The Boston Bruins begin training camp on Wednesday at Warrior Ice Arena and their first on-ice workout on Thursday, with their first preseason game on Sunday. This is a big training camp for a lot of players and first-year coach Marco Sturm.
What the roster looks like on Opening Night remains to be seen after an offseason where some moves were made, but not ones that are going to open a lot of eyes and address some of the Black and Gold's needs. Here are three camp X-factors who could steal an Opening Night roster spot for the Bruins.
John Beecher
As mentioned before, this feels like a make-or-break season for John Beecher after re-signing over the summer. Just where he might fit in after an offseason of moves that basically addressed the bottom-six of the lineup, which may force him to begin the season with the Providence Bruins in the American Hockey League (AHL).
A fourth-line role is not out of the question for Beecher, but he'll have to earn it against some veterans. A good penalty-killer and solid on faceoffs, the former University of Michigan standout and first-round pick needs to impress out of the gate.
Fabian Lysell
Another forward who could be hurt by the offseason bottom-six forward moves is Fabian Lysell. The Bruins and their fans have been waiting for the former first-round pick to make it full-time to the NHL, but he just hasn't been able to do it.
After the trade deadline last March, he got a chance in the NHL and played well, scoring his first-career NHL goal. He has speed, he makes things happen, and could eventually end up in a middle-six role, but he will have to earn it right from the start of camp this year. It would be nice if he could finally break through and be Washington on Opening Night.
Michel DiPietro
Unless an injury occurs, Jermey Swayman will be the starter for the Bruins this year, but who the backup is going to be is something to keep an eye on. Joonas Korpisalo is the leading candidate to be, but it would be nice if prospect Michael DiPietro can win the job and possibly make Korpisalo available in a trade. Boston would risk losing DiPietro on waivers to get to the AHL.
DiPietro carries a lower cap hit than Korpisalo, but there is no doubt that he could win the job in camp to be Swayman's backup. He had a solid year last season with the P-Bruins and is certainly someone who can win the job as Swayman's backup.