Boston Bruins: Former Toronto center Par Lindholm adds further depth

The Boston Bruins have completed their free agency recruitment it would seem; their final deal of the day secured the services of former Toronto Maple Leafs and Winnipeg Jets forward, Par Lindholm.

Par Lindholm arrives with the Boston Bruins on an incredibly cheap $850,000 two-year deal. He thrives in a more defensive role, which makes him the perfect fit in the lower half of the line-up.

This is a really quite savvy move from the back office as Par Lindholm has been used as an NHL-level penalty-killer and is more than comfortable in the role. If you’re going to be adding depth to the roster, you have to be adding guys that can thrive on special teams, otherwise it’s a waste of good ice time.

Whilst he was posted goal-per-game totals in the Swedish top division, the SHL (his final season saw 47 points in 49 games), he has only netted one NHL goal and tallied just 13 points in 65 games during his first season.

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He was primarily used in his 61 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs as either a left-winger on the third line or as a fourth-line center. You’d have to imagine very similar usage with the Boston Bruins; he is versatile enough to step up a line but doesn’t really offer too much offensively at an NHL level.

Whichever way you choose to skin this deal; grabbing some versatility that is more than comfortable in the bottom-six of an NHL line-up, kills penalties and just seems to be an all-round good professional at just $850,000 a season – it’s a win.

Whilst it’s fair to say that maybe Par Lindholm isn’t needed and that spot on the Boston Bruins’ roster would be better off going to a young prospect; the versatility of the Swedish forward makes him far better value and far less risky.

It’s going to be interesting to see where he actually ends up lining up on opening night, for now though, I’m just liking the fact that there’s another very capable person taking some of Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand‘s penalty-killing minutes away from them.