The real quandary for me is the bottom D pair. I would shitcan Shattenkirk and drop Mitchell in there. Maybe Shattenkirk thinks he can cruise through camp on his (suspect) rep, but he hasn't done a friggin' thing that impresses. While I'm wishcasting I'll go further and say the B's should find a way to dump Forbort and go with Zboril and Lohrei as 6 & 7. We've got an A+ top four, we can do this and let these kids grow.
camps and other preseason stuff
- Thread starter The Napkin
- Start date
I think this is probably close to correct. For forwards I think Poitras has made the team, at least for 9 games. Beecher is probably more of a toss up, though I've liked his game. I think up front the final decision is they can keep 2 of Beecher, Boqvist, Heinen and Greer. I would probably lean towards Beecher and Heinen from that group.
Defense I agree. I think Mitchell has played better than Zboril. Don't think they'll do something unexpected with Shattenkirk or Forbort just yet. Maybe if Shattenkirk doesn't get out of the gates well they pull the plug and waive him in November but I think he'll get some rope.
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Roster for the final preseason game:
Forwards: John Beecher, Jesper Boqvist, Patrick Brown, Charlie Coyle, Jake DeBrusk, Trent Frederic, Morgan Geekie, A.J. Greer, Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak, Matt Poitras, Oskar Steen, Pavel Zacha (no JvR/Heinen/Lucic/Lauko)
Defensemen: Brandon Carlo, Derek Forbort, Matt Grzelyck, Mason Lohrei, Charlie McAvoy, Ian Mitchell, Jakub Zboril (no Shattenkirk/Lindholm)
Goaltenders: Brandon Bussi, Jeremy Swayman
**
I wonder if that means that Heinen and Lauko have made the team. Clearly, the other four sitting tomorrow are on the team.
Forwards: John Beecher, Jesper Boqvist, Patrick Brown, Charlie Coyle, Jake DeBrusk, Trent Frederic, Morgan Geekie, A.J. Greer, Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak, Matt Poitras, Oskar Steen, Pavel Zacha (no JvR/Heinen/Lucic/Lauko)
Defensemen: Brandon Carlo, Derek Forbort, Matt Grzelyck, Mason Lohrei, Charlie McAvoy, Ian Mitchell, Jakub Zboril (no Shattenkirk/Lindholm)
Goaltenders: Brandon Bussi, Jeremy Swayman
**
I wonder if that means that Heinen and Lauko have made the team. Clearly, the other four sitting tomorrow are on the team.
Interesting. I think you're right on Heinen, but I'm wondering if Greer is getting one more shot to keep his spot over Lauko. With Brown playing, I'm also wondering if they might send Beecher down at first to see how Poitras does. If they both struggle out of the gate and you already jettisoned Brown, you only have 3 viable centers. If Poitras sticks after 9 games then you can bring Beecher up. I never thought of that when I was predicting the opening roster, but it makes a ton of sense.
More ice time versus NHL caliber players is only a good think for Lohrei, and like you said, the two guys sitting don't need to play. I'm curious who Mitchell and Zboril get paired with. I would think Lohrei is with Chucky, but if not I'd imagine if it's either Mitchell or Zboril that player would have the inside track. I still think it's Mitchell's to lose
Games about to matter!
Pulled from the game thread. Agree with all of it. Yeah it sucks no more Bergy, but I had this feeling even before the first preseason games that they'll be better than people think. However, going from thinking the team had very little prospect talent to the development of some of these young guys I'm irrationally excited for this season and beyond. We've got another thing to root for this season with all their hopeful continued growth, and if they do continue to develop I don't think any of us could have seen 4 rookie level deals on the roster going into all that cap space next year.
Can't wait for the real puck drop
My guess at the Opening Night roster:
Marchand - Coyle - DeBrusk
JVR - Zacha - Pastrnak
Frederic - Poitras - Geekie
Lucic - Beecher - Lauko
Heinen
Lindholm - McAvoy
Grzelyck - Carlo
Forbort - Shattenkirk
Mitchell
Ullmark
Swayman
That comes in about $500K under the cap.
Heinen vs. Boqvist is a toss up for me, I went with Heinen due to versatility. I do like Boqvist's speed but would have liked to see a bit more out of him.
The door doesn't appear to be a spot for Lohrei but I think him going down and getting 20+ minutes in all situations at Providence will be good for him, then he's first up at injury or if Forbort continues to suck. Might be a bit of a rotation between Mitchell and Shattenkirk to start the season.
Marchand - Coyle - DeBrusk
JVR - Zacha - Pastrnak
Frederic - Poitras - Geekie
Lucic - Beecher - Lauko
Heinen
Lindholm - McAvoy
Grzelyck - Carlo
Forbort - Shattenkirk
Mitchell
Ullmark
Swayman
That comes in about $500K under the cap.
Heinen vs. Boqvist is a toss up for me, I went with Heinen due to versatility. I do like Boqvist's speed but would have liked to see a bit more out of him.
The door doesn't appear to be a spot for Lohrei but I think him going down and getting 20+ minutes in all situations at Providence will be good for him, then he's first up at injury or if Forbort continues to suck. Might be a bit of a rotation between Mitchell and Shattenkirk to start the season.
I think i would keep Boquist for now, move Geekie to 4C and platoon Boqvist and Heinen & send Beecher to Providence (to get top minutes, for the same reasons as Lohrei) to start the season. Otherwise, agreed.
I'm pretty agnostic about Boquist, Geekie and Heinen (although Boq has been kind of invisible to my eyes), but if Beecher's "ceiling" this year is 4th line C for the Bruins, I wonder how much he benefits that much from big minutes in Providence. Not really arguing the point, I just dont know. Lohrie, OTOH, like most D-men, likely would get a benefit. (5x5, or PP, or PK defense is defense, no matter where they play). Beecher is interesting. I am usually dead set against putting rookies with top 6 potential on bottom 6 NHL duty to "get their feet wet" because it's a different job. But Beecher seems pegged as a "bottom 6 (or bottom 3) guy." Unless the org thinks there's more there.
One thing that has struck me as I've watched some of the pre-season games .....the best way to really clear the hangover from last year is by having a lot of new blood to be excited about. "These guys" weren't the ones to get knocked out in Round 1.
I know people see Beecher as a first round pick thus want a top 6 forward but the reality is he's probably a bottom 6 player. He's basically a much faster skating, less physical Frederic. The bottom 6 is basically where he's played since he was drafted. Part of that is bad luck, he lost time with covid and a shoulder surgery. Michigan was loaded with top 10 picks during his time there so when he returned from injury, he was burried behind Beniers, Kent Johnson and the other high end talent on the team. At this point he's played about 70 AHL games, mostly in the bottom 6. I don't know if there is a ton more to gain developmentally by sending Beecher down to play higher in the AHL lineup. He's probably not going to suddenly develop into a point-per game guy at this stage. Give him the 4C spot and let him run and see what happens. If he plays well, keep him or move him up. If he doesn't, back to Providence he goes.
Lohrei is a bit of a different case. As a defenseman it's harder to learn and develop at the NHL level. There's only 6 of them each game and so they all kind of need to have the ability to play in all situations. He's only played 8 AHL games so sending him down to get big minutes in all situations makes sense.
Lohrei is a bit of a different case. As a defenseman it's harder to learn and develop at the NHL level. There's only 6 of them each game and so they all kind of need to have the ability to play in all situations. He's only played 8 AHL games so sending him down to get big minutes in all situations makes sense.
FWIW, Monty said final decisions and cuts will come Sunday. Today they practiced as one group:
Marchand - Coyle - DeBrusk
JVR - Zacha - Pastrnak
Frederic - Poitras - Geekie/Heinen
Lucic - Brown - Lauko
Boqvist - Beecher - Greer/Steen
Grzelyck - McAvoy
Lindholm - Carlo
Forbort - Shattenkirk
Lohrei - Mitchell
Zboril
Ullmark
Swayman
Bussi
The only thing that makes me go hmm is Brown between Lucic and Lauko. Do not like that, did not think he played better than Beecher. Don't want to kill them yet but if that ends being how things shake out, I think it's a mistake.
Marchand - Coyle - DeBrusk
JVR - Zacha - Pastrnak
Frederic - Poitras - Geekie/Heinen
Lucic - Brown - Lauko
Boqvist - Beecher - Greer/Steen
Grzelyck - McAvoy
Lindholm - Carlo
Forbort - Shattenkirk
Lohrei - Mitchell
Zboril
Ullmark
Swayman
Bussi
The only thing that makes me go hmm is Brown between Lucic and Lauko. Do not like that, did not think he played better than Beecher. Don't want to kill them yet but if that ends being how things shake out, I think it's a mistake.
And I want Coyle moved to that 3rd line and Zacha to the 1st, Coyle is so much better in that 3rd line role. Wish they'd start with Poitras centering the second line see how he does with top 6 minutes for a few games.
Brown is terrible, how is he still getting run? Rather see Geekie there if they aren't going to keep Beecher. But my preference is Beecher as the 4th C, because like the rest of you guys I feel he's played far better than Brown
That’s infuriating if true. Beecher earned that spot. Brown has shown absolutely nothing to deserve to stay.
I think Coyle is fine where he is. Ideally on a team he's a 3C, but that's a roster depth problem more than a Coyle problem. I thought that line was great last night. Lot's of possession and cycling.
I think starting Poitras out on the 3rd line is reasonable. It'll give him softer competition and it'll easier to manage minutes and shelter if necessary. He'll see ozone starts and the opositions bottom 6 as opposed to the top 4 defenders that 63 and 74 will draw each shift. Additionally, he won't be relied upon to producre right out of the gate. If Poitras settles in and plays well they can certainly bump him up but I think 3rd line is the right call to begin.
Absolutely, which is why most of these decisions aren't that important right now -- the exception being Poitras because of his inability (due to age) to go to the AHL. The 10th game of the season is Nov 2 vs. TOR and the 20th game is Nov 25 @ NYR. I'm focusing on the 3rd week of Nov (@TB, @FLA, DET, @NYR) as to when the Bruins should have made an assessment of the holes in their lineup and determined who in Providence (Beecher, Merkulov, Lohrei, etc) can plug those holes.
We’ll find out soon but appears Zboril, Steen and Boqvist will be on waivers at 2:00. They were not at practice and Monty said he had had some tough conversations today.
That’s garbage. In no way is this a better team with Patrick Brown on it. He should be no where near an NHL roster. Plus, Beecher earned that spot. It makes no sense other than Beecher can be sent down without waivers, but in reality, who the fuck is claiming Patrick Brown?
Agreed, I feel like the team keeps a guy or two every year that has no business being on the roster and/or on the contract they gave them. I'm going to keep telling myself that this is temporary to keep center depth to see how Poitras handles his 9 games. My hope is if they send Poitras back you bring Beecher up and stick Brown upstairs, if he stays you send out Brown and bring Beecher up
Exactly right. All three put on waivers.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/10/07/sports/with-regular-season-days-away-former-first-round-pick-jakub-zboril-one-three-waived-by-bruins/
Zboril’s gonna get picked up. Frickin’ Forbort. Can’t say Forbort without invoking Ort. Both specialize in RA/GA and blocking players with higher upside.
I doubt Zboril gets claimed. Teams are tight against the cap and he’s an extra half million over an ELC guy from their own organization. Next year, when the cap goes up significantly, he might’ve gotten claimed.
I hope you’re right. Can’t rightly explain why but I have a hunch he’ll figure it out.
Was just at my sister's 40th tonight which ended up as the same bar most of the players were at for a private event. Lohrei looks even younger than a 16 year old in person, but it was awesome to see Coyle just hanging out outside of the private room, having long conversations with fans. Many players did the same leaving the private room, it was really cool to see. I almost fanboy-ed out. Almost
Let's find out.
https://x.com/_TyAnderson/status/1711080595923566739?s=20
Forbort is a better NHL hockey player than Zboril. Hell Zboril got beat out by Ian Mitchell. Let's not pretend he's the next blue chip D prospect for them.
Also he cleared waivers. No NHL team wanted him for free.
I'm not saying Zbroil is great, he's not. He also lost to Mitchell because Mitchell is cheaper, they're basically the same player. It was covered about why there was a good chance he wouldn't be claimed and that's his contract. The biggest issue is Forbert is still on this roster wasting 3 million dollars. He should have been waived.
He lost to Mitchell because Mitchell was better. He also lost to Forbort because Forbort is better.
Other than that I have no idea what your actual point is.
If you've watched Mitchell and Zbroil and think Mitchell is better I don't know what to tell you. They're the same, one is just cheaper.
I didn't say he was better than Forbert. I said Forbert is a waste of 3 million dollars (which he is) I'd rather save money and rotate Zbroil/Mitchell on the bottom pairing then waste money on Forbert. That's my point.
I think they're the exact same player, I'm no expert by any means, but I did play Junior A as a defenseman. My educated opinion looking at their body of work is they're the same. Zbroil I think went in thinking the 7th spot was his and loafed through camp. I could obviously be wrong, but I see very little difference between the two.
So you want them to ice a worse roster in order to keep their 8th defenseman (Who they didn't even lose)?
You mean do I want a bottom pairing defenseman who stinks and is overpaid gone so they can rotate younger defenseman into his slot? Yes. There will be very little drop-off on the roster construction. It amazes me people actually think Forbert brings anything to the team at this point. Is he better than Mitchell/Zbroil? Yes. Is it a huge difference that will drastically make the roster substantially better? No. Will it make it substantially worse? No. It equates to rearranging deck chairs on the titanic, but it saves money
I'm definitely not disagreeing it's a terrible approach. 100% is (if that's what occured)
Opening rosters are due at 5:00 today. I think this is where the Bruins are at:
Marchand - Coyle - DeBrusk
JVR - Zacha - Pastrnak
Frederic - Poitras - Geekie
Lucic - Beecher - Lauko
Grzelyck - McAvoy
Lindholm - Carlo
Forbort - Shattenkirk
Lohrei - Mitchell
Ullmark
Swayman
That leaves them ~$400,000 under the cap.
My guess is the final piece to the puzzle is Lohrei goes down and they sign Heinen.
Marchand - Coyle - DeBrusk
JVR - Zacha - Pastrnak
Frederic - Poitras - Geekie
Lucic - Beecher - Lauko
Grzelyck - McAvoy
Lindholm - Carlo
Forbort - Shattenkirk
Lohrei - Mitchell
Ullmark
Swayman
That leaves them ~$400,000 under the cap.
My guess is the final piece to the puzzle is Lohrei goes down and they sign Heinen.
n/m
With two rookies manning 2 of the C positions, there could be some ups and downs early on. So hopefully the defense and goaltending can carry the team early on, as good starts are so beneficial to a team's chances of making the playoffs.
Hard to complain about that roster, given the cap realities. Lohrei would definitely benefit playing regularly for Providence for the first couple of months as opposed to alternating shifts on the 9th floor.
With two rookies manning 2 of the C positions, there could be some ups and downs early on. So hopefully the defense and goaltending can carry the team early on, as good starts are so beneficial to a team's chances of making the playoffs.
Sweeney says they are still weighing options regarding Heinen. Also they haven’t made a final decision on Lohrei. They’ll take it up to 5:00.