Boston Bruins Adjusting Defense with Speed
General manager Don Sweeney wants his defense to be more mobile. There’s no secret to that. The Boston Bruins and company are saying all the right things about their defense: that it needs mobility, puck movement, and must be more active up-ice on the attack. But what have they done to improve their defense this summer?
The loss of Dougie Hamilton lingers on for Sweeney for several reasons, but most of all, his mobility. Torey Krug is widely recognized for his offensive shot, not necessarily his mobility. Hamilton was Boston’s lone, true mobile defender. Every team wants a Duncan Keith and Victor Hedman. Sweeney will have to get in line with 29 other general managers.
In a piece via the Boston Globe, Sweeney remarked, “I think they have to,” when asked if his defense will skate more next season. “At times, we probably got a little bit too stationary on our breakouts. We need to be in motion a little bit. That means our forwards will be in motion a little bit, because teams were able to smother the walls, pinch, and pre-pinch.”
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Boston’s troubles on defense are twofold: they haven’t addressed Hamilton’s departure, and can’t make this current defense mobile with the defenders in house. Look at Zdeno Chara, Dennis Seidenberg, Adam McQuaid and Kevan Miller. Each hold their own and the blue line. They’re stay-at-home defenders. How can Sweeney get his defense “to be in motion” when four member of his defense are in-zone defenders? Will coach Claude Julien decide to trust youth and inexperienced kids and let them take a stab at things, like Colin Miller and Joe Morrow?
Even if the Bruins acquire, say, Cody Franson via free agency, that leaves them with two mobile defenders (including Krug). That may be too little to adjust this defense to play the more up-tempo and up-ice brand of attacking Sweeney desires. Chicago and Tampa Bay made the Stanley Cup finals for similar reasons on defense. Both defenses have what Boston doesn’t: layers of speed. Boston won’t be playing the style of defense Sweeney wants to perfection with the roster they possess on defense. If the Bruins stray from their habitual in-zone defense, Tuukka Rask will face more pucks.
The problem is, the Bruins can’t truly do what Sweeney asks with this defense. If Sweeney presses Julien, who is against the up-ice tempo and run-and-gun style, it may do more wrong than right. For once, Julien’s old time hockey, stubborn ways may come in handy with this roster, or perhaps cause him to lose his job.
Chicago and Tampa’s defenses pressured and transitioned seamlessly. Their defenses worked fluidly with the forward groups who stabbed away pucks with back pressure, reducing the d-groups responsibility. Their defenses worked well at causing turnovers deep up the ice as opposed to deep in your own zone like the Bruins tend to do.
Finding an equilibrium of in-zone defending and up-ice, attacking defense will be a great challenge for Sweeney and the Bruins. They have no answer to Hamilton still. That should still be the GM’s priority before he jumps to conclusions with this roster.
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