Boston Bruins 2023-24 Player Grades: James van Riemsdyk

When the Boston Bruins first signed James van Riemsdyk in the middle of the offseason, fans weren't really sure what to make of it.

The Bruins needed help, but on the wings wasn't necessarily where they needed help the most. That kind of help could be found through Providence, especially with players like Jakub Lauko and Marc McLaughlin knocking on the door.

Instead, Lauko found his way onto the team playing for a lower line, and McLaughlin never played for the big club in 2023-24. Instead, Boston envisioned van Riemsdyk as a depth piece for their top-six forwards and that's exactly what he became.

JVR's regular season stats

While he was signed a team-friendly, one-year $3 million contract, its worth noting that van Riemsdyk played at about the value they signed him for, if not above it given his timeliness of being on the ice for goals for and goals against.

He played in 71 games, just more than four games north of his average total of just under 67 per season (67.33 exactly). The former UNH forward scored 11 goals, and tallied 27 assists for 38 points, tying his total from the 2021-22 with the Philadelphia Flyers. In fact, his first two came in the second game of the season against the Nashville Predators, the first being this nifty bank shot off a Predators' defenseman's skate.

Many times in the past, van Riemsdyk had acted as a thorn IN the Bruins' side, but this year he was the thorn ON the Bruins' side.

Perhaps his most staggering stat, is that while his goal scoring numbers were what they once were, van Riemsdyk carried a +7 rating throughout the entire regular season, his highest since the season 2010-11 season where he held a +15 rating, and that was the season he lost to Boston in the playoffs.

JVR's postseason stats

In the playoffs, van Riemsdyk's stats dipped from the regular season numbers, but in the 11 games he played he scored one goal and racked up four assists.

While it was a small sample size of what he can show in the playoffs, van Riemsdyk's lone goal assisted in putting the Bruins up 3-1 in the series against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Throughout the playoffs, van Riemsdyk took advantage of misplays, and stayed stout on defense and containing the puck despite accumulating a -1 rating. He was able to help out on both the power play and the penalty kill, and for any fan that's all you can ask.

Overall assesment

Throughout the entire season, van Riemsdyk was a solid player on both sides of the puck, and was able to step in and take faceoffs when needed. He was exactly as advertised, as a depth forward, throughout the playoffs - and the regular season - and played well enough to deserve the salary he received from the team.

It wasn't a bad season by any stretch, but it wasn't a great season either. It's true that a C-grade is passing, but he did a bit more than passing. Not enough for an A, but definitely in between.

Grade: B