The Boston Bruins Are One Move Away From Stanley Cup Contention
(Photo Credit: https://www.deviantart.com/logan45699)
The Boston Bruins have been an enjoyable team to watch this year. In truth, they’ve been fun to watch ever since Bruce Cassidy took over for Claude Julien two years ago. However, being fun to watch does not win you a championship. The biggest problem for the hometown team is the fact that they play in the same division as the powerhouse known as the Tampa Bay Lightning. As it stands now, I believe the Bruins can accomplish the same thing that they did last year: obtain the second spot in their division, beat the Maple Leafs in round one, and then get thrashed by the Lightning in round two. I’m not all gloom and doom, though. I think that the Bruins are only one move away from being serious contenders for the Stanley Cup.
This team is mostly ready to contend as is. I like all of the defensive pairings, and John Moore as a depth guy makes me even more confident in the D. Tuukka is Tuukka. He’s not my favorite player to watch, but the stats he puts up say that he’s one of the best goaltenders of all time. The top line (Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak) has been phenomenal as usual. Those three guys make up one of the better lines in all of hockey, with their only competition for the top spot being the Landeskog line in Colorado. The line that I consider to be the Bruins’ third line (Kuraly-Acciari-Wagner) is a solid, momentum grabbing group. I especially like the upside of Sean (Cam) Kuraly. Even the Bruins fourth line (Heinen-JFK-Donato) is solid, especially when you consider their cost.
The problem, which is obvious to anyone who consistently watches this team, is the second-line right wing spot. As of now, David Backes is filling that role, and even if you don’t consider his six-million-dollar cap hit, he’s not really the type of player they need at that spot. David Krejci is aging, but he still has value in that he’s one of the best playmakers on this team. Jake Debrusk is young, but he’s proving to be a consistent scorer for a team that desperately needs it. What the Bruins need is a natural right-winger who has the ability to score twenty goals in a season. They recently called up Peter Cehlárik, who has been hot in Providence (10-19-29 in thirty-seven games), hoping that he can be an in-system upgrade over Backes. That might be a bit too much to ask for a second year NHL player, so it could be time for the Bruins to look elsewhere to fill this void.
Fortunately for the Bruins, there are a good number of players out there for them to acquire. The group of players below fits the following criteria: they are listed as RW or C/RW on Hockey-Reference.com, are on a team that as of the end of the day on January 15th are not within two spots away from being a wild card team, are not less than twenty-six years old (remember, young players require giving up more assets to attain), and have scored twenty goals or more in a single season at least three times. I also eliminated any player with a salary cap hit of over six million dollars, as the Bruins just do not have the cap space for such a player.
(Note: In the Western Conference, three teams are tied for the first spot out of the wild card. None of these teams were included in this piece)
New Jersey Devils
Kyle Palmieri (22-16-38 this season, has scored twenty goals or more four times, including this year)
Palmieri is a fantastic two-way player, and though the Bruins are searching for someone to play with Krejci and Debrusk, he seems to slot in better with Bergeron and Marchand. The Bruins could easily slide Pastrnak back to Krecji’s line if they acquired Palmieri. He’s signed for the next two seasons at 4.65M per season, which is a bargain for a player of his caliber. The Bruins would need to dump some salary to acquire him, and he might be a bit costly asset-wise (especially since he seems well on track for a career year), but he would be a welcome addition to this team.
Drew Stafford: (2-5-7 this season, has scored twenty goals or more five times)
A blast from the recent Bruins past, Stafford was acquired by the Bruins at the 2017 trade deadline, helping a little but not as much as they’d hoped. He signed with the Devils the following season, and has not come close to putting up the kind of numbers that he had in his earlier days with Buffalo. The Bruins should steer clear of Stafford this time around.
Detroit Red Wings
Gustav Nyquist*: (11-29-40 this season, has scored twenty goals or more three times)
Nyquist is a talent that would fit very nicely on David Krejci’s right side. He’s in the last year of a 4.75M contract, which would make him a rental player, but if the Bruins were able to dump enough salary, they could be able to resign him for the 2019-2020 season. Like Palmieri, they would have to clear some cap space to acquire him anyway.
*Nyquist was traded on 2/24/19 to the San Jose Sharks.
Florida Panthers
Troy Brouwer: (7-3-10 this season, has scored twenty goals or more three times)
Like Stafford, Brouwer’s best days are behind him. It’s been four years since he’s scored twenty goals in a season. So, like Stafford, the Bruins should stay away from picking up Brouwer, despite his easy to take on contract of $850,000.
Philadelphia Flyers
Wayne Simmonds: (15-6-21 this season, has scored twenty goals or more six times)
Simmonds is probably the best-case scenario for wingers to slot next to Krejci, who has shown a propensity for playing with big, physical wingers with good hands (See: Lucic, Milan). With fifteen goals already this season, he seems likely to reach his seventh career twenty goal season. Simmonds has one more year after this at his team-friendly rate of 3.975M per season, and will be a highly sought-after pickup at the trade deadline. He will likely cost at least a draft pick and a young, NHL ready player.
Arizona Coyotes
Michael Grabner: (6-5-11 this year, has scored twenty goals or more four times)
Yes, Grabner is a bit up there in age, but with two years left on his 3.35M contract after this season, he comes at a price that the Bruins could live with paying. His lack of points this season is a bit concerning, but considering that Grabner is coming off of back-to-back twenty-seven goal seasons, he might be a good player for the Bruins to target.
Los Angeles Kings
Dustin Brown: (11-16-27 this year, has scored twenty goals or more six times)
Brown’s 5.875M cap hit is a little pricey, particularly for a player who only has one twenty goal season in the last six years. The leadership he provides, however, could lift the team in a way like Mark Recchi did from 2008 all the way to their Stanley Cup run in 2011. Ultimately, the amount of years left on his contract (three more after this one) could have the Bruins looking elsewhere, especially since they are already saddled with David Backes’ six million dollar salary until the 2020-21 season.
