The Boston Bruins went 1-1-1 for the week, including a tough overtime loss on a Steven Stamkos bomb after David Pastrnak was unable to finish a breakaway at the other end of the ice against Tampa Bay Saturday night. The team outplayed the Lightning for large stretches and erased a two-goal deficit to secure a point, but there are no moral victories in hockey.
Getting three out of a possible six points with the challenges the Bruins had feels like a moral victory, though.
Things got off to a rough start, with Bruce Cassidy going into COVID-19 protocols before his team had to play the Detroit Red Wings at home Tuesday. Joe Sacco (Medford, Mass.) took over the duties to run Boston’s bench, falling by a 2-1 score. The double whammy came when the NHL Department of Player Safety suspended Brad Marchand three games for an alleged slewfoot on Oliver Ekman-Larsson in Boston’s win over Vancouver Nov. 28., taking the team’s leading scorer out of the mix for the week.
The undermanned B’s rebounded with a 2-0 road win against Nashville, but lost the services of rising defender Jakub Zboril, who went down with a lower body injury (right leg). With word coming from Sacco that he will be re-examined, it doesn't sound like he will be back anytime soon. It's a major setback for the young defender who was coming into his own this season after being a spare part in the early going.
Compounding matters, news that Jake DeBrusk had reportedly requested a trade caused a social media stir. Sourced to his agent, Rick Valette, who confirmed to TSN’s Edmonton-based Ryan Rishaug, that the embattled B’s forward asked for a change of scenery a week ago.
DeBrusk showed character by scoring the opening (and winning) goal against the Predators and playing an effective game despite the rumors swirling around him in the days since. Jeremy Swayman’s 42-save shutout secured an important two points, and that set the stage for a key test Saturday night when the defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning came to town.
With the team ‘D’ already smarting with the loss of Zboril, Charlie McAvoy was scratched due to (non-COVID-related) illness. That opened the door for Connor Clifton to return to the lineup, with Jack Ahcan from Providence to fill the gaping hole in the rotation for one night.
Here’s a breakdown of the more important storylines of the week, with the focus on what could come next for DeBrusk.
DeBrusk trade options and what might work
This has been building for a while. One might even say that DeBrusk leaving Boston is fait accompli.
Ever since Debrusk hit his zenith 27-goal season in 2019 and appeared to be on the verge of becoming a perennial 30-goal man for Boston, things have headed south for the 25-year-old. He looked like he could be the one established success story of the team’s first round in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, but his production tailed off in 2019-20, then the coronavirus pandemic hit. This led to an even tougher 2020-21 campaign that seemed to affect the young winger’s morale and emotional wellbeing.
Even after starting opening night with a bang by scoring the winning goal against the Dallas Stars, a sign that things might be different, the DeBrusk trade watch is on.
“He talked to us this morning,” Taylor Hall said before the team took on Nashville. “He just said- ‘I love you guys. This is something in my career, I’m at a crossroads.”
Since the news of DeBrusk’s ask went public, there have been various reports of as many as 12 NHL teams that have reached out to Don Sweeney to inquire about picking him up. Having looked at various options, it appears that there a few scenarios that could make sense for a deal to materialize at some point moving forward, starting with teams with the most cap space to take on No. 74.
Nashville Predators- The Predators have plenty of cap space to work with, but not a lot of players that would interest the Bruins in terms of contract fits. Luke Kunin, who was drafted one selection after Boston took McAvoy in 2016. He’s younger than DeBrusk, is having a tough offensive season and would save the B’s money on the cap in a 1-for-1. Dealt to Nashville by the Wild in 2020 for Nick Bonino and picks, Kunin has yet to do much more than tease, but he’s a center/wing who plays hard and has at least the skills to develop into a possible front-line forward. Like DeBrusk, it isn’t working out for him right now, and coming to a situation like Boston could turn things around for the newly-minted 24-year-old. He carries a $2.3 million cap hit and will be a restricted free agent this summer.
Columbus Blue Jackets- Not floated much as a potential landing spot for DeBrusk, but might the B’s look to move one struggling 2015 first-rounder for another in forward Jack Roslovic? Former Team USA star was Winnipeg’s second pick of the opening round (25th) after stealing Kyle Connor at 17th overall. He never put it together with the Jets, but showed signs of breaking out a year ago with 12 goals and 34 points in 48 games, but is off the pace this season. He carries a $1.8M cap hit and is a RFA at season’s end, but would give the B’s some needed cap relief, plus a scoring upside as one who primarily slots in at right wing, but can play center as well.
Arizona Coyotes- With so many players due to come off the books and the team in a full rebuild (not to mention talk of relocation), DeBrusk might make a lot of sense to GM Bill Armstrong. With the team’s current cap situation, he could flip a low-cost roster player and has enough picks accumulated to give one up for a player of No. 74’s upside. The B’s lose out on the talent aspect, but they would gain a current player at lower cost, an asset (the Coyotes have 5 second-round picks) in a deep draft and some cap space to do things with. Who might the B’s get from Arizona? There aren’t many attractive options from such a moribund team, but another lackluster 2015 first-rounder like Lawson Crouse(selected 11th, ahead of Zboril, Debrusk and Zach Senyshyn) is a palatable option as long as the B’s get a second in the swap, and then turn the banked space into something like Tuukka Rask.
Seattle Kraken- The NHL’s newest expansion franchise could certainly use a player like DeBrusk and they have the cap space to add him. Several media reports have linked former Winnipeg Jets forward Mason Appleton as a possible trade option. On the plus side for Boston, Appleton carries a cap hit of only $900k through the end of the season before becoming a restricted free agent, and that savings opens up options for the B’s. From a pure talent stand point, it doesn’t favor Boston, however. DeBrusk was a first-rounder the same year the Jets took Appleton in the sixth. He’s more of what the B’s already have: a capable two-way forward who works and grinds, but doesn’t have the kind of skill and upside to be a top-six forward at the NHL level. Boston could probably get something more out of Seattle in addition to Appleton, like a draft pick or middle-tier prospect, but from a realistic standpoint, the real gain from a trade like this one is in the short term in the form of what Sweeney can do with the added financial wiggle room.
Edmonton Oilers- Going to his hometown and being surrounded by the Oilers impressive cast of forwards would likely be welcome news for DeBrusk. Edmonton doesn’t have much cap flexibility, however. Warren Foegele is a former third-round pick and rising role player of the Carolina Hurricanes who was dealt in the Ethan Bear trade over the summer, but has not found his way in Edmonton. He’ll be 26 in April and plays a Boston-style heavy game with good speed for his 6-foot-2 size. He lacks vision and higher-end skill, as evidenced by his numbers. His $2.7 million cap hit carries through to 2024, and on paper, the Oilers win that one with a more talented player.
Jesse Puljujarvi is finally showing signs of being worthy of the third overall selection in 2016, and that’s precisely why the Oilers and GM Ken Holland would be loathe to give him up. Besides, the money ($1.175 million) creates too much of a problem cap-wise, but if Sweeney could figure out a way to sweeten the pot, that kind of a trade would be a coup. The B’s should stay away from Zack Kassian ($3.2 million), as the 30-year-old represents a step in the wrong direction despite his toughness.
Ahcan makes noise in season debut
Forced into action due to McAvoy’s illness against the Lightning, he skated hard, fast and activated at the right times. He was strong on breakouts and didn’t look out of place in just his fourth career NHL game.
"Jack did a good job tonight," Sacco told media after the 3-2 OT loss. "He was called upon, he played hard. Like we talked about this morning, we wanted him to move the puck, transition it. Hopefully, be able to make some plays at the blue line, but again, be responsible defensively, and he did that."
Although undersized, he moves well and has the requisite jam and chip on his shoulder to play the position effectively at this level. Case in point was a strong defensive play against NHL veteran Corey Perry, who had a significant size and and experience advantage on the Boston rookie, but Ahcan got inside body position and repeatedly used contact to prevent Perry from driving through him to the net, instead forcing him behind Swayman and negating the rush.
He impressed with his poise and ability to make the simple plays by reading and reacting, but in just the one game, he lived up to the growing buzz on him. Down in Providence, he has been one of head coach Ryan Mougenel’s workhorses. His two goals and 10 points in 17 games with a minus-5 isn't the greatest indicator of what a player like Ahcan is capable of doing at the NHL level. Like other little big men on Boston’s blue line, he skates with his head up and can beat the forecheck with his feet or move pucks quickly with quick snap feeds and a decisive, attacking mindset.
Ahcan will likely go back down to the AHL, but he continues to demonstrate to the organization that he’s the next in what has been a pretty good series of small, but plucky two-way ‘D’ who have made some hay in Boston. Don’t sleep too long on him, because he’s going to play in the NHL regularly.
