When it came down to the final cuts for the Boston Bruins and head coach Marco Sturm at the end of training camp, there were going to be some tough decisions facing the Bruins' second-year coach. One of them was just how the final couple of forward roster spots were going to shake out.
There were answers given before final cutdown day when it was announced that Matthew Poitras was beginning the season on injured reserve. Sturm made it clear that when the 2022 second-round draft pick was healthy, he was going to be allowed to show what he could do. That has been the case, and he is running with it, so taking him out of the lineup right now is not even an option.
With Poitras sidelined, that allowed veteran Mikey Eyssimont was able to begin the season with Boston as the extra forward. However, when Poitras was cleared, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney placed Eyssimont on waivers for the purpose of sending him to the Providence Bruins in the American Hockey League (AHL). He cleared waivers and was sent down. However, just how much longer will he remain part of the Boston organization?
Bruins forward Mikey Eyssimont is tearing up the AHL
First-year Providence coach Trent Whitfield has a veteran roster to begin the season. Joining Eyssimont with the P-Bruins is forward Alex Steeves and defenseman Henri Jokiharju. There is no room for any of those players with the current logjam of young talent in Boston right now that's playing really well.
On Sunday afternoon, Providence picked up a 6-1 win over the Hershey Bears on the road. Eyssimont scored the first P-Bruins goal in the first period for a 1-0 lead. After Jake Schmaltz doubled the lead later in the period, Eyssimont scored his second and third goals of the game in the second period for a 4-0 lead. All three strikes have him tied leading the AHL with seven goals, according to Mark Divver of New England Hockey Journal.
However, there is no room for Eyssimont in Boston, and there really isn't any room unless multiple injuries occur. Pavel Zacha is currently day-to-day with an upper-body injury, but with the way Poitras, James Hagens, and Marat Khusnutdinov are playing, there's no room right now for a veteran to come up from the AHL. Heck, there's little room for Sean Kuraly to play.
Unless something big happens, Eyssimont's days wearing the Black and Gold are close to being over. It feels like sooner or later there will be a trade with some team looking for a veteran forward for the bottom of their lineup or depth. If anything, Eyssimont is raising his trade value with his hot start in the AHL this season.
Add us as a preferred source on Google