With a lot of questions about the state of this team going into next season. The defensive core may be more solid than what fans and analysts give it credit for. With the loss of two of their key defenseman, Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm, at the end of last season, other players had to step up and hold down the fort for this team defensively. If those players can reach their potential again, they may cause trouble for the opposing team's offense.
With Hampus Lindholm and Charlie McAvoy being 100% healthy for the start of this season, the Bruins may have a good-looking defense with a nice balance of size, skill, and toughness that may be enough to win them games or push them to playoff contention.
Here are the projected defensive pairings for the start of next season:
Pair 1 Mason Lohrei – Charlie McAvoy
Mason Lohrei has struggled defensively to date, finishing last year with a plus/minus of minus 43, the worst on the team. The good news, however, is that the 24-year-old plays a solid offensive game and combined 5 goals and 28 assists for 33 points last season and managed to finish 6th on the roster in points. Pairing Lohrei and McAvoy together may help clean up Lohrei’s defensive game and allow him to further develop his already solid offensive talent.
McAvoy was paired with Hall of Famer Zdeno Chara early in his career, which no doubt led to him being one of the best defensemen in the league. Hopefully, Lohrei could learn from Charlie McAvoy in the same way.
Pair 2 Hampus Lindholm – Henri Jokiharju
The next pairing is Hampus Lindholm and Henri Jokiharju. Lindholm suffered from a fractured patella that kept him to just 17 games last season. The Bruins desperately missed Lindholm’s all-around game from one of their best defenseman who averages over 20 minutes per game. Having Lohrei in the top spot with McAvoy would no doubt leave Lindholm to be the all-around driving force for the second pairing.
Henri Jokiharju was acquired last season at the trade deadline. When both Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm suffered injuries that left them out of the lineup for the rest of the season, Jokiharju stepped up as a solid and steady defenseman for the Bruins. Paired with Nikita Zadorov on a top pair for the latter part of last season, Jokiharju managed to finish 2nd on Boston’s roster in plus/minus while averaging over 21 minutes of ice time per game.
Pair 3 Nikita Zadorov – Andrew Peeke
The third pairing is Nikita Zadorov and Andrew Peeke. Peeke brings a physical presence to his game and has proven himself to be a solid third-pair defenseman for the Bruins over the last few seasons. Pairing him with Nikita Zadorov makes this pairing even more physical and difficult to play against for opponents. Zadorov struggled last season with taking penalties and, much like the rest of the roster, generally finding his game. Later in the season, Zadorov turned his game around and stepped up in a big way for Boston with the losses of McAvoy and Lindholm.
Zadorov managed to finish the year with career highs in plus/minus with a plus 25 that led the team. He also finished with a career high in time on ice with 20:37. If Zadorov can remain a physical shut-down presence like he was at the end of last season, the Bruins could have a very effective third pair with him being the mainstay.