Predicting Which Bruins Free Agents Return or Leave
By Scott Roche
Ondrej Kase
Sweeney pulled off two deals with the Ducks in the last week of February of 2019 leading up to the trade deadline when he acquired Kase in exchange for David Backes, defensive prospect Axel Andersson and Boston’s 2020 first-round pick.
What a dud of a deal this turned out to be. Kase never was able to find his footing before the COVID-19 shutdown or the Toronto playoff bubble. In six regular-season games, he had one assist, then in the playoffs, he picked four more helpers in 11 games.
Boston was hoping for bigger and better things from Kase this season, especially with Pastrnak missing the first couple of weeks recovering from offseason surgery. Unfortunately for Kase and the Bruins, it didn’t work out that way.
Kase played in just three games. He played Opening Night against Devils in New Jersey, but was knocked out in the second period of the second game of the two-game set in N.J. with a concussion. He returned to the lineup on May 10 against the Islanders, before leaving with another injury. He never played in the playoff game this spring.
With his concussion and injury history, the Bruins should cut their losses of Andersson and the first-round pick and move on from Kase. With the emergency of Smith on the second-line, bringing back Kase as a bottom-six forward doesn’t make much sense.