The 2021 NHL Entry Draft is in the books, and the next big step in the offseason for the Boston Bruins and GM Don Sweeney is free agency.
A major piece of business is out of the way with the completion of Taylor Hall’s extension. The left wing and former first overall pick in 2010 agreed to a four-year deal that will pay him $24 million. It’s another solid contract that doesn’t break the bank in Boston, giving the GM maximum flexibility to retain key personnel while pursuing other options on the market. Hall seems truly happy in Boston, which is a great sign given that he has been a hockey nomad over the past several years. With his dynamic skating and talent, Hall deserves to be in a stable situation at this stage of his career.
Sweeney’s immediate focus now shifts to David Krejci, who is an unrestricted free agent and reportedly facing a decision about whether to re-sign with the Bruins or return to his native Czech Republic to finish out his playing career at home.
The Bruins also need to address the left side of the defense, which has taken significant hits since Zdeno Chara departed last offseason to sign in Washington, and also lost Jeremy Lauzon to Seattle in Wednesday’s expansion draft.
We’re looking at all of that and grading Boston’s draft this week.
Krejci at crossroads
The B’s want their veteran second-line pivot back and have made that clear. It is up to Krejci as to whether he comes back.
Sources connected to discussions have indicated to New England Hockey Journal that the 35-year-old is willing to take a sizable reduction on the $7.25 million AAV from his last deal signed in 2014 but likely would sign for only one or two more years. This is important because the B’s don’t have anyone in house ready to step in and take on the role Krejci provides for the team.
Jack Studnicka is too inexperienced and stumbled when given a chance to establish himself in the NHL a year ago. He’ll likely stick this time around given the promising reports of his progress this summer. At best, he’ll be centering the third unit and might have to break in on the wing to get things going. The 2017 second-rounder is not ready for the ask to be a top-two center for the Bruins.
If Krejci does not come to terms, Sweeney will have to find a free-agent option that likely will cost as much if not more as No. 46 but is probably not as good a fit. Ryan Getzlaf, 36, and Paul Stastny, 35, are the biggest-ticket free agents out there but are on the decline. Krejci posted 44 points in 51 games and looked invigorated with Hall on his wing. Neither upgrades the B's at the center position.
Another lower-cost but riskier option would be for the B’s to look at Nashville pivot Mikael Granlund, who is just 29 and unrestricted. His best production happened in 2017 and 2018, when he had 69- and 67-point seasons, but his last couple of years with the Predators have been a regression.
Even though Sweeney put no timeline on anything when asked about it before the draft, the feeling here and from our sources is that Krejci would like to return to Boston and the two sides are closer than things appear publicly. If it doesn’t happen, Sweeney will either have to sign a new center or trade for one, as he’s been linked to discussions with Arizona about Christian Dvorak. The talks involving Dvorak are not proof Krejci is gone, but the Boston GM conducting due diligence on a Plan B if the veteran decides to leave the NHL. We think he'll stay a bit longer.
Left defense a big need
The big name on the open market is Ryan Suter, who is 36 but has still been able to play reliable minutes. He and close friend Zach Parise were just bought out of their massive 13-year contracts by the Minnesota Wild, so the B’s have a veteran option to fill the void on the left side.
According to trusted sources, the talks are ongoing and there is a better than average chance Suter could end up in Boston. He’s not the player he once was, but there isn’t a lot out there to help the team remain competitive as the window on their aging core players continues to shrink.
Reports out of Minnesota haven’t been great about how Suter was in the room as a teammate and his cozy relationship with the Wild owner, which contributed to GM Bill Guerin (Wilbraham, Mass.) making the decision to cut bait. However, with limited options and a left side that currently looks like Matt Grzelcyk (Charlestown, Mass.), Jakub Zboril and Urho Vaakanainen, Suter might force the team to dance with the devil. And in fairness to Suter, he would likely be on his best behavior in the Boston culture. At least, initially he would.
Boston and the New York Islanders are the current frontrunners for Suter, so we will see if anyone else jumps into the mix before Wednesday’s free agency opening.
Grading Boston’s 2021 NHL Entry Draft
The B’s entered draft weekend in desperate need of upgrading their talent pool at all positions. With seven selections, Boston's most since 2015 (10), the team was able to boost its skill quotient and find some value players later on, which has been the team’s reality since 2016, the last time the Bruins missed the NHL playoffs.
Here's a quick review of the players selected, with more to come in the upcoming print magazine and after the Bruins Development Camp in early August.
1/21 — Fabian Lysell, RW Lulea (SHL) 5-10/174- Projected to go around picks 10-12, the B’s caught a break when this high-end offensive talent was available to them. An explosive skater with elite hands and scoring upside, he slid over alleged concerns about attitude. He's currently in Michigan playing for Team Sweden at the World Junior Summer Showcase and will be in Boston next week to participate in development camp. He's worth making the trip to Warrior Ice Arena to see — dynamic.
Quotable: “There’s growing up to be done for all young men and women and Fabian is no different in that regard. He’s made some real steps. We challenged him in all the interview process in terms of how his maturity and such was progressing and felt satisfied that, again, he’s made a lot of strides from growing into a young man and beyond.” — Don Sweeney
3/85 — Brett Harrison, C, Oshawa (OHL), 6-2/188 — Had the OHL not lost its season to COVID-19, there’s a good chance Harrison would have gone in the 1st or 2nd rounds, but Boston got him in the 3rd. He’s a two-way center but has enough offensive skill that he could eventually be a second-line guy in the NHL if he hits his potential. His skating is fine, but he could add some more explosion to his first steps. As a bonus, he grew up a Bruins fan and was drafted on his idol Patrice Bergeron’s 36th birthday.
Quotable: “I’m a player that, I can play in all areas of the ice and all positions. I’m a centerman, but I can also play both sides of the wing as well. I have a very high hockey IQ and a really great scoring touch. I find the soft areas in front of the net and in the slot. I love going to the dirty areas and producing on my chances in front.” — Brett Harrison
4/117 — Philip Svedeback, G, Vaxjo (SHL), 6-2/192 — It wouldn’t be a draft if Boston didn’t go off the board, but in the Swedish second-year eligible, they got a player who is on the long road. After seeing limited time at the pro level, he wants to play college hockey and will play in the USHL for Dubuque this season. He’s got good size, quickness, and like Jeremy Swayman, has been on some poor defensive teams and seen a lot of shots.
Quotable: “Athletic goalie. Played on a below-average team and kept them in games single-handedly almost every night.” — Kalle Larsson, GM Dubuque Fighting Saints (USHL)
5/149 — Oskar Jellvik, LW, Djurgardens IF (SHL), 5-11/175 — Another Swede who saw time in his country’s top pro league, the playmaking winger has average size but has a high, creative hockey IQ. He wasn’t ranked all that high by the NHL’s Central Scouting Service (102nd) so he’s a project who may not ever come close.
Quotable: “I would describe myself as an offensive player with an edge in the offensive zone. My best ability, I would say, are my skills with the puck and my hockey sense to find my teammates.” — Oskar Jellvik
6/181 — Ryan Mast, RD, Sarnia (OHL), 6-4/215 — Mast is a big, agile defensive defenseman who has a sneaky puck game. The Michigan native is a physical presence who is tough to play against, he’s mobile and can move pucks efficiently. In Mast and Harrison, they are Boston’s first picks out of the OHL since Studnicka in 2017.
Quotable: “I’m a big right-handed, two-way defenseman. I think I value playing the defense end a lot, but I can get involved jumping in the rush too and making plays offensively. It’s being a versatile, two-way defenseman.” — Ryan Mast
7/213- — Andre Gasseau, C, U.S. NTDP 18 (USHL), 6-4/205 — The big-bodied power center is a Boston College recruit but will play for the Fargo Force in the USHL next season. A native of Los Angeles, he’s a raw, late-blooming pivot who is a strong north-south skater and bulls his way to the net; rugged player. He doesn’t have a high NHL ceiling, but could one day be an effective fourth-liner.
Quotable: “Two-way power forward, trying to bring that big presence throughout the middle, carrying the puck and analyzing the game with and without the puck in the offensive zone, defensive zone. Just trying to do all of the little things right.” — Andre Gasseau
7/217 — Ty Gallagher, D, U.S. NTDP 18 (USHL), 6-0/188 — At one time considered a top-3 round prospect, the B’s got good value at the end of the draft. The former Notre Dame recruit will enter Boston University in the fall, and leaves the U.S. National Team with the all-time goal scoring record for defensemen. He’s got a hammer. He projects more as an all-around defenseman at the pro level.
Quotable: “I think the best way to describe me is just a very versatile player. I can play a two-way game and I can be counted on in any situation. Whether it’s penalty kill, blocking shots or playing on a top line, trying to create offense and win a game, win a hockey game. I think I make a really good first pass and break the puck out of the zone really well and just love to create offense with our playmaking ability as well as locking it down in the defensive zone.” — Ty Gallagher
Bruins draft grade: A
Although trying to grade a draft is an exercise in futility immediately afterwards, the B’s get high initial marks for picking up real value in Lysell, Harrison and Gallagher. The team addressed real needs at every position to bolster depth, and in Svedeback and Gasseau, might have picked up a pair of underrated players who will be better pros as they develop and fill out. Time will tell, but this has the potential to be Sweeney’s best draft as GM.
