TSN: Bruins Off-Season Game Plan

[compan]

Our plan should be to find a replacement for Chara now, not next year...now. Get some certifiable #1-3 dmen rather than circulating 5-6 through the bottom 4.

Then we need some depth scoring. When Pasta and Marchand are not scoring...it's ugly.

 

[Salem13]

Our plan should be to find a replacement for Chara now, not next year...now. Get some certifiable #1-3 dmen rather than circulating 5-6 through the bottom 4.

Then we need some depth scoring. When Pasta and Marchand are not scoring...it's ugly.

If you want to buy a number one D off the rack today you had better be ready to use your future forward gold card.

Starting with the likes of at least Pasta plus.

 

[compan]

If you want to buy a number one D off the rack today you had better be ready to use your future forward gold card.

Starting with the likes of at least Pasta plus.

I don't think we should try to buy off the rack. Chara also won't really be a #1 this year...or at least I certainly hope not. I'd like a #2-3 guy which is more where I have him pegged at this stage in his career (closer to #3) and what we saw this season. McAvoy and Carlo can develop into those larger roles.

 

[weaponomega]

I don't think we should try to buy off the rack. Chara also won't really be a #1 this year...or at least I certainly hope not. I'd like a #2-3 guy which is more where I have him pegged at this stage in his career (closer to #3) and what we saw this season. McAvoy and Carlo can develop into those larger roles.

Any examples of who the Sweeney should target?

 

[Salem13]

Any examples of who the Sweeney should target?

Yes, if you are not trading for him where is this number one D coming from?

 

[compan]

Yes, if you are not trading for him where is this number one D coming from?

Again, if you read the post, I said #2-3 is where I deem a Chara replacement because lets not kid ourselves here, he is not a #1 right now. McAvoy and Carlo likely aren't there yet to take over 2 true top spots, but having a good Top 3 guy in there to help it all out would be great.

Hawks, Isles and Ducks are pretty close to the cap for next season currently. So maybe there could be some conversations there. Ideally more with Hawks and Ducks.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

Our plan should be to find a replacement for Chara now, not next year...now. Get some certifiable #1-3 dmen rather than circulating 5-6 through the bottom 4.

Then we need some depth scoring. When Pasta and Marchand are not scoring...it's ugly.

The B's have roughly $10m in cap space and they need to re-sign Pasta (around $5m). The price tag for a good 1-3 D man is going to be $5m+, a bunch of prospects/picks, or both.

That leaves $0 for depth scoring.

Fowler would fit the bill, top pair D, only making $4m this year. He would need to get paid next year, but Chara would be gone. It would be tight this year and I doubt ANA is going to want to move him after the way he performed in the playoffs.

 

[compan]

The B's have roughly $10m in cap space and they need to re-sign Pasta (around $5m). The price tag for a good 1-3 D man is going to be $5m+, a bunch of prospects/picks, or both.

That leaves $0 for depth scoring.

Fowler would fit the bill, top pair D, only making $4m this year. He would need to get paid next year, but Chara would be gone. It would be tight this year and I doubt ANA is going to want to move him after the way he performed in the playoffs.

We will need some bang for our buck out of our ELCs. Hopefully we will lose a couple expendable players and salary to Vegas to help it out.

It'll be great to see what we can be defensively when McAvoy and Carlo are more developed. We're just unfortunately all the way there yet and Chara IMO is past the point of filling in the gaps.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

No issue with any reader who believes an article sucks, as you point out it doesn't matter where the writer comes from. The need to point out that a persons nationality is the reason the work sucks for a perceived bias is where it veres off course. There can definety be natural biases especially with writers that cover one team. Cullen is not in that category nor are every other single reporter in Canada on any other county for that matter.

#1 Methinks you are being far too sensitive. I like Canada

#2 I never said that the article sucked because Cullen was Canadian (actually went out of my way to clarify that wasn't the case).

#3 I believe that the comment about the Sens "neatly disposing" of the B's was bias. Can't prove it, but I would be willing to bet if the Sens won a series against MTL, TOR, EDM, VAN, or CGY and every game was decided by one goal with four games going to OT, that phrase would not have been used. It could just be that Cullen was looking for a catchy phrase, but it didn't strike me that way.

 

[Alan Ryan]

I mean, he couldn't even spell Cehlarik correctly and didn't have Heinen (rookie scoring leader in AHL playoffs) as one of the prospects.

Shoddy.

What surprised me was no mention of McIntyre. Not a word.

The author has next season's goalie depth chart as Rask-Khudobin-Subban.

 

[Sharp Shooting Neely]

#1 Methinks you are being far too sensitive. I like Canada

#2 I never said that the article sucked because Cullen was Canadian (actually went out of my way to clarify that wasn't the case).

#3 I believe that the comment about the Sens "neatly disposing" of the B's was bias. Can't prove it, but I would be willing to bet if the Sens won a series against MTL, TOR, EDM, VAN, or CGY and every game was decided by one goal with four games going to OT, that phrase would not have been used. It could just be that Cullen was looking for a catchy phrase, but it didn't strike me that way.

Not a worry. We're good. The reaction was not just related to your post. Over time have read comments from posters on the board that do go down the road of dissing and dismissing an article largely based on where the writer resides. Admitedly it does get my back up.

And I like the US of A very much as well. Boston for a whole host of reasons is my favourite locale

 

[RoccoF14]

And he has us re-signing Stafford? I like the aquisition at the trade deadline and I don't mind him as a bottom 6 guy, but we are loaded with those guys already. Not to mention, Stafford would have to take one hell of a pay cut to get in that mix I think.

Stafford will sign with Vegas. Slam dunk.

 

[remer]

The Bruins need an influx of talent and speed. The Penguins are an example of this. Fast and talented. When they get a chance it usually ends up in the back of the net.
Nashville- Talk has been about the team's work on skating and speed to their game.

Bruins would be smart to find a way to move Krejci. I know he has a NTC but he is too slow of a player and on the wrong side of 30 years of age. Backes isn't much better.

Bring in the kids ( DeBrusk, Cehlarik, JFK, etc., and hope they can perform. Plugs like Hayes, Schaller, Accairi, Nash, etc. are not the answers.

Find a top 1-2 Defenseman.

Good luck Donny.

 

[b in vancouver]

You guys are being a bit hard on Cullen. These 'game plan' articles are never meant for the die-hard fans of the team or give any kind of grand insight. They're for fans of other teams (and mostly a Canadian readership) and get the pulse of what's happening in other organizations. See their depth charts, free agents, strengths and weaknesses.
He's going through every team, player and prospect in the NHL - that's a big undertaking and there's bound to be some things he doesn't get perfectly - for every team.

 

[Fenian24]

You guys are being a bit hard on Cullen. These 'game plan' articles are never meant for the die-hard fans of the team or give any kind of grand insight. They're for fans of other teams (and mostly a Canadian readership) and get the pulse of what's happening in other organizations. See their depth charts, free agents, strengths and weaknesses.
He's going through every team, player and prospect in the NHL - that's a big undertaking and there's bound to be some things he doesn't get perfectly - for every team.

First it is impossible to be too hard on Billy Beanes of hockey. I have never cared for Cullen but these articles about the Bruins and others all analytics driven. As much as I hate analytics in general I really hate it when a so called reporter uses them in ace of real research for his/hers articles. Lazy, shoddy and weak are all accurate descriptions of his work.

 

[b in vancouver]

First it is impossible to be too hard on Billy Beanes of hockey. I have never cared for Cullen but these articles about the Bruins and others all analytics driven. As much as I hate analytics in general I really hate it when a so called reporter uses them in ace of real research for his/hers articles. Lazy, shoddy and weak are all accurate descriptions of his work.

I'm not an analytics guy, nor am I a big fan of Cullen, but that's the niche he carved out for himself at TSN - I don't mind the snapshot quality of these breakdowns. Other years I'll flip through a few teams I haven't paid much attention to or if they have a few players rumoured to be on the move, to get the broad strokes of what's going on with them.

 

[Glove Malfunction]

Is it just me, or did he totally forget we have Zane McIntyre in the system?

 

[GloryDaze4877]

Is it just me, or did he totally forget we have Zane McIntyre in the system?

Someone mentioned that earlier. Doesn't say anything about Heinen until the very bottom on his depth chart.

But he does have them signing Boyle, bringing back Stafford and running out Beleskey, Schaller, and Nash on the 4th line with no sign of Kuraly or Acciari...so there is that.

 

[Alberta_OReilly_Fan]

100% agree. Cullen is bottom of the barrell

i find cullens articles better than the write-ups in the hockey magazines... and its free. ultimately no one person can be indepth expert or passionately invested in all 31 teams. these articles are written by doing research. i think cullen does a fine job for what it is and actually much better than 100s of our board members might do.

as fans though we would like to see more favoritism to our team. cullen clearly isnt a fan of ours

 

[Alberta_OReilly_Fan]

after spendings hours thinking about it every day for almost a month now... my gut says

we WILL sign iginla for cheap one year (might include bonuses)
we WILL get stuck with both belesky and hayes
we WILLmanage to trade spooner and chiller and maybe vatrano and subban
we WILL lose either mcquaid or killer to expansion

incoming will be a yet unknown lh shot dman that can help us when chara is gone

this will leave us a lineup that is affordable and slightly better than last year

pastrnak/bergeron/marchand
iginla/krejci/whaever kid wins this spot
hayes or kid/backes/kid
kid/nash/belesky or schaller

my guess what kid fits where... bjork or debrusk with krecji... kuraly and maybe czarik with backes... accari with nash

mcavoy/new guy
carlo/chara
mcquaid or killer/krug

rask
khubodin

i actually think hayes might put in an effort in his contract year but if not burying him in ahl is better than a buyout.

belesky is a decent player when hes healthy and in shape if we have enough caproom to play him on 4th line its a good thing.

iginla is slow now but krejci likes to play slow. i give debrusk an edge over bjork and heinen here

i dont see spooner or vatrano fitting the team which is why i think they are trade bait... chiller and subban i suggest might get traded just to take them off the list for vegas. losing one of our 2.5 mill right hand dmen is important

 

[GloryDaze4877]

i find cullens articles better than the write-ups in the hockey magazines... and its free. ultimately no one person can be indepth expert or passionately invested in all 31 teams. these articles are written by doing research. i think cullen does a fine job for what it is and actually much better than 100s of our board members might do.

as fans though we would like to see more favoritism to our team. cullen clearly isnt a fan of ours

This is debatable...and what was my other point? Oh yeah, HE GETS PAID TO DO THAT FOR A LIVING.

Last time I checked HF wasn't compensating it's board members for their opinions.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

after spendings hours thinking about it every day for almost a month now... my gut says

we WILL sign iginla for cheap one year (might include bonuses)
we WILL get stuck with both belesky and hayes
we WILLmanage to trade spooner and chiller and maybe vatrano and subban
we WILL lose either mcquaid or killer to expansion

incoming will be a yet unknown lh shot dman that can help us when chara is gone

this will leave us a lineup that is affordable and slightly better than last year

pastrnak/bergeron/marchand
iginla/krejci/whaever kid wins this spot
hayes or kid/backes/kid
kid/nash/belesky or schaller

my guess what kid fits where... bjork or debrusk with krecji... kuraly and maybe czarik with backes... accari with nash

mcavoy/new guy
carlo/chara
mcquaid or killer/krug

rask
khubodin

i actually think hayes might put in an effort in his contract year but if not burying him in ahl is better than a buyout.

belesky is a decent player when hes healthy and in shape if we have enough caproom to play him on 4th line its a good thing.

iginla is slow now but krejci likes to play slow. i give debrusk an edge over bjork and heinen here

i dont see spooner or vatrano fitting the team which is why i think they are trade bait... chiller and subban i suggest might get traded just to take them off the list for vegas. losing one of our 2.5 mill right hand dmen is important

You spent a month thinking and that's what you came up with?


I just spent 5 minutes thinking about it and:

Iginla is unlikely.

I think that one way or another, Spooner, Hayes, and/or Beleskey will be gone.

We will likely lose one of McQ or Killer, but have heard rumblings from a longtime poster that Sweeney likes both and was seen frequently with McPhee at the combine. Maybe he tosses LV a bone to draft Chiller or Morrow and stay away from those two.

 

[DKH]

after spendings hours thinking about it every day for almost a month now... my gut says

we WILL sign iginla for cheap one year (might include bonuses)
we WILL get stuck with both belesky and hayes
we WILLmanage to trade spooner and chiller and maybe vatrano and subban
we WILL lose either mcquaid or killer to expansion

incoming will be a yet unknown lh shot dman that can help us when chara is gone

this will leave us a lineup that is affordable and slightly better than last year

pastrnak/bergeron/marchand
iginla/krejci/whaever kid wins this spot
hayes or kid/backes/kid
kid/nash/belesky or schaller

my guess what kid fits where... bjork or debrusk with krecji... kuraly and maybe czarik with backes... accari with nash

mcavoy/new guy
carlo/chara
mcquaid or killer/krug

rask
khubodin

i actually think hayes might put in an effort in his contract year but if not burying him in ahl is better than a buyout.

belesky is a decent player when hes healthy and in shape if we have enough caproom to play him on 4th line its a good thing.

iginla is slow now but krejci likes to play slow. i give debrusk an edge over bjork and heinen here

i dont see spooner or vatrano fitting the team which is why i think they are trade bait... chiller and subban i suggest might get traded just to take them off the list for vegas. losing one of our 2.5 mill right hand dmen is important

Let us knot on August 1 what happened vs your gut feeling