Boston Bruins: Assessing the battle for fourth line spots

BOSTON, MA - OCTOBER 13: Sean Kurlay #52 of the Boston Bruins skates against the New Jersey Devils at the TD Garden on October 13, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Steve Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - OCTOBER 13: Sean Kurlay #52 of the Boston Bruins skates against the New Jersey Devils at the TD Garden on October 13, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Steve Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images)
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par lindholm bruins
DALLAS, TEXAS – OCTOBER 03: Par Lindholm #26 of the Boston Bruins at American Airlines Center on October 03, 2019 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Par Lindholm

Par Lindholm is one of the newest members of the Bruins. He moves to Boston after seasons in Toronto and Winnipeg.

Lindholm is very much in the mold of Joakim Nordstrom. Like Nordstrom, Lindholm is a decent skater who has great defensive instincts. He won’t chip in much offensively, but that’s not really his job.

However, Lindholm is a little more versatile than Nordstrom. He can play center as well as both wing positions. As such, Lindholm is a perfect fill-in if there’s ever an injury in the lineup.

Lindolm, for example, will be valuable if David Krejci misses any time. Like he did in the opener against Dallas, Lindholm can step into a center role. He won’t match Krejci’s offensive production, but Cassidy can trust that Lindholm won’t make too many costly mistakes.

That said, Lindholm is what the Bruins signed him to be: a depth forward. He’s there as a reliable alternative who Cassidy can plug into most roles.

Unless there’s a long-term injury to Kuraly, Wagner, or Nordstrom, Lindholm probably won’t see a ton of playing time. But, he can certainly provide those guys with some needed rest throughout the course of a long season.