As the old saying goes, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. It fits two ways in the recent uptick in Boston Bruins fans considering a Patrik Laine signing: teams need to stop trusting that the former 40-goal scorer will return to his old form, and the Bruins need to start bringing in more definite impact players instead of the same old reclamation projects.
As the hype about Laine to the Bruins grows on social media, it's easy to see that those people's hearts are in the right place. Boston needs more goal-scoring, and there could be a spot opened up on the wing if Viktor Arvidsson finds a new home. Don Sweeney will need to fill that hole, and Laine is a low-cost option to potentially add a scoring punch.
The problem is that I have bad news about Laine's recent goal-scoring prowess. The Montreal Canadiens had some of the ugliest offensive performances for any team in league history that made the Eastern Conference Final, and Laine couldn't even sniff the lineup. Sure, he had a lengthy layoff, but a goalscorer like Laine should be able to come into a lineup and give the team some semblance of offense.
The Canadiens had no interest in adding that into their struggling lineup, and the Bruins shouldn't either. Laine, at his best, is a powerplay merchant, but his five-on-five play adds just another bottom-six player to the rotation, who Marco Sturm has to find a spot for. The Bruins just simply don't have enough room to keep taking on bottom-six forwards.
Additionally, Laine's powerplay merchant role is fine for some teams, but it makes zero sense for the Bruins with how their roster is currently constructed. David Pastrnak can't even occupy his usual spot on the left elbow because Morgan Geekie found a scoring touch there, and bringing in Laine, who plays the Alex Ovechkin role of standing still in that spot looking for a one-timer, would only add more congestion to that spot with the man advantage.
The fans should be begging for Sweeney to bring in some kind of impact forward this offseason. Being happy with Laine would only be letting the front office off the hook once again.
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