In light of David Krejci’s injury, the Boston Bruins have recently been practising with summer free agency recruit, Par Lindholm as their second-line center.
Although missing David Krejci isn’t a good thing for the Boston Bruins, there’s still every chance that playing in the NHL in a much elevated role may be good for former Toronto Maple Leafs and Winnipeg Jets forward, Par Lindholm.
His debut NHL season saw him fulfil duties as the Maple Leafs’ third-line left winger or as the fourth-line center. This for a player that came over from Sweden with quite a decent pedigree as a center that knew how to tally points.
In his final year with Skelleftea AIK of the SHL, Par Lindholm racked up 18 goals and 27 assists for a point total of 47 points from 49 games, adding a further 11 points in 16 playoff games. He isn’t a player that has never shown any offensive prowess. Instead, he’s a guy that could do it in Europe but in his first NHL year, didn’t live up to the hype.
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To be fair to him, perhaps he was mis-used. The Toronto Maple Leafs had him on their fourth line and penalty kill; hardly the place to find offensive production. Likewise, his most common teammates were Connor Brown and Frederick Gauthier, neither of which exactly lit up the scoring charts last year.
Perhaps, the Boston Bruins may luck into a good situation here. Perhaps, David Krejci potentially not being fit for the first game of the season is a blessing in disguise. With the confidence of the coaching staff to fulfil a top-six role, maybe we see a breakthrough from Par Lindholm and he starts producing at the same level he was in Sweden.
Stranger things have happened when players have been elevated in the past. Having Jake Debrusk and the speed of Karson Kuhlman alongside him could awaken those parts of his game that have been missing since arriving in the National Hockey League.
If the Boston Bruins do stumble upon something here, it’s an absolute bonus. Given he’s only on an $800,000 one-year deal, Par Lindholm could prove a bargain.
Equally though, it could simply be an elevation out of necessity and nothing comes of it. Lindholm could prove to be little more than a good fill-in as a depth guy and not much else in the much tougher surrounds of the NHL. In which case, at least the Boston Bruins aren’t too out of pocket.
Gut instinct suggests that David Krejci may well be back in time for opening night against the Dallas Stars and it’s purely a role for training sessions that Lindholm is filling. Time will tell.