Not sure how anyone who watched him play could call Loui soft. Sure, he didn't wade into scums and punch guys in the back of the head, but he consistently went to the boards and won battles and went to the front of the net. The Bruins have had plenty of "tough players" who were not willing to stand in there and take the abuse that Loui took.
It's just a constant false narrative that people on here like portray because he didn't smash people in open ice or on the boards or fight. Dude took so many slashes and hooks and cross checks sitting in front of the net, night after night. Anything but soft. But I digress.
Bruins will benefit greatly from getting Bergeron back. The combination of Marchand and Pastrnak already looks fantastic with Backes, and will look even better with Bergeron. Backes moving to Krejci's line will do nothing but help Krejci and Spooner. Not to say that Heinen is bringing that line down, but he just needs some seasoning down in the AHL. Not completely ready yet, he seems very nervous and hesitant.
This team will definitely be top heavy, but when those top 2 lines work, and they will, they're gonna win quite a few games through sheer force. The top 2 lines will be heavy scoring, bottom 2 lines will be grindy. The way Jimmy Hayes is playing, it won't be for much longer when Vatrano does get back. They need a 3rd line center, unless they plan to just roll out Nash in the grindy matchups and Czarnik in the more open ice games. Beleskey seems fine, but as a whole that line won't put up many points. I definitely feel like you will see a big uptick in Czarnik's play when Vatrano returns. That line lacks a true shooter, and it's not a place where his skills will really shine. 4th line, whatever combo of Moore, Nash, Schaller, and Acciari has worked great. Very grindy, good possession guys, not great offensively, but as a whole are a net positive.
This team will definitely be top heavy on offense and will be prone to games like the Toronto game when teams can shut them down. Not much in the way of secondary scoring at the moment, but their top 6, when healthy, will be among the best in the league.
Defense is certainly a work in progress, but I like a lot of what I see from Miller and Carlo. Not afraid to make mistakes, always trying to advance the play up the ice. They are definitely making some mistakes, and that's fine, because we are also seeing very positive plays from them. What you don't want to see are mistakes followed by timidness. They both seem to have short memories. That was certainly a problem of some other younger players that have come through here, but doesn't seem to be the case with these guys early on. I like that.
Chara has been solid, but nowhere near the player he was. Krug has had quite a rough start so far, he's got to pick up his play, but I'm sure he will. McQuaid / Miller will definitely sub in and out for Liles and O'Gara, which is fine, just play the hot hands.
Rask with a great game last night. With the current D prone to making some mistakes, he needs to be like that early on to salvage some games. D will get better as the season goes on, granted that Miller and Carlo stay in the lineup, as they should. Khudobin looks meh at best, but it was only one game. We will see. Wonder if Subban gets a call-up at some point. I liked his game a lot in preseason, but who knows...
Also just want to say, in the last 18 months, Brad Marchand has been one of the 15 best players in hockey, maybe even top 10. He is EVERYWHERE on the ice. Whether at even strength, short-handed, on the PP, he is a hound on the puck. He causes so many turnovers, he is a nightmare for some defensive players, he is fearless with the puck, he has some incredible vision, he has an absolute laser for a shot, he is constantly in great position, and he makes players around him better. Simply phenomenal.
