The Boston Bruins ended up with the fourteenth overall pick in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft yesterday. It’s pretty much where we expected them to be. The Black and Gold had a slim one percent chance of getting the coveted number one draft pick, and it was unlikely they’d advance much further than the fourteenth pick. Now it comes down to what the Bruins can find at the fourteenth pick.
The Edmonton Oilers won the draft pick (again!) in 2015.
Ok, let’s take a minute to understand that the draft is meant to balance out teams. It’s a ‘necessary evil’ designed to give all thirty teams as close to an even playing field as possible. With that being said, what kind of malfeasance/incompetence leads the Oilers to be one of the perpetual worst teams in the league year after year.
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Seriously, what is wrong with the Oilers franchise? It’s obvious they’ve fallen far from the heritage of Wayne Gretzky. They have some of the best talent in the NHL on their squad. They’ve got a dependable, solid leader in Andrew Ference as their captain. With all that going for them, what causes this team to be at or near the bottom of the playoffs for the last few years?
Well, at least I should give them credit for not attempting the total tank job (despite what their players say) the Buffalo Sabres pulled this year.
Now, it comes down to the depleted scout corps in Boston to find the right player in the first round. With the Bruins organization letting three of their scouts go (one of them being Peter Chiarelli’s brother) they’ll have to work double time to find the right match. No doubt Cam Neely will have a hands-on approach to this year’s draft.
Puck Prose
So, who will the Bruins acquire? This depends an awful lot on which players the Bruins chose to pick up in free agency. With the loss of Gregory Campbell and Daniel Paille, the B’s might be looking for a NHL ready bottom six forward who can be made top-six ready in a season or two. The B’s might also be looking for a bottom pair defenseman. (This is dependent on whether or not the Bruins choose to trade away Dennis Seidenberg and/or let go Adam McQuaid or Matt Bartkowski.)
As the Bruins move forward towards the start of the 2015-16 season, the B’s needs will dictate who will be their first pick in the draft. Hopefully, the Bruins will re-capture the magic of last year’s pick in David Pastrnak. With the Bruins’ cap troubles, they will need a good young player who can come in and play on their entry-level contract.