BUFFALO — The life of an NHL manager is a perpetual task of dotting i’s and crossing t’s, while recognizing it’s virtually impossible to be prepared for everything.
So many variables, enough for any general manager to gaze over the treacherous landscape and say, “Gonna need a bigger alphabet.”
In a fast, grueling contact sport of 82 games, and a playoff season that can tack on 28 more, a twisted knee here or a popped shoulder there can render a sure thing of a season into a protracted, agonizing struggle to avoid becoming shark bait in the playoff DNQ pool with 15 other also-rans.
For now, with the Bruins set to open training camp Wednesday morning in Brighton, the 2024-25 NHL season about to dawn, GM Don Sweeney feels confident about the composition of his roster, the one engineered by his hand.
“If there are holes … I don’t think so,” Sweeney mused here during the annual rookie tournament that wrapped up Monday with Boston’s kids delivering a 6-4 win over New Jersey’s freshmen. “Not at the stage we’re at.”
As a means of insurance, specifically if a spot at forward needs to be patched, versatile ex-Lightning/Blackhawk forward Tyler Johnson, 34, will be on hand with a tryout contract. If Johnson comes in hot, or if some of the kids — such as Matthew Poitras, Georgii Merkulov, or Fabian Lysell — come in even lukewarm, then Sweeney can write the 12-year vet to an NHL deal, provided another team doesn’t swoop in with an offer too good for the two-time Stanley Cup champ to refuse.
Tyler represents a really good opportunity for us,” noted Sweeney, now entering his 10th season as clerk of the Black-and-Gold works. “Danton [Heinen] was a great example last year for us. We targeted [Johnson] early on, not that we felt he couldn’t play or didn’t deserve a contract, which is an awkward conversation with a player of his ilk, but we explained early on that we felt it would be a really good opportunity for him to come in and play and compete against some of the younger guys that we’d like to see take a step.”
Camp’s biggest potential bugaboo is that No. 1 goalie Jeremy Swayman is expected to be among the missing when the doors swing open at 80 Guest Street. A restricted free agent, Swayman, 25, has yet to agree to a contract extension.
If Swayman were to become a holdout, the Bruins could be looking at opening the new season with veteran Joonas Korpisalo and rookie Brandon Bussi as their two goalies in residence.
Neither Korpisalo, a veteran acquired in the trade that sent Linus Ullmark to Ottawa, nor Bussi, a third-year pro signed as a free agent out of Western Michigan, has ever played a minute for the Bruins. The last time a season started with the Bruins’ two goalies showing 00:00 in franchise minutes was October 1980 with Rogie Vachon and US Olympic hero Jim Craig as the tandem.
Sweeney, when asked about the Swayman negotiations, said, “Kick it down the road,” saying he’ll talk about the subject next week. He and coach Jim Montgomery are expected to have a presser Wednesday, with Swayman questions no doubt the lead topic of discussion.
Sweeney’s roster, as noted here over the weekend by colleague Jim McBride, is the biggest he’s ever assembled and on average the biggest in the league (something even adding the 5-foot-8-inch Johnson wouldn’t change).
The accomplishment of going big, said Sweeney, was not a specific mission, but rather a consequence, or value added, of bringing in some high-compete, high-tempo personnel.
On the back end, there is 6-6 Nikita Zadorov (unrestricted free agent via Vancouver). Up front, there are 6-6 Riley Tufte (UFA via Colorado), 6-4 Mark Kastelic (also part of the Ullmark swap), and 6-3 Max Jones (UFA via Anaheim). And though he’s not a new face, there is also 6-3 Johnny Beecher, with only 52 games of NHL experience.
“We didn’t go out and just turn around and say we have a goal to be the biggest team,” said Sweeney. “That has nothing to do with it. We’ve identified players, and you’ve heard me say, those guys can all skate. Riley Tufte can really skate. Kastelic, his skate test and on-ice stuff, he’s a better skater than we might have evaluated. Johnny Beecher can skate. Max Jones can really skate.”
Such speed, noted Sweeney, should create anxiety for nightly opponents.
“And they are bigger and heavier,” he added. “That’s OK. It’s a big byproduct.”
Speed, or lack of it, was an obvious issue in the Bruins’ Round 2 dismissal by the Panthers last spring. The deficiency became even more glaring as the playoffs continued. The Panthers and Oilers made the Cup Final a track meet, a speed hard to imagine that iteration of the Bruins ever achieving.
All of which should have Montgomery preaching pace, pace, and pace when the puck drops at Wednesday’s camp.
“Early on, he’s going to want training camp to be a certain pace,” said Sweeney. “If bigger guys can’t keep up, they’re not going to play.”
Gentlemen, tug up those skate laces and take your mark — the long, hard race is about to begin.
