CarterHud

The big bad Bruins came into the postseason as serious Cup contenders. They finally had built a great second line and their goaltending was strong. They look amazing in their first round romp of the Capitals. But after a second round loss to the Islanders, a list of weaknesses were apparent for GM Don Sweeney to fix. He has improved the team’s depth, both offensively and defensively, But as the offseason comes to a close, the team still has one glaring problem left.

Offseason additions: G Linus Ullmark, F Nick Foligno, F Erik Haula, F Tomas Nosek, D Derek Forbert.

Offseason subtractions: F David Krejci, G Tuukka Rask, F Sean Kuraly, F Nick Ritchie, D Jeremy Lauzon, G Jaroslav Halak, F Ondrej Kase, G Dan Bladar, D Jarred Tinordi, D Kevan Miller, D Steven Kampfer.

Forwards

The good news is that the Bruins still have the best line in hockey, all of which are still on their amazing, cheap contracts. Patrice Bergeron is a year away from free agency. He will probably return to Boston but the main worry would be the jump from his $6.8 million cap hit. Bergeron had another great season on both ends of the ice. He netted 23 goals with 48 points in 54 games, while winning over 62 percent of face-offs and finishing second in Selke voting. He has won the award four times and has been a finalist in every season since 2011-12. It feels weird to say that David Pastrnak is two years from unrestricted free agency. After winning the Rocket Richard Trophy with 48 goals in 2019-20, Pastrnak scoring just 20 in 48 games felt like a disappointment. He was still a point-per-game player, one that saw his shooting percentage dip by six. Brad Marchand has the cheapest deal of the three and the one with the longest term remaining, at four years. Marchand’s 29 goals, 40 assists, and 69 points all led the team. Only Pastrnak, Bergeron, and David Krejci had more point than Marchand had assists. Overall, Marchand was third in the league in points, behind the two ridiculous Oilers. After posting a hellish 2.3 shooting percentage over 37 games in Buffalo, the Bruins bought low on Taylor Hall. The former Hart winner proceeded to score eight goals with 14 points in 16 regular season games. His five points in 11 playoff games was a bit disappointing, but the Bruins still rewarded Hall with a new four year contract. Craig Smith was the team’s big free agent signing from before 2020-21. He rewarded the Bruins by becoming a solid second-line winger as he scored 13 goals with 19 assists. You can pencil in Hall and Smith together, but who comes between them is more up in the air after Krejci went back home to the Czech Republic. Charlie Coyle is the favorite, but he took a massive step back as the third-line center in 2020-21. Coyle scored just six goals with 16 points. He was fit for the role in 2019-20 but time will tell if he still is. The alternative to Coyle is Erik Haula, who is more fit for the third line. Haula scored 21 points as a Predator last year. His face-off percentage was over 55. Veteran and former Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno has made his way up to Boston. The Bruins won’t overrate Foligno like other teams may have, and will stick him on the third line. Foligno scored just seven times with 20 points in 49 games last year. He has just 34 goals over the past three seasons. Still, Foligno brings the physicality and leadership that is valuable for a third liner. It seemed like a pretty safe bet that the Bruins would move on from Jake DeBrusk this offseason, but he’s still here. Two years removed from a 27 goal season, DeBrusk netted just five in 2020-21, along with nine assists for 14 points in 41 games. He is still 24 and his shooting percentage fell off a cliff, so all is not lost yet. Coming in from Vegas is Tomas Nosek, who showed last year that he can be a solid fourth liner. Nosek’s 18 points in 38 games last year along with time on the penalty kill would have been great for Boston last season. The Bruins will give Trent Frederic a good chance to start this season. The former first rounder scored just four goals in 42 games in 2020-21, but is a very physical threat who had 65 penalty minutes. If Frederic and Nosek take two fourth line spots, then the third is up for grabs. Curtis Lazar is a very good defensive player and scored seven goals last year. Chris Wagner has been with the Bruins for longer but is not exactly an analytical darling. Karson Kuhlman can be a middle-six right winger if someone goes down, but scored just twice in 20 games last year.

Defensemen

This is really the Charlie McAvoy section, as he carried the d-core last year. He is great at both ends of the ice and finished fifth in Norris voting while putting up 30 points. McAvoy will be a restricted free agent after the season, where he should get absolutely paid. Matt Grzelcyk settled into McAvoy’s long-term defensive partner despite playing in just 37 games. He had his best offensive season yet, with 20 points for a 44 point pace. The Bruins gave Brandon Carlo a six-year extension despite having injury concerns. Carlo played in just 27 games in the regular season then missed time in the playoffs, with head injuries being the source of missed time in both occasions. When healthy, he’s a fine second-pairing defender. Boston gave Mike Reilly and Derek Forbort matching three year deals with a $3 million AAV despite there being a big difference in quality between the two. Reilly came over from Ottawa at the deadline and was a big power play threat while posting eight assists in 15 games. Forbort is a capable enough third-pairing defensive defender. He spent last year with the Jets, which was where defenders went to die. He has over 100 blocked shots in all four of his full NHL seasons. Seattle opted to take Jeremy Lauzon over Connor Clifton, keeping the right-handed shot in Boston. He solidified his role on the third-pairing and will now have to adjust with a new partner. Jakub Zboril, a 2015 first-rounder, played in 42 games during his rookie season last year. He posted nine assists. With Reilly and Forbort in the fold, it will be hard for Zboril to break into the left side of the defense.

Goalies

You may have notice Tuukka Rask’s name as one of the subtractions this offseason. As of this writing, Rask has not been brought back by Boston. They are expected to re-sign Rask, although he will be out until at least January. They brought in Linus Ullmark, who managed to put up decent numbers in Buffalo, which is saying something. His .917 save percentage in 2020-21 was a career high. Rookie Jeremy Swayman impressed during a short stint in the NHL. Swayman played in 10 games, posting a 1.50 GAA with a .945 save percentage.

Projected Lines

Brad Marchand – Patrice Bergeron – David Pastrnak

Taylor Hall – Charlie Coyle – Craig Smith

Nick Foligno – Erik Haula – Jake DeBrusk

Trent Frederic – Tomas Nosek – Curtis Lazar

Extras: Chris Wagner, Karson Kuhlman

Matt Grzelcyk – Charlie McAvoy

Mike Reilly – Brandon Carlo

Derek Forbort – Connor Clifton

Extras: Jakub Zboril

Linus Ullmark

Jeremy Swayman

Prediction

The Bruins improved their depth, but everything was not a boost. For the first time in years, they need a second-line center. They also need Swayman to be the real deal, while Rask could be done in Boston. There are questions, which could easily push the Bruins down in the standings. Despite a fourth place finish, I think they will make the wild card.

No team has ever made their tanking as apparent as the Coyotes did this offseason. They lost all three of their goalies, dealt their franchise icon and two top-six forwards. The Coyotes also took on a ton of salary in exchange for all of the picks in the world. In this upcoming draft, Arizona has 8 picks in the first two rounds. Eight! Those days will probably be the best of the season for the team. The actual games look to be a struggle.

Offseason additions: D Shayne Gostisbehere, F Dmitrij Jaskin, F Ryan Dzingel, D Anton Stralman, F Jay Beagle, G Carter Hutton, F Antoine Roussel, F Andrew Ladd, G Josef Korenar, D Conor Timmins, F Travis Boyd.

Offseason subtractions: F Conor Garland, D Oliver Ekman-Larsson, F Christian Dvorak, G Darcy Kuemper, G Antti Raanta, G Adin Hill, D Alex Goligoski, D Niklas Hjalmarsson, F Derick Brassard, F Tyler Pitlick, F Michael Bunting, D Jason Demers, F Drake Caggiula, F Dryden Hunt, D Jordan Oesterle.

Forwards

Only three forwards on the team are signed past this upcoming season, two of which give the team positive contributions. After a dominant rookie season that earned him a long-term contract, Clayton Keller is yet to reach that level again. In his past three seasons, Keller has not scored 20 goals or hit 50 points. 2020-21 saw his lowest production yet, partially because of the shortened season. Keller put up 14 goals with just 35 points. After Christian Dvorak was traded, the pressure is on the remaining centers. Nick Schmaltz is the most acclaimed of the bunch, although he has scored just 26 goals in 139 games in Arizona. Ten of those came last year, along with 22 assists. Veteran sniper Phil Kessel could be dealt early on in the season. He quietly led the team with 20 goals and 43 points. In 56 games, that is a 29 goal pace over 82 games, something more like the Kessel of years past. Right winger Christian Fischer scored 26 goals over his first two full seasons, but had just three last year. He is a solid defensive winger on the penalty kill. Coming in on a prove-it deal is Ryan Dzingel, the speedy winger who went back to Ottawa after a rough stint in Carolina. In 29 games with the Senators, he scored six times with three assists. He will get a lot of ice time in Arizona to boost his numbers. The pressure is on for 2018 5th overall pick Barrett Hayton. He has just seven points in 34 NHL games. In the AHL last year, he was awful. Hayton’s 10 points in 26 games was a massive disappointment. He can win the second-line center job without much competition. A former depth winger with the Blues, Dmitrij Jaskin is back in the NHL after scoring 38 goals in 59 games over in Russia. He only signed a one year deal, so a deal at the deadline seems likely. Johan Larsson has proved in the past to be an elite defensive fourth line center. He could move up to the third line this year. His 14 points was actually tenth on the team. While a 5.7 percent shooting rate played its part, Lawson Crouse was still a massive disappointment last year. He potted just four goals. The big winger is still just 24, but his development has completely stopped. Can Jan Jenik make the team? The 2018 third-rounder had 14 points in 29 AHL games. He then scored twice in the two NHL games he got into. He will be just 21 this year. Antoine Roussel is still a physical force, but he scored just once in 35 games for Vancouver. He can capture a fourth line role. So can his Canucks teammates Jay Beagle and Loui Eriksson. They combined for a goal in 37 games. Travis Boyd, another ex-Canuck, can steal the fourth-line center spot from Beagle. He scored five goals in 39 games last year despite just 23 shots. Andrew Ladd is a long shot after not even being an AHL regular last season.

Defensemen

The Coyotes really needed anyone to step up last year and Jakob Chychrun did. He blossomed into one of the league’s best defenders on an amazing contract. Chychrun was second on the team with 18 goals and 41 points. He finished 10th in the league in Norris voting. The Coyotes do not have a clear guy to play on Chychrun’s right side. It could be a bit of a stretch to say that 2019 first-rounder Victor Soderstrom is ready for the role. He put up 10 points in 32 AHL games, earning him a four-game NHL stint. Soderstrom had a goal and an assist during that period. The Coyotes took on a second-round pick with Shayne Gostisbehere’s contract. He still has offensive talent, but was often healthy scratched in Philadelphia. Nine of his 20 points in 2020-21 came on the power play. With most of last year’s right-side leaving, Ilya Lyubushkin will have an expanded role. The defensive defenseman has never played in more than 51 games in a season, but he has reached 100 hits in each of his three NHL years. Veteran Anton Stralman also comes in as part of a cap dump. He struggled over his two seasons in Florida. Stralman could really be placed anywhere in this lineup. The final spot is a fight between Conor Timmins and Kyle Capobianco. Timmins comes in from Colorado for Darcy Kuemper. He had seven assists in 31 games for the Avalanche. Capobianco could have a boost being a left-hander. He has just 14 NHL games under his belt but had 13 points in 20 AHL games last year.

Goalies

With Kuemper, Adin Hill, and Antti Raanta gone, the goaltending will be rough. Carter Hutton was brought in to become the starter/tank commander. While injured, Hutton put up a 3.47 GAA with an .886 SV% in 13 games. Coming over from San Jose for Hill is Josef Korenar. The young Czech native had an .899 save percentage in his first 10 NHL games. 2018 4th rounder Ivan Prosvetov played in NHL games last year but was still awful in the AHL.

Projected Lines

Clayton Keller – Nick Schmaltz – Phil Kessel

Ryan Dzingel – Barrett Hayton – Christian Fischer

Jan Jenik – Johan Larsson – Dmitrij Jaskin

Lawson Crouse – Jay Beagle – Antoine Roussel

Extras: Travis Boyd, Loui Eriksson, Andrew Ladd

Jakob Chychrun – Victor Soderstrom

Shayne Gostisbehere – Ilya Lyubushkin

Anton Stralman – Conor Timmins

Extras: Kyle Capobianco

Carter Hutton

Josef Korenar

Prediction

The prediction with the Coyotes is not whether they will make the playoffs; we already know that they won’t. But will they finish last in the whole league? Only the Sabres are a real threat. Commence the tankathon!

California hockey is at an all-time low right now. None of the three teams are good and the battle of them is to see which one can get better quicker. After this past offseason, the Ducks have dropped in that leaderboard. They decided to be as quiet as quiet can be. They brought back captain Ryan Getzlaf, but that was about it. Anaheim has a ton of cap space, so the potential moves are never over. But for now, the team appears to be trusting a group of young players, something NHL teams rarely do.

Offseason additions: F Buddy Robinson, D Greg Pateryn.

Offseason subtractions: F Danton Heinen, G Ryan Miller, D Haydn Fleury, F Carter Rowney, F David Backes.

Forwards

So much of the hype surrounding the Ducks this year sits on the shoulders of Trevor Zegras. He posted 18 points in seven World Juniors games, then had 21 in 17 AHL appearances. This earned Zegras an NHL stint, where he scored just three goals but with 10 assists in 24 games. He will be either a first or second line center this season. He will be paired with Max Comtois, who was a World Junior star of his own. At age 22, Comtois led the Ducks with 16 goals and 33 points. However, he did ride an unsustainable 17 percent shooting rate. Finishing off a potential line of World Juniors legend is Troy Terry. He dominated the AHL and has carved out a decent path to becoming a top-nine winger. In 48 games last year, Terry scored 20 points. Back on a one year deal is Ryan Getzlaf. The franchise icon has completely dwindled down. He scored just five times last season, in the worst division in hockey. The interesting part of him going into the season is if the Ducks will trade Getzlaf. The same could be said for Rickard Rakell, who has a manageable cap hit and is a year away from free agency. The former back-to-back 30-goal scorer had just nine last season, although his 19 assists led the club. Also on the downswing is Jakob Silfverberg, which is bad because instead of trading him for a bundle, they extended him longterm a few deadlines ago. Uh oh! Silfverberg had just 16 points in 2020-21. Like Silfverberg, Adam Henrique is signed for three more seasons. He was not unloaded to Seattle like many thought after scoring 12 goals this past year. Anaheim really missed offense production from former first rounder Isac Lundestrom. He killed penalties and was fine overall defensively, but had just nine points. The very same thing could be said for Sam Steel, who finished with just 12 points. Both need big seasons as they enter the final year on their entry level deals. Max Jones, drafted with Steel, was second on the team with 100 hits. Still, his seven goals was a bit underwhelming. Derek Grant has been a great penalty killing fourth liner for a bit now. His 15 points does not stand out, but it was seventh on the team among forwards. The final spot in the lineup is between Alex Volkov and Nic Deslauriers. Deslauriers is a physical force but that is about it. Volkov emerged as a solid two-way player after being acquired at the deadline from Tampa Bay. He put up eight points in 18 games, which is saying something compared to everyone else’s numbers. Also in the mix are Buddy Robinson and Sam Carrick. Carrick had six points in 13 games last year, while Robinson had none in nine games for Calgary.

Defensemen

The struggling Anaheim defensive corps lost Haydn Fleury to Seattle in the expansion draft, weakening it even more. The healthiest of them in 2020-21 was Cam Fowler. Fowler is still a solid player, but his contract is awful. His 23 points led Anaheim defenders by eight, over Kevin Shattenkirk. Shattenkirk’s best day as a Duck so far has been his day with the Stanley Cup from his time with Tampa Bay. He was a fine two-way defender for the Ducks last season. The health of Hampus Lindholm will be key this season, especially as he will be entering free agency. Lindholm missed all but 18 games in 2020-21. Josh Manson had a rough season in 2020-21 and is also a year from the open market. Manson appeared in just five more games than Lindholm did. 2020 sixth overall pick Jamie Drysdale was rushed to the NHL last year and still put up eight points in 24 games. He is talented but should be sheltered more. A healthy Manson will help that. Jacob Larsson is yet to prove himself as a legitimate NHL defenseman. He has struggled defensively and does not put up points. Kodie Curran tore up Sweden as a point-per-game defender. He went to the AHL last season, putting him 13 points in 24 games. Josh Mahura and Brendan Guhle have been around the Ducks organization for the past few years, but neither have been outstanding.

Goalies

After a second consecutive bad season, John Gibson has fallen down the goaltending power rankings. Yes, the Ducks were awful last year. But Gibson posted much worse numbers than fellow goalies on bad defensive teams like Connor Hellebuyck, Thatcher Demko, and Cal Petersen. His .903 save percentage and 2.98 GAA were unimpressive. With Ryan Miller retiring, Anthony Stolarz will rise to the backup role. He was great in nine games last season. He posted a .926 save percentage with a 2.20 GAA.

Projected Lines

Jakob Silfverberg – Ryan Getzlaf – Rickard Rakell

Max Comtois – Trevor Zegras – Troy Terry

Sam Steel – Adam Henrique – Max Jones

Isac Lundestrom – Derek Grant – Alex Volkov

Extras: Nic Deslauriers, Sam Carrick

Hampus Lindholm – Josh Manson

Cam Fowler – Kevin Shattenkirk

Jacob Larsson – Jamie Drysdale

Extras: Kodie Curran, Josh Mahura, Brendan Guhle

Josh Gibson

Anthony Stolarz

Prediction

The Ducks fell asleep this offseason. After how bad they were last year, doing that probably was not the smartest decision. They could have rented out their cap space, but chose to not get free draft picks. Anaheim could have been an even more Western Arizona, but instead will not reap the benefits. The Ducks have the talent, but the talent has not given them results yet. Will they this year? No matter what, it won’t end in a playoff birth.

The Montreal Canadiens have acquired forward Christian Dvorak from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for a conditional 2022 first round pick and a 2024 2nd-rounder. The first rounder will be the better of the Canadiens or Hurricanes’ pick, unless only one of the two are in the top-ten, then the lower pick goes to Arizona.

The Canadiens made this deal on the back of giving up 2018 third-overall pick Jesperi Kotkaniemi to Carolina following a $6.1 million offer sheet. In return, they received a first and third rounder. For the upcoming season, yes, Dvorak is better than Kotkaniemi. He also comes a lot cheaper. Dvorak is under contract for the next four seasons with a very respectable $4.45 million cap hit. That is very good for a second-line center. Dvorak has already proven to be a solid two-way guy in that role, while Kotkaniemi has not. For nearly the same amount of value, the Habs get the better player. However, they lose about five years in age.

Dvorak, 25, scored 17 goals with 14 assists for 31 points in 56 games for Arizona in 2020-21. In his NHL career, all for the Coyotes, Dvorak had scored 67 goals with 79 assists for 146 points in 302 games.

The Coyotes’ pick brigade extends as they scoop up two quality selections for one of their longer tenured players. The team now has three first rounders and five seconds in the 2022 draft. Hopefully they hit on them. The team is awful right now and trading Dvorak raises the odds of getting the first overall pick. The value is good in this deal but they do get rid of one of the league’s more team friendly deals.

The Philadelphia Phillies have acquired RHPs Kyle Gibson, Ian Kennedy, Hans Crouse, and cash from the Texas Rangers in exchange for RHP Spencer Howard, Kevin Gowdy, and Josh Gessner.

The Phillies needed pitching and boy did they get pitching in this trade. Gibson and Kennedy are both veterans but each has had a very nice season. He has a 3.8 barrel percentage with a 3.69 xERA as his slider has shined throughout the season. Out of nowhere, he became the ace for the Rangers. Their closer was Kennedy, who used to be a starter. He throws his fastball over 80 percent of the time and has a 3.25 xERA this season. Finally, Crouse was MLB Pipeline’s 9th best Rangers prospect. The 2017 2nd-round pick has had a solid season at AA. Considering what they gave up, this is a nice move for the Phillies. Kennedy is a free agent at the end of the year while Gibson has one more year left under contract.

Gibson, 33, has a 2.87 ERA with 94 strikeouts and a 1.177 WHIP in 113 innings for the Rangers this season. In his MLB career, all for Texas and the Minnesota Twins, Gibson has a 4.42 ERA with 997 strikeouts and a 1.397 WHIP in 1267.1 innings pitched.

Kennedy, 36, has a 2.51 ERA with 35 strikeouts and a 1.052 WHIP in 32.1 innings for the Rangers this year. In his MLB career for Texas, the Kansas City Royals, San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks, and New York Yankees, Kennedy has a 4.10 ERA with 1683 strikeouts and a 1.281 WHIP in 1813.2 innings pitched.

Crouse, 22, has a 3.35 ERA with 54 strikeouts and a 0.902 WHIP in 51 innings for AA Frisco this year. In his minor league career, Crouse has a 3.29 ERA with 222 strikeouts and a 1.064 WHIP in 213.1 innings pitched.

The Rangers got three players in exchange for three players, but their side is a lot less exciting. Howard was drafted in the 2nd round of 2017, just ahead of Crouse. He was a major prospect but has not done a whole lot of productive things for the Phillies in his short time with the team. Gowdy was a 2nd rounder in 2016 and Gessner is a young Australian with not a lot of minor league experience.

Howard, 25, has a 5.72 ERA with 31 strikeouts and a 1.482 WHIP in 28.1 innings for the Phillies this year. In his MLB career, all for Philadelphia, Howard has a 5.81 ERA with 54 strikeouts and a 1.557 WHIP in 52.2 innings.

Gowdy, 23, has a 4.46 ERA with 63 strikeouts and a 1.361 WHIP in 61 innings for High-A Jersey Shore this season. In his minor league career, Gowdy has a 4.53 ERA with 125 strikeouts and a 1.551 WHIP in 147 innings.

Gessner, 21, has a 2.21 ERA with 31 strikeouts in 20.1 career minor league innings.