Boston Bruins: Could they use the Atlanta Gladiators as a viable pathway?

The Boston Bruins have recently announced a renewal of their affiliation with the Atlanta Gladiators of the third-tier ECHL; could they make this a viable development territory?

Now, it’s bold thinking to suggest that the Boston Bruins can see NHL-ready players coming up from the third-tier, however what isn’t as bold to think is that they could recruit players that go un-drafted for whatever reason, stockpile them and see which pan out.

Whether those players are willing to scrap for a relatively low dollar in the ECHL in light of it being a clear pathway, at least to the Providence Bruins, or whether they like so many do, seek better money in European climbs is the big challenge to such an idea.

The Boston Bruins already have an example of ECHL experience parlaying into big-league experience behind the bench in Bruce Cassidy, who began his bench career with the Jacksonville Lizard Kings and later, the Trenton Titans before eventually graduating to the American Hockey League and finally to the NHL. Assistant coach Kevin Dean also honed his craft in the ECHL.

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Of the Boston Bruins’ opening night playing roster last season, only number two goaltender Jaroslav Halak spent time with an ECHL side, namely the Long Beach Ice Dogs back in 2005.

Now obviously goaltending is the most likely to benefit from a clear pathway from third-tier, through second-tier to the NHL, mainly because it’s a position that has distinctly limited roster spots. However, that’s not to say that it shouldn’t be a league utilised to develop players that might only see fourth-line minutes in Providence but could grab first-line time in Atlanta.

The historical reasoning to avoid the ECHL was that it was rough-and-ready and that given fighting isn’t anywhere near as prevalent in the big leagues these days, that young players should avoid it at all costs.

Last year’s Kelly Cup champions, the Newfoundland Growlers only tallied 16 fighting majors, per Hockey Fights, whilst the Atlanta Gladiators only took 26. Of course, these statistics do skew and at the top of that ladder are the likes of the Rapid City Rush with 81 fights.

As a direct comparison, last year’s Boston Bruins topped the NHL board when it came to fighting majors, also with 26. The Vegas Golden Knights and Toronto Maple Leafs were bottom of that list with just 6.

It’s fair to say the rough-and-tumble nature is probably what predicates players playing in the often far more skill-based European competitions. This is slowly changing though, witnessed by the fact that Atlanta and Boston both were involved in the same number of fights, despite their very different leagues.

The ECHL is under-utilised as a true affiliate league and it’s about time that someone actually realised it’s true potential. The Boston Bruins could mine a treasure trove of talent if they really started investing in the Gladiators.

Absolute worst case scenario, they bring in un-drafted guys and college free agents and they quickly tire of the grind. Best case scenario, they net some diamonds in the rough and you never know, suddenly there’s a distinct three-step pathway into the NHL.

Why shouldn’t the Boston Bruins experiment? Shake it up and see where the dice fall?