Bruins '21 OFFSEASON Thread

This decision surprised the you know what out of me.

He is a free agent why in the world would he have to pass thru waivers?

I believe he most likely informed the B's of his decision early so they would know how to proceed in FA and have the advantage of that information. Why else would they go out and sign a few guys capable of playing center. Foligno even said as much in his comments about signing with the B's when he said that opportunity could be there.

Yes the tandem of Hall and Krejci was very good but as Cassidy pointed out Hall was motivated also by Marchand and his work ethic. I am optimistic that he will still be very good next year.

I disagree that this team is worse than the one that just finished the season but only time will tell. 

The one big head scratcher for me was 5 mill for a goalie when they could have gone in a different direction and spent that on a top 4 D. They must not of had the same level of trust in Swayman as many of the fans.

i mean, to me, it hardly seems controversial that the team is on paper worse since the season ended.

I can't look at going from Rask to Ullmark isn't a step down, not to mention losing Halak and Vladar denting our depth there,. So G is weaker.
On defense, Forbart is a nice pick-up and probably an upgrade from Lauzon, at least in the short-term. But we also lose Miller with no replacement, making us laughably thin on the right side. So, D is a bit worse.
Losing Krejci and adding Haula is definitely a step down. 
You could argue Foligno and Nosek is an improvement on Ritchie and Kuraly, but man, it would be a minor one.

I think those glasses would have to have some serious rose-tinting to not see this as a team that's lost more than it's gained.

I lie Swayman more than Halak, too, but the point is we had both last year, so that's a loss of depth. And no way am I going to assume Ullmark is going to be the equal of Rask. 

Saying we upgraded the bottom 6 "in a big way" is quite the stretch. Foligno actually was less productive than Ritchie last year, and he's about to turn 34. Nosek scored more than Kuraly, though tat was only 18 points. And Kuraly is a great defensive forward. Maybe Nosek can equal that, but we'll see. 

Those two might be better (I know Foligno is respected and all that), but I have a hard time seeing two players who combined for 38 points as being some major upgrade.

As I see it, the lines are:

Marchand/Bergeron/Pastrnak
Hall/TBD/Smith
Haula/Coyle/Foligno (could actually be Foligno/Haula/Coyle - though CC seems better in the middle than on the wing)
Frederic/Nosek/Lazar

That leaves DeBrusk to help you get that TBD. If the roster is staying as is, Coyle likely moves up center L2 and Debrusk is on L3 with Haula in the middle.

I bury Wags in Providence and save some room there.

  As mentioned here Studnika is a big key. Given his weight gain, which hopefully is increasing he can indeed take a lot of the bite out of Krejci’s loss.  In fact I see his ceiling as being a bit similar type player, just a somewhat less scoring.  Defense while on paper may be less deep missing Miller and Kampfer also is less likely to have as many injuries.  Similarly, Ullmark and Swayman may be equal to Rask because he was hurt and extremely compromised in the second round.  Forward with the deprived second line center but improved bottom lines- remember Nosek did that scoring in 38 games- might end up a wash.  Here’s hoping Jack looks great in camp and its not necessary to blow futures that they’ll need.  

   If indeed everything’s a wash, this club was the hottest down the stretch and I believe would have even given Tampa a run if not for a ton of injuries, and this is a slightly worse Tampa.  Alas, they’ve lost a bit of toughness and Bettman is asleep at the wheel regarding dirty play, so that’s still an issue.
I hope the Islanders go down, as St. Louis did post 2019.

You can talk about production all you want but Ritchie did not produce 5 on 5 and he didn’t produce on the PP after the first half of the season. Foligno can actually skate and will actually produce a little 5 on 5. The Leafs gave up a 1st for him at the deadline for a reason. Do you think Ritchie would get a first? I sure don’t. I think the job of the 4th line is to not get hemmed in 24/7 like that line was all of last year. Nosek is a better player than Kuraly, there’s a reason why Vegas fans are praising the Bruins for that move. He’s a valuable energy guy. The 4th line was absolute garbage last year and if you’re trying to argue otherwise I just don’t know what to tell you. This wasn’t always the case- they were good in the seasons leading up to last year. For whatever reason they were completely flat. They played a little better when Lazar was acquired but ultimately were a massive liability down the stretch. Completely dominated by the Islanders 4th line, and they were the only line that sucked against the capitals. There’s a reason why they had zero interest in retaining Kuraly and have tried to shop Wagner all off-season to zero takers

And yeah the bottom 6 is significantly better. I stand by that. Don’t know how I’m downplaying the significance of the talent we lost when I openly said the 2nd line is worse, but make whatever imaginary arguments you must

For the record that “whopping” career high of 18 points came in 38 games, let me know when Kuraly ever produces at that clip in any 38 game stretch lol. It’s an upgrade because not only will they provide a little more offense, they also won’t provide the energy of a dead fish

Also you’re being a little disingenuous when you say a 250k difference a year holds the same weight as a 1.5 mill difference a year on contracts, but you already know that. Don’t know if you’re the one who should accuse others of not making “serious arguments” given how disingenuous you are being with your half truths lacking complete context that I’ve since provided with the last two paragraphs

I’ll take the guys with a pulse! The leafs can have Ritchie, the jackets can have Kuraly, and Providence can have Wagner


As for the Ullmark stuff, maybe I’m optimistic but the guy has put up very good numbers in front of a flaming trash d-group in a garbage system. Wouldn’t be surprised if we see a .920 SV% here

I think a healthy Coyle could rebound and play really well with Hall. Or maybe that is just hope but the talent is there to be a very good 2nd line.

I like the additions more than some here and think it will show in the playoffs with the gritty veteran play. But to be honest the B's need some big time come back seasons from Coyle and DeBrusk if they are going to be at their best and compete for a cup. Of course this is if DeBrusk is even here.

So this is interesting:

Apparently the date we need to watch on Krejci is December 15th. If he plays in a czech league game after that date he will require waivers. He would not if before that

Very intriguing

Charlie got paid… 8/76 9.5m per year…. Guys still just 23…. Good deal by Bruins to sign it for so long. Will be a massive bargain halfway thru.