The Boston Bruins seemed to be missing something. They’re missing snarl on their team. They seem to be lacking players who can provide grit and skill on the ice. The B’s should take a look back and grab forward Gregory Campbell out of free agency.
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The Boston Bruins placed an awful lot of faith in this year’s team. They believed no major overhaul was needed and the Bruins could get their way back into the playoffs this year. So far, the Bruins faith seems to be slightly misplaced.
The Black and Gold are missing a certain amount of snarl. There don’t seem to be many players that are keep other teams accountable for their errors. (No member of the Bruins has had more than two fighting majors this year.)
The Bruins seem to be missing a certain level of physicality as well. That’s partly due to the rotating ring of injuries that have hit the team this year. While the Bruins are laying on the hits, they’ve lost a certain something on the ice.
Why? Because the Bruins have put a little too much faith in the WRONG players. The Bruins believe that Adam McQuaid and Kevan Miller are under-valued defencemen. Most of the fans believe they’re underwhelming and overpaid to be (essentially) bottom pair blueliners. Jimmy Hayes is being paid $2.4 million and he’s put up a whopping two goals and spends as much time on the ice as he does on the ninth level.
The Bruins need to find someone who can go in there and be a ‘career fourth liner’ for the Bruins. The B’s have some decent talent who don’t belong on the bottom line. They’ve also got Hayes who is the softest 6’6″ player in the NHL. If the Bruins are looking to bring back a sense of the old team, and remind teams that there is a price to be paid for their transgressions, the B’s should grab forward Gregory Campbell out of free agency.
Campbell ( along with Daniel Paille and Shawn Thornton)was part of the ‘Merlot Men’ cited by many NHL professionals at the time as the ‘best fourth line in hockey’. Campbell is better technical skater than Hayes. Campbell is more willing to throw his body around, and ‘Soupy’ didn’t always need a reason to bring a beat-down on someone who tried to hurt his team.
Campbell also has earned himself a place in the history books for the Boston Bruins. All Bruins fans remember when this happened. Campbell got a standing ovation and had his name chanted by the TD Garden crowd for several minutes afterwards.
The Bruins would be able to grab Campbell at a price that’s around half (or less) what they’re paying Hayes right now to fill in for injured players (and eat popcorn on the ninth level).
Gregory Campbell played in all 82 games for the Columbus Blue Jackets last season. He didn’t make this year’s squad and was sent down to Columbus’ AHL team in Cleveland. Campbell claimed that he didn’t want to take an AHL roster spot from a young player, and refused to go. The Blue Jackets organization suspended him without pay, and after clearing unconditional waivers yesterday, was released from the organization.
It certainly wouldn’t hurt to have a player whose father is still a NHL executive either.
The Boston Bruins might as well acknowledge their errors (of the past and present), crack open the soup can (and hopefully find a way to part with Hayes), and hope for a better return on a cheaper investment.