Boston Bruins: Injuries Clouding Identity

With a plethora of players missing time or playing through injury, the Boston Bruins’ roster is mired in limbo, and a clear assessment of the team’s ability is virtually impossible

“Identity” is a word that is frequently tossed around in hockey circles. It’s especially common in circles that carry a New England area code. More often than not, Bruins fans have used the word in relation to the team during stretches of “soft” play. With the injury bug wreaking havoc in the Boston locker room, I use the word in the most literal of ways. Who are these Bruins, and how good (or bad) are they really?

If there is one thing that we DO know about this team, it’s that they’re battlers. Boston deserves a lot of credit for their performance this past week. Despite the myriad of absences, Boston surprisingly won three straight road contests leading up to Saturday’s home tilt versus the Rangers. All three victories came against playoff teams from a year ago. Tuukka Rask, in particular, was outstanding, and continues to look like his former Vezina-Winning self.

Nevertheless, one can’t help but feel that Boston’s reliance on one forward line, one defense pairing, and their starting goaltender (only) to steal contest after contest is a recipe for disaster down the road.

Claude Julien has needed to move players in, out, and around the lineup. It has prohibited Boston from developing much chemistry on a roster with many new faces. Players have been called upon to play above their heads and beyond the various stages of their development. Minor league goaltenders (plural) have been called upon in the wake of multiple injuries at the position. Star players have struggled to shake off the rust as they return from injury. And it has prevented the front office from having the clarity and ability to go outside the organization for help.

Before the puck dropped on opening night, Boston was already shorthanded. Frank Vatrano, pegged by many to compete for a Top 6 role, tore ligaments in his left foot while jogging. His estimated three-month absence was a blow to the organization. Vatrano had followed up his great rookie season with more encouraging play at the IIHF Championships alongside Auston Matthews. Joining him on the shelf were veteran rearguards Adam McQuaid and Kevan Miller; polarizing players, but nevertheless established NHLers at a position that was paper thin. Most importantly, Patrice Bergeron missed the season’s first three contests after an electrifying and dominant run through the World Cup.

Though Bergeron returned in style for game four (notching the game-winning goal), it’s quite apparent that he’s not playing at 100%. Most recently versus Tampa bay, Bergie’s two assist, five shot, and three hit performance against arguably the most dangerous Top 6 in the league was a very encouraging step in the right direction. He’d previously gone five games without a point, and was once again a game time decision Tuesday versus Florida. Apparently, the mysterious ailment that precipitated his injury designation was unrelated to his previous injury, and was sustained off the ice. One can only hope the star center’s production and health continue to increase, hand in hand.

David Krejci, like Bergeron, also appears to currently be scraping off the rust. Offseason hip surgery prevented Krejci from competing in the World Cup as well as the vast majority of Boston’s training camp. The rust on his game has been noticeable on a nightly basis.

In fairness to Krejci, his rotating cast of linemates aren’t helping matters. Krejci was also able to crack the score sheet Thursday night in Tampa though, with the primary assist on Ryan Spooner‘s power play goal. More often than not, as goes Krejci, so goes the Boston power play. Boston needs to capitalize with the man advantage MUCH more frequently; hopefully the Czech pivot can keep the ball rolling.

The one player whose return will aid Krejci the most is David Backes. With Backes undergoing minor elbow surgery and missing five games (and counting), Boston lost impact, balance and versatility within its Top 6. With a return possible Saturday versus the Rangers, Krejci (and Boston’s) fortunes could get a much needed boost.

And obviously we’re all familiar with Boston’s situation in net. With Anton Khudobin out at least another two weeks, the Bruins will be forced to call upon Zane McIntyre at least two more times. Tuukka Rask has given the Bruins All-World goaltending through his six starts, but even he cannot be expected to keep up this rate of play for 60 contests. Tuukka needs help. Badly.

The mounting injuries have impacted the roster beyond absences and individual underperformance. After lighting up the scoresheet in the preseason versus other roster hopefuls and depth players, Danton Heinen and Austin Czarnik have been pressed into Top 6 roles. Facing the opposition’s best players nightly has kept Heinen scoreless through through his first nine NHL regular season contests. As of Wednesday, he was sent down to Providence in an effort to regain some confidence.

Following a dreadful two game start to the season (in which he was pointless, a minus-3, and had lost 89% of his face-offs) Czarnik was also demoted, only to be recalled in the wake of David Backes’ injury. Czarnik’s return has him playing on David Krejci’s wing, along with Ryan Spooner.  With Spooner and Czarnik (both natural centers) forced onto the wings in the Top 6, Riley Nash has been called upon to center the team’s third line.

Nash’s game is best suited for the fourth line. He has never scored more than ten goals or 25 points in an NHL season. The Nash-Beleskey-Hayes line has accounted for zero goals on the season, and has likely been the worst line in all of hockey. Hopefully the shootout goals potted by Nash and Hayes in Thursday’s affair have instilled some confidence within the two players.

A domino effect of this magnitude so early in the season is hardly what we’d hoped for.

Furthermore (and perhaps most importantly), with the team yet to play one game at full strength, neither the front office nor the fans know how this team can play as initially envisioned. It’s clear there are deficiencies on the blue line and in the Bottom 6. It’s yet to be known, however, whether they can be overcome with top notch goaltending and a potent Top 6.

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Though Boston was able to prevail in the shootout versus Tampa Bay, they once again conceded multiple two goal leads. All three goals scored by Boston came while either Boston’s top line or top power play unit were on the ice. With depth scoring proving to be a continuous problem for the B’s, it’s difficult to not look back on opportunities the Bruins had during the offseason to bolster their forward depth. Brandon Pirri was available until the last week of August, and signed a one year deal worth $1.1 million. Pirri has four goals and seven points through 11 games for the Rangers, as of this writing.

Kris Versteeg was available as recently as October 12. Though he hasn’t exactly set the world on fire through 12 games ( two goals, two assists), his one year, $1 million contract and ability to score in the Bottom Six would be welcome and cost-effective for these Bruins.

Boston instead chose to sign Peter Mueller (two goals in the AHL, currently), and bank on a rise in play from Jimmy Hayes and Matt Beleskey. Needless to say, it has yet to happen. Frankly, their play thus far has been even worse than it was last year. But I digress.

The front office has been handcuffed in two separate ways by the recent string of injuries. For starters, a clear assessment of the team’s abilities cannot be made. As it is, the entire team is stuck in a sort of limbo. They’ve managed to grind out three straight wins, but it came on the heels of four straight losses. Boston is undefeated with Rask between the pipes, but winless with everyone else. They’ve scored just 12 goals in their last seven games, but managed to win four of those contests.

It’s impossible to discern how good (or bad) this team is until Boston is closer to full strength for a larger sample size. There very well could be a player or two that Boston has their eye on, but the organization has been forced to take a “wait and see” approach until at least David Backes is back (and healthy). As we’ve recently seen with Anaheim seemingly now able to keep both Lindholm AND Fowler, sometimes the “wait and see” approach can leave you in the dust.

The second way in which the front office has been dealt a bad hand stems from the declining value (temporarily or permanently) of some of its most valuable trade chips. People are quick to point out David Krejci’s cap hit for another five years, and rightfully so. But Krejci did post 63 points through 72 injury-plagued games. He’s not a kid, but 30 years old isn’t 40. Were he not rehabbing hip surgery this past offseason, Boston likely could have found a team starving for a Top 6 center (Minnesota), and moved him for the defensive help they need.

With Danton Heinen’s red-hot play throughout the preseason, a healthy Frank Vatrano likely could have been used as the key piece to acquire Cam Fowler. For everyone absolutely LOSING THEIR MINDS RIGHT NOW that I would suggest such a thing…..Cory Conacher. Remember him? Exploded onto the scene, dominated in the AHL, and had a great start to his NHL career. Tampa  parlayed that success into a trade for Ben Bishop. Conacher spent last season playing in Switzerland while Bishop was nominated for a Vezina.

I’m not suggesting that this will definitely be Vatrano’s career path. I’m saying that Boston suddenly had a bevy of forwards capable of playing left wing, and a glaring need on defense. Selling high on an undrafted free agent from a position of strength to acquire a major team need is just good management.

As things currently stand, it’s hard to look at Boston’s roster (and its deficiencies) and find an expendable player whose value on the trade market could land any real help. And help won’t be arriving from the AHL any time soon either. Jake DeBrusk has just two points through his first nine games. Anton Blidh and Peter Cehlarik lead the team in scoring with just four points each. Sean Kuraly doesn’t currently represent an upgrade anywhere in the Bottom Six.

At this point, Boston’s best hope for improved depth scoring is predicated upon improved health. A healthy and productive Top 6 would shift players into roles more befitting of its non-core players. David Backes’ return shifts Austin Czarnik out of the Top 6. A healthy Frank Vatrano would allow Ryan Spooner to head back to his natural position on the third line. This, in turn, sends Riley Nash back to the fourth line.

New-found confidence in Danton Heinen’s game could land him a spot on Spooner’s wing on the third line. This bumps either Jimmy Hayes or Matt Beleskey out of the lineup, and (hopefully) sends them out of town. I’m not ready to give up on Beleskey quite yet. Moving Hayes and his contract out of town for a third round pick would be welcomed unanimously in Bruins circles.

Should Czarnik and Heinen continue to improve, I can see both of them thriving on the third line. With advantageous match-ups and start-zones, a Spooner-Czarnik-Heinen line could be electric. Putting two of them on a line with Riley Nash (to aid on the face-off dot) is at least leaps and bounds better than the third line’s current iteration.

The Bruins play six games over the next nine days, with two back-to-backs. We’re going to see Zane McIntyre at least once; more than likely twice. With Pastrnak back from suspension and Backes returning as early as Saturday, the forward lines are coming back together. I don’t blame the B’s for sending Danton Heinen down to Providence. Hopefully, a return to health from David Backes gives Heinen and/or Czarnik looks on thrid line. Boston is likely going nowhere fast with its current third line, who can’t score goals nor prevent them. At least some iteration of Heinen/Czarnik/Spooner/Nash/Beleskey would generate offense, with no discernible defensive loss.

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Tuukka Rask, you’re beautiful. Stay golden. Bergie, Krejci, Backes….one step at a time. Frankie V….get well soon, buddy. Dobie…..get your Kazakh butt back here. Kevan Miller…..no rush, man.

Wounds  heal with time. And with time comes clarity. In the meantime, the best we can hope for are more scrappy performances from an under-manned team. With every point in the standings worth their weight in gold, time is of the essence.