exchange for a first rounder and a prospect. Colorado are making attempts to trade their number one overall pick from last year- C Joe Veleno. Similar to the Nolan Patrick situation in Buffalo, what is happening here?​

ROUND|PICK #|PLAYER|AGE|HT|WT|POS|TYPE|POTENTIAL|OVERALL
2|33| Trevor Gaustad |19|5'11"|185|D|OFD| LOW 7TH D |64
2|39| Matthias Greilinger |19|5'11"|183|RW|SNP| MED TOP 9 F |72
3|63| Pekka Anttila |18|5'11"|174|LW|GRN| MED TOP 9 F |58
4|111| Jerome Begin |20|6'1"|207|D|DFD| LOW 7TH D |64
5|147| Theo Weber |18|6'0"|176|G|HYB| LOW BACKUP |64
6|177| Josh Brook |20|6'3"|187|D|TWD| LOW AHL TOP 6 D |55
7|207| Jason Robertson |19|6'2"|189|LW|TWF| LOW AHL BOTTOM 6 F |57

When the player Boston had targeted with their #27 pick disappeared off the board they were only too happy to acquire the extra third rounder to move down 6 spots. It's hard to say if Boston came up with anything in this draft, which seemed to be very top heavy this year, with lots of very good talent in the top 15 or 20 fading to much lesser lights toward the end of the first round and beyond. Boston's recent D-man drafts have yielded very little and they took 3 defensemen, hoping that Gaustad at #33 turns into a legitimate prospect. Out of this year's draftees it seems Greilinger might have the best shot at cracking the Providence lineup in the upcoming season.​

 

[JohnJamieson]

RE-SIGN PHASE​

Boston tendered RFAs Khoklachev and Griffith, then packaged them in a deal with Pittsburgh for RW Daniel Sprong and LW Carl Hagelin. They also acquired D Chris Bigras from Colorado in exchange for D Casey Nelson and next year's 2nd round pick. Bigras had been unhappy with the Avs for a long time and his named was linked to Boston repeatedly over the past few years before this deal was made.
​

PLAYER|AGE|POS|TYPE|OVERALL|POTENTIAL|YEARS|AAV|2 WAY?
Auston Matthews |21|C|PLY|89| MED ELITE |4|5.0|
Ryan Spooner |27|C|PLY|85| TOP 6 F |3|3.0|
Stefan Matteau |25|LW|PWF|84| MED TOP 6 F |4|2.4|
Brandon Carlo |22|D|DFD|83| MED TOP 4 D |3|2.3|
Jake DeBrusk |22|LW|SNP|82| HIGH TOP 6 F |4|2|
Marcus Kruger |29|C|TWF|81| TOP 9 F |1|0.9|
Felix Kollejan |23|G|HYB|80| HIGH FRINGE STARTER |3|0.825|
Mark Visentin |26|G|HYB|79| LOW BACKUP |1|0.9|
Fabian Heldner |23|D|DFD|77| MED AHL TOP 2 D |1|0.7|
Martin Osmik |23|RW|PLY|77| MED AHL TOP 6 F |1|0.7|
Matthias Greilinger |19|RW|SNP|72| MED TOP 9 F |3|0.925|YES
Trevor Gaustad |19|D|OFD|64| LOW 7TH D |3|0.775|YES
Theo Weber |18|G|HYB|64| LOW BACKUP |3|0.775|YES

Departing UFAs: Brett Connolly (81), Ryan Dzingel (81), Colin Miller (79), Landon Ferraro(79), Zach Trotman (77).

Released Unsigned Rookie: Benjamin Gagne (60).
​

FREE AGENT SIGNINGS

PLAYER|AGE|POS|TYPE|OVERALL|POTENTIAL|YEARS|AAV|2 WAY?
Rickard Rakell |26|C|PLY|83| MED TOP 9 F |3|1.4|
Niklas Hansson |24|D|OFD|79| LOW 7TH D |1|0.875|

DEPTH CHART (NOT INCLUDING UNSIGNED ROOKIES)
C:9
LW:8
RW:9
D:13
G:5​

Changes in potential from last year noted as we reach the preseason:

• C Nathan Noel went from Low Bottom 6 F to Low AHL Top 6 F.
• C Ian Leighton went from Med Top 9 F to Med Bottom 6 F.
• RW Patrik Laine went from Med Bottom 6 F to Med AHL Top 6 F.
• RW Matthias Greilinger went from Med Top 9 F to Med Top 6 F.
• D Jeremy Lauzon went from High Top 4 D to High Elite.
• D Trevor Gaustad went from Low 7th D to Low Top 6 D.
• G Theo Weber went from Low Backup to Low AHL Starter.

GM JJ got down to business and made 3 massive trades at the beginning of September- G Tuukka Rask was shipped to New Jersey for D Victor Hedman in a straight 1-for-1 trade, Brent Burns and Matt Beleskey were dealt to the Rangers in exchange for youngsters LW Ryan Gropp and D Brady Skjei, and D Keith Yandle was sent back the team that drafted him- Arizona along with recent 3rd round pick LW Pekka Anttila in exchange for young C Nick Merkley. The team also signed undrafted G Evan Fitzpatrick.​