When the Boston Bruins entered the offseason last spring, following being eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the first round of the postseason by the Buffalo Sabres, you knew changes were coming for the Black and Gold.
One player who a lot of people figured would be moved was backup goalie Joonas Korpisalo. As it turned out, he was moved on July 1 to the New York Rangers for defenseman Will Borgen. It was a head-scratching move in terms of the return, but through the first 12 games, what an addition he has been.
Bruins defenseman Will Borgen has impressed head coach Marco Sturm
Borgen was clearly the second defenseman that general manager Don Sweeney tried to acquire after a reported trade with the Edmonton Oilers fell through for Darnell Nurse. There is speculation as to why that trade fell through, but Sweeney's pivot was to Borgen. So far, so good.
After Saturday night's 6-4 win over the San Jose Sharks, Borgen leads the Bruins with a plus/minus of plus-15, which is remarkable given that he's been paired for the most part with Nikita Zadorov. Sturm was impressed by his new defenseman.
"Very solid defensively,'' said Sturm. " He plays really hard. He's a quiet kid. I feel like he comes out a little bit more on the ice. So, he's been a great addition for our team. That's something we were hoping to get when we traded for him, and he's delivered so far perfectly.''
Borgen plays a very simple game where he stays home and thrives on playing with Zadorov. He has two goals this season, both empty-net goals against the Sharks, but his play in all three zones has been what has stood out. He knows when to pinch in during the run of play in the offensive zone and when to stay at home on the other end. It was a little surprising that the Rangers traded him, but as far as the trade goes, right now, it's a trade that the Black and Gold are winning with Korpisalo out injured in New York.
How well Borgen has played speaks to the limited shots that players like Connor Clifton and Jonathan Aspirot have gotten since Charlie McAvoy has come back into the lineup from his six-game suspension. A big reason why the Bruins' defense was able to survive the beginning of the season without McAvoy was because of the play of Borgen, It sounds like it hasn't gone lost on his first-year head coach.
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